How we manage information and what we do with it makes the difference between success and failure. In administration, project management and emergency management, getting everyone on the same page is critical. Fortunately, there are some simple concepts presented in the National Incident Management System that can be implemented to assist you in managing information.

One of the main issues that has to be addressed is full-time information management. If we want the operations section to focus on executing tactical activities and command to stay strategically focused by developing major goals, objectives and priorities for the entire team, then it only makes sense to focus information management in the same way. Assigned individuals, units or sections will be tasked with managing all project/incident information to develop a common operating picture by which all team members can make decisions.

Let's break down the information management entities outlined in NIMS and look at the individual parts.

Using a systems approach, let's agree that the development of our common operating picture starts with receiving sensory input. These could include:

• Auditory/verbal, such as radio reports, phone conversations, meetings.
• Visual, including as photographs, maps, geospatial references, pictures, drawings, charts, TV broadcasts and direct observation.
• Intuition, such as reactions, feelings and experience.

These inputs are nothing more than a collection of raw, unprocessed bytes of data. Some circumstances require that we are inundated with lots of verbal data; others involve volumes of printed data. These information management concepts work with them all.

U.S. Air Force Col. John Boyd developed a model he referred to as the “OODA Loop” for pilots engaged in air combat. It has four main points:

• Observation of the current enemy situation, culture, threats, opportunities, body language and past experience.
• Orientation in context of enemy activity, your own situation and threats.
• Decision.
• Action.

Boyd's first two steps develop situational awareness to provide context and enhance the understanding of one's own situation and potential options. We can use this concept in managing our incidents and projects. Observation without orientation often can get us into trouble. The gravity of what's being said often depends on the context and the circumstances of the sender.

Before a fighter pilot is to engage or fire on the adversary, the first two steps help develop and process as much information as rapidly as possible. This correlates to the two subordinate units in NIMS under the planning section: the situation unit and the resources unit. The situation unit focuses on developing every bit of information from the various sources of raw data to provide an up-to-the-minute account of what the conditions are on the incident. If it's a fire, where is it going? What has been destroyed? What is the direction of fire extension? What are the current actions? How are the control strategies affecting the fire spread?

The resources unit maintains and develops current information from various sources on what resources are assigned to the incident and what resources are available to the incident for current and future tactical activities. This unit also plays a large role in planning resource allocation for future needs.

In our system analogy, the second phase of developing a common operation picture is the throughput. This is where we take the multiple sensory inputs and process it. We must verify, validate and confirm all information before allowing commanders and managers to make decisions based on it. A CNN newsfeed in your incident command post or emergency operations center is raw, unverified and unvalidated data — period. Don't react and make decisions based on media reports alone. We want to allow analysts and technical experts to confirm and validate raw data and transform it into usable information or “actionable intelligence.”

While I was deployed during Hurricane Katrina, a colleague relayed the story of a senior public safety official barging into a briefing at a high-level command center and reporting that there were “100 dead bodies in the Superdome, most of them homicide victims.”

My colleague asked, “Can you confirm that?” With much indignation, the official stated, “If it wasn't verified, I wouldn't be here.” A hasty search-and-recovery team was deployed with a very robust security detail. Many hours later, they found only one body awaiting removal, and there was no foul play involved in the death. That was a good lesson in verifying, validating and confirming reports before changing incident priorities.

Under NIMS this verification, validation and analysis function can occur in the situation unit of the planning section or in an activated intelligence/information unit or section. In situations where there is a large volume of data to be processed, two other functions/activities should be considered, as well. These are filtering and prioritization. Decision-makers don't need all the details, all the time. The information management functions should assess who develops what information and who needs that information within the group.

The final phase in our systems analogy is the output of information into the organization. Are there different reports, maps or displays that need to be created and routed to different groups? What are the information exchange requirements of your organization or project team? Perhaps the finance/administration section only requires rosters and numbers of personnel but the operations section requires maps and overlays of the same information. Strike-team leaders may need more tactical detail than branch directors or those managing at the general section levels.

One military model provides for three sets of information to be developed and displayed in the command post:

• Commander's information requirements.
• Priority information requirements.
• Essential elements of information.

These data sets provide current information on the commander's forces, equipment and resources, as well as all information regarding the opposing force's situation, movement, strength and resources. Additionally, the third information set is a real-time report of what's occurring on the battlefield. In an incident command post or EOC, we may record these same information lists and call them the situation status summary, resource status, resources-at-risk summary and major-events log.

The planning section and the information/intelligence section also can provide advanced forecasting and advanced planning to help with decision-making. Another tool is to post forward field observers in the operations section to provide direct observations right to the planning or information/intelligence section.

In project management, these same concepts hold true. Do we really need to inundate those at the strategic or oversight level with all the trivial minutiae? The power of developing a common operating picture when managing projects, regardless of size or complexity, will be evident in the results you see throughout your organization.

How do your personnel measure up in managing information for your team? What types of training might be beneficial? Integrating local government fire and law enforcement personnel in training sessions designed to implement the NIMS information management processes is proving to be beneficial. Fire personnel have a refined ability to develop incident action plans and track personnel and resources at a major event. These skills can be enhanced when we train with our law enforcement counterparts and include their well-developed skills in documenting crime scenes, conducting investigations, and securing and processing sensitive information. We can get the best of both worlds when we train, exercise and play as a unified team.

Developing a common operating picture is the goal of a full-time information management operation. These concepts can help you make better decisions and provide focus for all the players on the team.

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John Linstrom is executive director of The Linco Group, an emergency services consultancy. He's an adjunct faculty member for Texas A&M University and the National Fire Academy. Linstrom currently serves as a battalion chief/paramedic in Apple Valley, Calif. He also serves as commander of the DHS/FEMA DMORT for Region IX and has been involved in the national USAR program since 1996.