Crisis preparedness does not emerge on paper, but in practice. Organizations that want to improve their crisis readiness and resilience can draw on a wide range of training formats. Yet we see that many organizations stick to the same familiar exercise types. That feels safe, but it hinders the development of true agility and creativity. In the new issue paper Crisis Preparedness Through Gaming and Simulations, Robbert Meulemeester and Alexander Nieuwborg explore why two persistent pitfalls limit the effectiveness of crisis preparedness and how these challenges can be addressed.
Robbert and Alexander introduce the crisis training toolbox, a framework that distinguishes four key exercise formats: courses, training, simulations and games. Although games have long been part of crisis-related exercises, from early wargaming to contemporary crisis games, they remain significantly underutilized, according to the authors.
They identify two recurring pitfalls: an overreliance on a single type of training and a rigid adherence to standardized formats. To break through these barriers, Robbert and Alexander, building on their experience in game design, outline ten concrete parameters that help organizations better align their exercises with their own learning objectives and challenges. By deliberately varying complexity, pace, dynamics, roles, and scenario design, crisis training becomes more than a box-ticking exercise, it turns into a purposeful learning experience.
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