Poseidon MINDSET

Active Shooter Response Protocol in the USA:

We face the unfortunate reality today that at anytime this situation can erupt within our schools, or workplace. Our society, however is not prepared to deal with the reality of these situations. Our institutions have become heavily burdened with a bureaucratic mindset... meaning; it is very difficult to make substantial changes in policy and procedures to react to demands like this. Additionally, our authorities do not appear have the experiential reference, nor leadership to establish the necessary reaction protocol. "According to US"
This may come across as arrogant, but it is the unfortunate reality. As Subject Matter Experts (SME) we take the responsibility to address this important issue

Anyone who has dealt with their HR department, and/or workplace training knows the level of effectiveness of the instruction they promulgate. LOW! First-aid training is now the proverbial "Correspondence course". You can literally get qualified online in your PJ's. Most workplace training standards are set to the self paced-online course designed to get everyone through. If you fail the test, just do it again; by process of elimination you will eventually achieve the standard. Just another box to check, and the end result is that very few organizations are capable of developing REAL and effective training.

Law enforcement (LE) agencies spend most of their budgets on equipment vice training. Almost every LE officer I speak with confirms the lack of training, especially sustainment training (which is extremely important). So while they mean well and do the best they can... their potential is limited by their bureaucratic culture and resultant mindset.

This new threat cannot sustain this MINDSET! This new and real threat requires real solutions that properly inform and prepare every individual to react with great chances of success in the event of a violent intruder. The resultant training must be a product of legitimate experience in dealing with these situations. Those with that experience is a limited few unfortunately, but it is possible. It is crucial to be able to create a learning environment that conveys the awareness, capabilities, and confidence necessary for individuals to be prepared.

The answer should promote a healthy learning environment, and a response protocol that is easy to understand and sustainable.

HERE COME THE BUZZARDS...

I have seen various products and ideas come forward that cost a lot of money and have little to no efficacy relating to preventing or reacting to active shooters.

What doesn't work?

• Double wall controlled entrance
• Metal detectors
• Special windows
• Cameras
• Anything requiring electronic monitoring

Anything electronic will promote a false sense of security and most likely fail when needed. To be mildly effective they require intense training. Metal detectors result in choke points, waste time, and create a false sense of security that is easily defeated.
Who uses the metal detector? What happens when you find a weapon? Anyone who is intent on doing damage will initiate at that check point. Are you ready for that?
Cameras are for post incident investigation. They can provide alerts, but again this requires intense training and monitoring (Costly).

What does work:

• Dynamic scenario training with multiple drills
• Direct communication link (ASR)
•  Trained greeters (retired military, police, teachers)

Dynamic training is a must! Training the whole team on proper response protocol is MANDATORY. This does not guarantee anything, but it does "set you up for success"!

Communications are the biggest problem during a crisis. Radio voice procedure are the weakest link in any emergency. ASR provides a panic button capability to immediately and directly contact first-responders; this is pivotal to initiate an effective response. We have seen no other product that promotes direct, fast, and accurate communications like this.