Tabletop scenario exercises as a training tool for improving response to workplace violence

The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of tabletop scenario exercises in improving threat management teams’ response to workplace violence. Twenty-two threat management teams (TMTs) from a large multinational manufacturing company participated in two tabletop scenario exercises, one of which presented a worker-on-worker bullying case and the other an interpersonal stalking scenario. TMTs assessed the level of the threat, which steps they should take first in the response, how quickly steps needed to be initiated, and who should be involved, following prescribed threat response and incident management protocols developed from security industry standards. Tabletop exercises improved the teams’ ability to correctly assess the scenario’s level of threat and the comprehensiveness of the response. Improvements were particularly noted for teams with smaller caseloads. Tabletop scenario exercises can be valuable tools for evaluating how companies respond to simulated threats of workplace violence and for identifying the successes and gaps in the response.