Increasingly, companies are appreciating the need for realistic and engaging education, simulations and training to ensure all their people, users, customers and key stakeholders are adequately prepared for emergency and crisis events. All agree that many of the skills and preparedness required for such events are not achievable by procedures and policy alone. 

"Running a maritime facility of any kind in Australia is a complex operation." commented Craig Millen, Director Operations at MRD Consultancy. "There are significant and highly evolved guidelines and legislation at the international, federal and state levels that all operators must comply with. Coupled with the practicalities of providing effective leadership and hands-on management throughout the course of an emergency or crisis at such a facility; all those that make up the emergency and crisis management team/s must know instinctively what is required in order to ensure the safety and security of their personnel and the continuous operation of services to public and government sectors." Craig went on to state. 

MRD Consultancy, a premium international consulting company, recently conducted a full crisis leadership and training simulation for one of Australia's largest maritime facilities. Represented at the session were some of Australia's largest and most well-known companies with interests in Australia's import, export, mining and energy sectors. 

"It was really valuable; and enjoyable. We should do this far more often" was noted by one of the attendees, a senior health, safety, security and environment (HSSE) advisor. "I took a lot away from the session" he continued. 

Participants were taken through a realistic problem solving emergency and crisis simulation that entailed:

• Identification of events and incidents that would impact upon operations
• Monitoring of incidents and accurately documenting decisions and resources
• Communication with key stakeholders such as employees, shareholders, vendors, management, media and government agencies
• Evaluating existing emergency and crisis documentation and how it interacted with multiple affected parties
• Prioritisation of resources and assets
• Validating and challenging existing procedures
• Interaction with government and emergency services agencies
• Development of leadership and team management capacity

"The client and everyone that attended are very happy with the outcome. We stimulated a lot of discussion, action points and confirmed areas for consolidation and enhancement. The end result is that one of Australia's largest maritime facilities, along with all those that rely upon its operations, is far more resilient in the event of an emergency or crisis event as a result of this training and education " was how the simulation training was surmised by Craig.

MRD is a premium international consulting company providing specialised solutions to clients in a variety of sectors. Staffed and supported by a network of subject matter experts, they provide executive management education, training, consulting, project management and other specialist services. The company was founded by seasoned corporate and commercial experts with decades of experience in achieving results in any environment.