If you read any after action report of a major event, you’ll typically find these at the top of the problem list:

1. Lack of communication
2. Lack of coordination
3. Lack of command and control

Communication issues encompass receiving and disseminating information with the impacted public, response and support agencies, the media, and policy makers. Past solutions to perceived communications problems have called for adding more hardware, especially radios, and putting a Public Information Officer on the payroll. These solutions, while comfortable for agencies to embrace, have not gone far enough to address communications problems.

Coordination issues are brought on by lack of ability to form a real-time common operating environment based on situational awareness. Information should be collected and collated in real-time from multiple sources, but existing communications problems have stood in the way. NIMS and large-scale exercises bringing large numbers of agencies together were seen as potential solutions. These days, NIMS seems to consist of a course completion certificate from an online class. And large-scale exercises? They have fallen out of favor due to budget constraints, issues of accountability, and needed plans for improvement.

Command and control certainly doesn’t happen if communication and coordination are not addressed. Lack of coordination among multiple agencies, different levels of government, non-governmental organizations, and the public means that each will act on what they perceive to be the biggest problem or what is within their capabilities to address. Each group has varying and different access to real-time information to form their common operating picture, so uneven responses to disasters will happen.

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If readers are interested, the 9/11 Commission Report is available here. See page 315 for examples of how communications break-downs impacted emergency response at both the New York and Pentagon sites.

There is no magic bullet. However, new communications mediums, particularly social media and online communications channels, offer intriguing possibilities. Agencies should consider non-traditional methods of gathering situational awareness information, use it to form a near real-time common operating picture, and then communicate and disseminate findings in conjunction with traditional communications channels. Using social media channels to establish an agency as a credible source of information and to build a network/community does require a significant investment in time, program development, and design by communications experts. Just as amateur radio operators were incorporated into emergency communications plans decades ago, adding a Social Media ICS position to function during an event should be a routine activation.

If we accept the tenet that all disasters and responses are local, we should accept that those impacted are local as well. Not only are these people our customers and the focus of our response efforts, they also have real-time intelligence about disasters and are in a position to amplify messages that need to be delivered within impacted areas.

The public is not waiting for agencies to catch up to current standards in communication. Since Hurricane Katrina, social media has become a prominent way for the public to share information, rumors, resources, and the need for help. They expect to be informed in the same channel that they use to communicate. If agencies are not a part of the conversation, then they are missing an opportunity to leverage all aspects of the public’s willingness to help.

In future entries, expect a discussion of the three social media components you should consider adding:
1. Establishing a network and good will in advance of when it’s needed;
2. Developing a comprehensive communication plan including key resources to contact online (amplifiers);
3. Monitoring conversation for opportunities to help, correct misinformation and to improve situational awareness during a crisis.

Feel free to contact me at abetteremergency@gmail.com today to discuss how best to incorporate social media into your agency, business or group’s communications plans.