HSEEP Policy and Guidance
Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP)
Exercises are a key component of national preparedness — they provide the whole community with the opportunity to shape planning, assess and validate capabilities, and address areas for improvement. HSEEP provides a set of guiding principles for exercise and evaluation programs, as well as a common approach to exercise program management, design and development, conduct, evaluation, and improvement planning.
- Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) 2020
- What's New and Different
- HSEEP Frequently Asked Questions
- HSEEP Template Guide
HSEEP Best Practices Guides & Tools
NED recognized that exercise practitioners have struggled to adapt exercises to the unique challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has produced. NED collected and compiled lessons learned and best practices from across the whole community of exercise professionals related to two topics: Virtual Exercise Best Practices and Safe Exercise Practices for In-person Events and have posted the new material below:
- Virtual Exercise Best Practice Guide
- Virtual Exercise Best Practice Considerations Tool
- Safe Exercise Best Practice Guide
Additional Resources and Training
- Short Videos: FEMA's National Exercise Division (NED) developed a series of short videos that provide a brief overview of topics related to the design, development, conduct, and evaluation of exercises. You may access the complete video series at HSEEP Video Series - YouTube
- Webinars: FEMA will continue to conduct additional HSEEP Webinars in 2021. Continue to monitor HSEEP Webinars for updates and to register for a session.
- Training Materials: The 2020 Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) K/L0146 training material has been approved by EMI. Please visit the EMI HSEEP webpage for Additional information: https://training.fema.gov/programs/hseep.
Select a phase of the exercise cycle to view related HSEEP templates.
Key factors drive the exercise design and development process. Exercise practitioners use the intent and guidance of their elected and appointed officials and the exercise program priorities to shape the key concepts and planning considerations for exercises. In designing and developing individual exercises, exercise planning team members are identified to schedule planning meetings, identify and develop exercise objectives, design the scenario, create documentation, plan exercise conduct and evaluation, and coordinate logistics.
An effective exercise program is an essential component of our national preparedness as it validates plans, tests operational capabilities, maintains leadership effectiveness, and examines ways we utilize the whole community. Exercise program management involves a collaborative approach that integrates resources, organizations, and individuals in order to identify and achieve program priorities.
Exercise conduct involves activities essential to conducting exercises such as preparing for exercise play, managing exercise play, and conducting immediate exercise wrap-up activities. Throughout these efforts, the engagement of elected and appointed officials by practitioners will ensure that the exercise is addressing the guidance and intent of officials.
Exercise evaluation is the cornerstone of an exercise and maintains the functional link between exercise and improvement planning. Through exercise evaluation, organizations assess the capabilities needed to accomplish a mission, function, or objective. Effective exercise evaluation involves planning for exercise evaluation, observing and collecting data during exercise conduct, analyzing data, and reporting exercise outcomes.
Exercises afford organizations the opportunity to evaluate capabilities and assess progress toward meeting capability targets in a controlled, low-risk setting. An effective corrective action program develops improvement plans that are dynamic documents, with corrective actions continually monitored and implemented as part of improving preparedness.
Exercise Evaluation Guides (EEGS) provide a consistent tool to guide exercise observation and data collection. EEGs are aligned to exercise objectives and core capabilities, and list the relevant capability targets and critical tasks. These targets and critical tasks may be drawn from the National Preparedness Goal and the five national planning frameworks, a threat/hazard identification and risk assessment product, or from an organization’s own plans and assessments.