Public-private partnerships

Sep 1, 1999 12:00 PM, Radford Jones

When the public and private sectors join forces to solve community-based problems - especially those involving critical incident planning and response - terrible events become manageable.

In this age of wide and instant media coverage, the public sector comes under intense scrutiny during times of crisis. Citizens expect disasters to be handled, controlled and contained with utmost speed. Demonstrated effectiveness in handling disasters will maintain the public confidence in the ability of its community and corporate leaders. By combining the best ideas, practices and resources, community life can return to normal within a reasonable time frame.

A public-private partnership is further enhanced when knowledge and expertise from both sectors are joined with the research and skill base of a major university. Combining the resources of the nation's universities with the knowledge and vital real-world experience of the public and private sectors creates a "win-win-win" solution to community problems.

Critical incidents usually involve the private sector. Businesses are adept at handling routine business emergencies - which happen within the normal course of operations - but disastrous events occurring outside those areas require public sector resources. In many locations, little is known about how each sector will respond and handle an event. If partnerships are developed, the result is a coordinated response and resolution of events with minimum interruption of business.

As an academic specialist in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University (MSU), I developed a successful grant proposal to the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, called "Critical Incident Response: Public and Private Cooperation." I am project director for the grant and a critical incident response subcommittee chairperson of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Private Sector Liaison Committee. Much has been written on the need for partnering, but very little on the process or lessons learned.

The proposed program will develop procedures and best practices for publication of a protocol for emergency and critical incident planning, response, recovery and tabletop exercise. Mitigation - the early identification of risk factors and corrective action - will also be incorporated throughout the protocol.

In 1998, I brought together a focus group of emergency services officials, fire, police, and corporate security personnel. The group expressed a need to expose others to critical incident partnerships that develop coordinated public and private sector emergency response. This group of experts brought extensive experience on what does and does not work in responding to fire, explosions, workplace violence and other disasters. They believed experienced professionals must share their knowledge with others that do not have expertise in developing response plans.

The focus group also believed that, although much had been written on the need to conduct joint emergency preparedness, good examples of how the process works best did not exist. The group emphasized that the planning process must include an understanding of available community resources and expertise and how they must be shared, coordinated and managed to resolve a critical incident that threatens public safety. Each member recognized that a disaster to a local business would impact the community in lost jobs, tax revenue and quality of community life.

THE PROCESS OF RISK ASSESSMENT Through the process of risk assessment and planning, gaps in responding resources are identified. The identified gaps can be reduced or eliminated by pooling private or public sector resources and discussing related issues and concerns in advance. My 36 years of experience as manager of Ford Motor Co.'s security and fire operations, and 21 years with the U.S. Secret Service, provide an understanding of limitations in obtaining additional resources prior to an event. The bottom line is that the incident commander, who is responsible for managing and resolving a terrible situation, must have at his disposal all available community resources whether in the public or private domain.

The public and private partnership takes advantage of mutual experience, knowledge and resources. Each brings expertise, a knowledge base particular to their specialty and a sense of the bottom line in using public/private funds and resources to best advantage. A university adds knowledge, research experience and a third-party, neutral position. When you add the independent view of the university perspective, powerful forces are created to link partnership resources and facilitate public/private working relationships. Often, this is the first time the public and private sectors have talked in some detail on the critical incident process.

The protocol provides guidelines on the process for conducting joint risk assessments and developing coordinated emergency planning, response and recovery. Mitigation of risk and guidelines for conducting joint tabletop exercises should be included. These last two areas are commonly overlooked when discussing critical incident procedures.

The private sector must be involved in the entire process, beginning with risk assessment. Who knows risk better than the company or business where the event may occur? Sharing the assessment of risk with the public sector identifies any response shortfall. Planning on how to handle the risks can then occur. If each sector prepares its own assessments and plans in isolation, false assumptions result.

THE MSU PROJECT For the MSU critical incident response project, a spectrum of public and private experts are meeting throughout the state. Representatives meet for one day to exchange best practices and lessons learned. Each meeting is hosted jointly by public and private partners who share responsibilities for providing a meeting site and obtaining local participation. Chrysler Corp., Johnson Controls, Dow Chemical and Pinkerton have participated as private sector partners, providing meeting facilities and lunch.

Elected officials from county and local government along with representatives from the insurance industry have participated in the meetings. Public and private sector non-security managers bring interesting perspectives to the discussion. The sessions last one day and are real roll-up-your-sleeves-and-participate processes. Input from attendees result in the development of a protocol draft of best practices and lessons learned that is sent to each participant for comment. This ensures that all participants remain involved during protocol development.

MSU will develop the final document and print 20,000 copies for statewide distribution to police, fire and emergency services representatives, government officials and the private sector. Through involvement with the IACP, International Security Managers Association and the American Society for Industrial Security, I have formed links with other committees interested in emergency response activities. Private and public sector representatives from these associations are carrying the protocol drafts to their respective associations. This will ensure support and involvement on a national basis. In addition, the protocol will also be placed on professional Web sites and listservs.

A selected Michigan city will test the protocol by participating in a tabletop exercise conducted through interactive video conference. During the development process, the future delivery or instruction of the protocol and critical response via the use of long-distance learning technology to communities in the state will be evaluated. MSU has been involved in long-distance training and education through its Master of Science program in Criminal Justice (offered via the Internet), police executive seminars and mid-level security management programs. This technology will allow for broad dissemination of the protocol.

PROTOCOL APPLIES TO SCHOOLS One community has expressed interest in conducting a school incident involving a chemical disaster, and the exercise is being developed with the school, public and private sectors. The protocol is applicable for school violence or related school incidents, since emergency management follows the basic processes. In fact, school officials have participated in recent regional meetings.

A similar focus group to discuss school violence issues has been formed by the School of Criminal Justice. Educators and representatives from the public sector are meeting to identify issues and best practices in responding to these issues. Coordinating emergency response is at the top of the needs list. Guidelines for school security, how to select a consultant, training and education follow.

The proposed date for completion of the critical incident response protocol is spring 2000. The protocol will be a product of the hard-won expertise of the public, private and academic sectors, a successful synergy of the best practices and vital lessons learned from those who protect public health and safety every day.

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