Insider risk in security simulation and tabletop exercises is uncomfortable to discuss and expensive to ignore. Security arrangements around tabletop exercises are tested by adversaries, not by auditors. The version of the wider corporate security practice agenda described in the manual and the version practised on the floor tend to diverge over time. Comparative studies of security simulation and tabletop exercises across sectors find the same handful of failure points recurring. Participants test their assumptions about the corporate security practice capability against scenarios designed to break weak ones. The outcome is a practitioner who can hold a position on tabletop exercises and revise it on evidence. It is pitched for practitioners with responsibility for security simulation and tabletop exercises, not for observers of it. It establishes a shared vocabulary for tabletop exercises so that teams can disagree productively about it. Participants leave with a plan for this part of corporate security practice sized to what their organisation can realistically absorb.
Expected Learning Outcomes
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Assign clear ownership for each element of security simulation and tabletop exercises across the functions involved.
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Design layered controls for tabletop exercises across deterrence, detection, delay and response.
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Recognise early indicators that security simulation and tabletop exercises is drifting away from its intended design.
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Build the reporting on tabletop exercises that senior management can act on.
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Communicate the purpose of security simulation and tabletop exercises to those who have to comply with it.
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Balance security requirements in tabletop exercises against operational practicality.
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Coordinate with civil defence, police and external authorities on security simulation and tabletop exercises.
Who Should Attend
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Project and programme managers whose delivery depends on security simulation and tabletop exercises.
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Executives responsible for approving investment in tabletop exercises.
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Business continuity and crisis managers covering security simulation and tabletop exercises.
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Training and development staff building internal capability in tabletop exercises.
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Security managers and officers responsible for security simulation and tabletop exercises.
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Investigation and loss prevention specialists working on tabletop exercises.
Course Modules
Open any module to see its sessions and topics.
01
Security simulation and tabletop exercises: incident response and escalation
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Assessing the threat to security simulation and tabletop exercises specifically, not generically
Check that controls on security simulation and tabletop exercises cover deterrence, detection, delay and response.
Agree what will be standardised in tabletop exercises and what will not.
Distinguish symptoms from causes when security simulation and tabletop exercises underperforms.
Protect sensitive information relating to tabletop exercises from casual disclosure.
Session 2Coordinating with external authorities on tabletop exercises
Verify identity checks applied at entry points relevant to security simulation and tabletop exercises.
Set the review interval for tabletop exercises and who attends.
Assess contractor and third-party exposure within security simulation and tabletop exercises.
Prepare the response for the most likely failure in tabletop exercises.
