Building Partnerships: One Table at a Time

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Building Partnerships One Table at a Time

• 2007 NCFPD Education Conference
• Gordon Meriwether
• 04.16.07

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The time to be exchanging business cards is not
over the bodies of the victims. Dr. John Tilden,
Michigan Department of Agriculture March 2004
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The Uriah Group, Inc.

• Founded in 2002 as a veteran-owned small business
• Privately held
• S Corporation
• Located in Falls Church, Virginia
• Professional and educated staff (MBAs)
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certified
  staff
• DHS-sponsored Secret clearance
• First Exercise in Maryland in March 2004
• 70 Exercises/workshops 11,000 people trained

Building public-private partnerships in support
of the nations infrastructure
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Reality Based Exercises (RBXsm)and Workshops
(70)

• Retail operations
• Restaurant Association of Maryland
• HyVee (Iowa)
• Sodexho (Food Service)
• Florida (Grocers, Restaurants, Schools)
• Wawa, Inc. (C-Stores)
• WIFSS (QSR)
• Distributors
• Alex Lee, Inc. (North Carolina)
• Publix Supermarkets (Florida)
• Los Angeles Wholesale Terminal Market
• Processors and Packing Houses
• Georgia (Poultry)
• Alex Lee, Inc (Dairy)
• Massachusetts (Dairy)
• Washington State (Dairy)
• Sunkist Growers (Produce)
• Harvesting and Farm
• Indiana

• Schools
• LA Unified School District
• State Regulatory
• Virginia
• Texas
• Federal Regulatory
• USDA FSIS (Beef)
• USDA FNS (Schools)
• Transportation
• Baltimore Light Rail
• Intelligence / Investigation
• FBI Agroterrorism Symposium
• Utilities
• Kansas City
• Pandemics and Natural Disasters
• Healthcare Foodservice Management

Education MSU Food Security Graduate Program
WIFSS _at_ UC Davis Agroterrorism NRA Food
Security Handbook The Uriah Group Food Security
Primer HFM Pandemic Natural Disasters
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What Is an RBXsm?

• A video-based, free-flow exercises based on
  simulation and gaming processes and a recognition
  of spontaneity and chaotic response in a crisis.
  The RBXsm objectives are to
• Simulate real world situations in an informal,
  but structured forum (chaos).
• Stimulate discussion of various issues regarding
  an imposed hypothetical situation.
• Stress management and existing plans, policies,
  and procedures.
• Assess needs of the business to guide the
  prevention, response to, and recovery from the
  defined event.
• Analyze the results for trends in crisis
  management and decision-making

A Laboratory!
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DHS Exercise Methodology Building-Block Approach
Full-Scale Exercise
Capability
Seminars
Planning/Training
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Reality Based Exercises(RBXsm)

• Adaptable Product offerings
• Keynote/seminar 1 2 Hours
• Workshop 2 6 Hours
• Tabletop Exercise 4 6 Hours
• Multi-day Exercise Various
• Customer Base (jobs)
• Business 20
• Associations/trade shows 20
• Academia 5
• Local government 20
• State government 20
• Federal government 15

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RBXsm Development Process
Contract
Storyboard
SAC
Draft Scenario
SAC
Business Model
Draft Script
SAC
Situation Manual
MSEL
Video Production
SAC
Debrief
SAC
Exercise
Final AAR
Injects
Draft AAR
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Video
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RBXsmDynamics at Play

• Human nature
• Fragmentation of decision-making authority
• Psychological impact of fear
• Ego
• Self interest
• Crisis management
• Turmoil ignition and sustainment
• Risk communications
• Conflict management
• Conflict between personal and community priorities

• Expectations management
• Public
• Media impacts
• Litigation influences
• Political impacts
• Community development
• Procedural ignorance and arrogance
• Preparedness
• Team building
• Relationship development and sustainment
• Organizational dependencies
• Recovery impacts and requirements
• Stovepipe and integrated training

Individual concerns have a major impact
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Public Private PartnershipRBXsm Critical Factors

• Planning The building of partnerships begins
  with planning
• Steering Advisory Committee
• Participation of all stakeholders
• Inclusive realism of the scenario
• Model Business model to Government response
• Start with the business and grow layers
  sequentially
• Industry first response
• Government first responders
• Controls Minimize control or restraints
• Free play is critical to allow interaction and
  partner building
• Measurement can be part of the partner building
  not a impedance

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Simplicity wins in a crisis!