What is a Tabletop Exercise?

Tabletop exercises are not just simulations of potential crisis situations, they allow businesses to test their emergency response plans and procedures in a safe environment.  They are good for testing the procedures, running order, even timings of your recovery plans.

Once completed, ensure your plans are updated and re-distributed – one neat way to do this is through the Documents feature of the Calling Tree solution.

Here are what we consider the 20 top benefits of tabletop exercises for business continuity:

1. Identify gaps: Tabletop exercises can help businesses identify gaps in their emergency response plans and procedures, allowing them to address these gaps before a real crisis occurs.
2. Test plans: Tabletop exercises allow businesses to test their emergency response plans and procedures in a safe, controlled environment.
3. Improve response time: Tabletop exercises can help businesses improve their response time during a crisis by identifying areas where response times can be improved.
4. Build teamwork: Tabletop exercises can help build teamwork and collaboration among employees, allowing them to work together more effectively during a crisis.
5. Enhance communication: Tabletop exercises can help businesses enhance communication between different departments and stakeholders, allowing for a more coordinated response during a crisis.
6. Reduce downtime: Tabletop exercises can help businesses reduce downtime during a crisis by identifying ways to quickly restore critical systems and processes.
7. Increase preparedness: Tabletop exercises can help increase preparedness among employees by providing them with the knowledge and skills needed to respond to a crisis.
8. Reduce costs: Tabletop exercises can help businesses reduce the costs associated with a crisis by identifying ways to minimize the impact of the crisis.
9. Enhance decision-making: Tabletop exercises can help enhance decision-making by allowing employees to practice making decisions in a simulated crisis scenario.
10. Increase confidence: Tabletop exercises can help increase employee confidence in their ability to respond to a crisis by providing them with hands-on experience.
11. Test new technologies: Tabletop exercises can provide a platform to test new technologies that can improve response times and reduce the impact of a crisis.
12. Identify vulnerabilities: Tabletop exercises can help businesses identify vulnerabilities in their systems and processes, allowing them to address these vulnerabilities before a crisis occurs.
13. Train new employees: Tabletop exercises can be used to train new employees on emergency response procedures, allowing them to quickly integrate into the team during a crisis.
14. Validate plans: Tabletop exercises can be used to validate existing emergency response plans and procedures, ensuring that they are effective and up-to-date.
15. Improve stakeholder relations: Tabletop exercises can help businesses improve stakeholder relations by demonstrating their commitment to preparedness and response.
16. Increase regulatory compliance: Tabletop exercises can help businesses increase regulatory compliance by identifying areas where compliance can be improved.
17. Test assumptions: Tabletop exercises can be used to test assumptions about the effectiveness of emergency response plans and procedures.
18. Enhance risk management: Tabletop exercises can help enhance risk management by identifying potential crisis scenarios and the associated risks.
19. Develop contingency plans: Tabletop exercises can be used to develop contingency plans for potential crisis scenarios that have not yet occurred.
20. Foster a culture of preparedness: Tabletop exercises can help foster a culture of preparedness within a business, ensuring that employees are always thinking about potential crisis scenarios and how to respond to them.

Thought of a number 21? Let us know in the comments.