Complete EM Podcast

In this second of two episodes we devote to policing and active shooter incidents, recently-retired, police LT. Fred Leland describes the differences between management and leadership; mistakes and gross negligence; success and failure during response. He talks about the role of leaders and how written policies and procedures shouldn't be used as a substitute for good judgement or as simply a shield against risk because in both cases, they seldom work.

What might Jack Nicholson's Col. Jessep, law enforcement and emergency management have in common? Good reason to conduct routine, honest, self-evaluation. In this episode of the Complete EM Podcast, we discuss the current state of policing given recent active shooter events, what's now affecting policing outcomes, and where we go from here.  And while we talk a lot about law enforcement, emergency managers will quickly hear (and feel) the program simularities and walk away with some great insights with which to improve their programs.

Severe weather forecasters often feel the heat when it comes to getting forecasts correct and communicating clear, useful information to all members of the public. They know understated, overstated or just plain incorrect forecasts can cause people to tune-out, so they're always looking for ways to better communicate forecast uncertainty. In this second of two episodes on emergency weather, Rob Dale explains the practice of forecasting, what part of that work is easy, and what part involves nuance and finesse that computers cannot yet provide.

Many emergency managers understand the vital role that meteorologists play in emergency management, but for one reason or another, the two disciplines seldom get a chance to discuss collaboration. Fortunately, technology is changing that by making it easier for weather experts and emergency managers to communicate before, during and after weather disasters. In this episode, we speak with someone who has unique insights into the WX/EM relationship, having worked both sides of it for several years.

How are emergency management training topics selected? What makes for a good course outcome? What makes for a great instructor? We explore each of these questions and more with a former director of course development and delivery at the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC).

Remember those five mission areas that FEMA developed: prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery? Few disciplines have more work across ALL five mission areas than transportation agencies. In this episode, we speak with a long-time emergency manager, now a professor teaching emergency management to the next generation of transportation agency officials. She shares some surprising facts about the US and world reliance on seemingly mundane transportation systems and what it's like to view emergency management through the eyes of a transportation official.

All-Hazard Incident Management Teams (AH-IMTs) have become more common but not necessarily better understood. With 200 or so teams now organized in the U.S., we thought we should spend a little time exploring the topic of team creation and maintenance. In this episode, we speak with someone who helped form some the earliest teams and who continues to play a large role in AH-IMT development.

What factors distinguish risk and crisis communications? Does each form of communication require the same tools, timing and techniques to achieve success? What role do social media play in inciting and calming fear? In this second part of our interview with Dr. Peter Sandman, he helps us answer each of these important questions.

Is fear a superfluous or counter-productive part of risk communication… or is it an essential element? Emergency managers work every day to increase disaster awareness and inspire preparedness. Many wonder if responsibly scaring people is a necessary part of that work. In this episode, we ask a world-renowned expert in risk communication if fear works, when it doesn’t and what makes for effective risk communication. We also discuss how little, in some respects, risk communication has changed over the past 2500 years.

Where a government places their emergency management program on a city or county organization chart makes a difference. Placement naturally transfers operational, administrative, community engagement or other aspects of program culture that greatly influence newly integrated programs. In this episode, we explore one of the few placements of an emergency management program within a planning and environmental department, and how the placement affects emergency management work, including resiliency.