Corrective Action Program

To put it simply, this is the "Why" behind exercising our systems, validating our plans and procedures, rehearsing our concepts, and improving all aspects.  

In order to meet our goals and objectives, we must recognize the importance of identifying improvements that are needed and the actions required to implement them.  Simply exercising your organization will not produce the desired result without identifying shortcomings and flaws within our systems.  Utilizing an after-action review process and implementing an improvement plan will prove vital to all entities.  All areas must be assessed for performance.

Once exercise data is analyzed, organizations should perform an additional qualitative assessment to identify potential corrective actions. Corrective actions are concrete, actionable steps that are intended to resolve capability gaps and shortcomings identified in exercises or real-world events. In developing corrective actions, appointed officials or their designees should first review and revise the draft AAR, as needed, prior to the After-Action Meeting (AAM) to confirm that the issues identified by evaluators are valid and require resolution. The reviewer then identifies which issues fall within their organization’s authority, and assume responsibility for taking action on those issues. Finally, they determine an initial list of appropriate corrective actions to resolve identified issues.

The organization’s reviewer should use the following questions to guide their discussion when developing corrective actions:

• What changes need to be made to plans and procedures to improve performance?

• What changes need to be made to organizational structures to improve performance?

• What changes need to be made to management processes to improve performance?

• What changes to equipment or resources are needed to improve performance?

• What training is needed to improve performance?

• What are the lessons learned for approaching similar problems in the future?

Corrective Action Tracking and Implementation

Corrective actions captured in the AAR/IP should be tracked and continually reported on until completion. The TEMA Exercise Manager, with assistance from the TEMA Planning Section, is responsible for tracking and reporting on their progress in implementing corrective actions. By tracking corrective actions to completion, preparedness stakeholders are able to demonstrate that exercises have yielded tangible improvements in preparedness. Stakeholders should also ensure there is a system in place to validate previous corrective actions that have been successfully implemented. These efforts should be considered part of a wider continuous improvement process that applies prior to, during, and after an exercise is completed.

Conducting exercises and documenting the strengths, areas for improvement, and associated corrective actions is an important part of the National Preparedness System, and contributes to the strengthening of preparedness across the Whole Community and achievement of the National Preparedness Goal. Over time, exercises should yield observable improvements in preparedness for future exercises and real-world events.

TEMA will track all Corrective Action items in accordance with the Corrective Action Program and report to applicable stakeholders on the status of those actions. These Corrective Actions will be used to advise and drive gap analyses and other program goals, at the discretion of the Director, or his/her delegated representatives.