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National Engagement for Draft Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets and User Guide
Attached for your review is a working draft of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) EOC
Skillsets User Guide which accompanies a set of EOC Skillsets The NIMS EOC Skillset User Guide and
skillsets are designed as tools to provide a flexible approach to qualifying EOC personnel They can be
used by EOC leaders at any level of government or within the private sector and nongovernmental
organizations (NGO) The Guidersquos purpose is to explain what EOC Skillsets are and how to use them to
construct EOC Position Task Books (PTB) supporting EOC qualification and certification
FEMA developed the skillsets and guide in collaboration with a range of stakeholders In order to further
expand our engagement efforts we are seeking your ideas and input on this working draft To ensure all
feedback is properly handled please use the submission form available at
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-systemnational-engagement All feedback
should be submitted using the submission form to FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov by 500 pm EDT on
May 9 2018
We welcome all ideas and comments and are specifically seeking inputs on
- Any areas of the User Guide that are difficult to understand
- The breakdown of the set of skillsets ie whether they should be broken down further or
combined
- Potential additional skillsets
- Potential gaps in EOC Skillset tasks and whether the current Task Codes are appropriate
- Modifications to tasks and behaviors for the EOC Director job titleposition qualification and
position task book
- Any additional EOC tools that would be useful for your organization
-
We look forward to receiving your feedback on this endeavor For further information on NIMS and
National Qualification System (NQS) national engagement visit httpswwwfemagovnational-
qualification-system or send an email to FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
Additionally if you would like to be an early adaptor of the EOC skillsets or any upcoming EOC Tools
please let us know
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
Contents
Introduction 1
Background 2
How to Use EOC Skillsets 4 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure 4 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books 5 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify Personnel 7
Appendices 8 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template 8 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks 10 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples 12 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk 16 Appendix 5 Definitions 17 Appendix 6 Reference List 18
EOC Skillsets User Guide 1
ii NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
1 EOC Skillsets User Guide 2 Introduction
3 Across the United States Emergency Operations Centers (EOC) play a critical role in managing
4 incidents large and small By bringing together representatives from diverse organizations staff
5 in EOCs facilitate the flow of resources and information across organizational lines EOCs vary
6 widelymdashsome support multiple disciplines in a single jurisdiction and some support a single
7 discipline across multiple jurisdictions A ll operate under varying authorities with diverse
8 resources and missions
9 This diversity of EOCs can create challenges when communicating and sharing personnel across
10 EOC organizationsmdashwhich may use different titles for positions performing similar functions or
11 align different responsibilities to similarly titled positions EOC Skillsets provide a flexible
12 approach to EOC qualifications letting you as an EOC Leader build position qualifications
13 according to your organizationrsquos needs and resources As a part of the National Qualification
14 System (NQS) EOC Skillsets support standardized qualifications for EOC personnel while
15 remaining flexible enough to accommodate EOCs of all sizes and kinds You can mix and match
16 skillsets to create the right combination of skills and abilities for your EOC
17 Using these skillsets allows you to build the capabilities and qualifications of EOC personnel
18 expanding the network of qualified EOC personnel who can deploy nationwide The skillsets
19 also help create a national vocabulary so that whenever you need to request additional personnel
20 to support your EOC you can clearly communicate the desired capabilities
21 The ldquoEOC Skillsets User Guiderdquo is for use by any EOC leader at any level of government or
22 within the private sector and nongovernmental organizations (NGO) Its purpose is to explain
23 what EOC Skillsets are and how to use them to construct EOC Position Task Books (PTB)
24 enabling EOC qualification and certification
25 EOC Skillsets are not intended to replace existing qualification systems but to provide m inimum
26 baselines for areas where qualifications do not exist Participating in NQS or using EOC Skillsets
27 is not required for FEMA grant eligibility However the EOC Skillsets help improve the
28 professionalization of EOC personnel and contribute to the resiliency of our Nation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 1
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
29 Background
30 Mutual aid involves sharing resources including personnel between jurisdictions or
31 organizations1 The National Incident Management System (NIMS) describes standard structures
32 and vocabulary to enable personnel to work together no matter where they come from For on-
33 scene personnel these standards include the Incident Command System (ICS) which defines
34 common position titles and responsibilities
35 National Qualification System (NQS)
36 NIMS builds a foundation to support the development of a national qualification systemmdashOr NQS which 37 provides jurisdictions and organizations with guidance to certify their personnel according to national 38 baseline qualifications Through NQS FEMA is developing a common language tool set and approach 39 for qualifying certifying and credentialing deployable incident personnelmdashenabling mutual aid partners to 40 communicate resource needs quickly and precisely
41 For more information on NQS see wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
42 Flexibility The Need for Skillsets
43 Flexibility is a guiding principle in NIMS meaning that NIMS structures are adaptable to any
44 situation This applies well to EOCs which do not have a common organizational structure
45 equivalent to ICS and vary widely in terms of authorities resources and missions You as an
46 EOC leader are best positioned to understand these variables and determine how to organize
47 your EOC As a result EOC position titles and responsibilities are also quite diverse EOC
48 skillets define tasks associated with common EOC functions giving you building blocks to
49 define qualifications for your EOC personnel no matter what organization structure or position
50 titles you use Additionally EOC Skillsets facilitate mutual aid by establishing common
51 terminology for defining requirements when requesting personnel while remaining flexible enough
52 to accommodate the diversity of EOC organizational structures across the Nation
53 Common EOC Functions
54 Regardless of structure EOC staff typically perform these common functions
55 Collect analyze and share information
56 Support resource needs and requests including allocation and tracking
57 Coordinate plans and determine current and future needs and
58 In some cases provide coordination and policy direction
59 EOC Skillsets describe these functions in terms of discrete responsibilities aligned with
60 demonstrable tasks that leaders can use to build EOC PTBs qualify personnel and define
61 requirements when requesting personnel through mutual aid
1 For additional information on common mutual aid practices terminology and processes see the NIMS Guideline
for Mutual Aid httpswwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
2 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
62 How Are Skillsets Different from Position Task Books (PTB)
63 Many incident personnel are already familiar with PTBs which define demonstrable tasks for on-scene 64 positions Performing these tasks supports a personrsquos qualification for a position
65 EOC Skillsets are different because unlike on-scene positions which exist within ICS EOCs have no 66 standard organizational structure and no standard to follow in building positions and PTBs EOC leaders 67 can therefore mix and match skillsets to build EOC PTBs that align with the roles and responsibilities of 68 positions in their EOCs
69 Like PTBs skillsets establish minimum performance criteria Unlike PTBs skillsets can be combined in 70 multiple ways to describe a variety of positions This allows EOC leaders to qualify their personnel with 71 the skills or combination of skills necessary to perform the functions of their EOC
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72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
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Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
Contents
Introduction 1
Background 2
How to Use EOC Skillsets 4 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure 4 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books 5 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify Personnel 7
Appendices 8 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template 8 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks 10 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples 12 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk 16 Appendix 5 Definitions 17 Appendix 6 Reference List 18
EOC Skillsets User Guide 1
ii NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
1 EOC Skillsets User Guide 2 Introduction
3 Across the United States Emergency Operations Centers (EOC) play a critical role in managing
4 incidents large and small By bringing together representatives from diverse organizations staff
5 in EOCs facilitate the flow of resources and information across organizational lines EOCs vary
6 widelymdashsome support multiple disciplines in a single jurisdiction and some support a single
7 discipline across multiple jurisdictions A ll operate under varying authorities with diverse
8 resources and missions
9 This diversity of EOCs can create challenges when communicating and sharing personnel across
10 EOC organizationsmdashwhich may use different titles for positions performing similar functions or
11 align different responsibilities to similarly titled positions EOC Skillsets provide a flexible
12 approach to EOC qualifications letting you as an EOC Leader build position qualifications
13 according to your organizationrsquos needs and resources As a part of the National Qualification
14 System (NQS) EOC Skillsets support standardized qualifications for EOC personnel while
15 remaining flexible enough to accommodate EOCs of all sizes and kinds You can mix and match
16 skillsets to create the right combination of skills and abilities for your EOC
17 Using these skillsets allows you to build the capabilities and qualifications of EOC personnel
18 expanding the network of qualified EOC personnel who can deploy nationwide The skillsets
19 also help create a national vocabulary so that whenever you need to request additional personnel
20 to support your EOC you can clearly communicate the desired capabilities
21 The ldquoEOC Skillsets User Guiderdquo is for use by any EOC leader at any level of government or
22 within the private sector and nongovernmental organizations (NGO) Its purpose is to explain
23 what EOC Skillsets are and how to use them to construct EOC Position Task Books (PTB)
24 enabling EOC qualification and certification
25 EOC Skillsets are not intended to replace existing qualification systems but to provide m inimum
26 baselines for areas where qualifications do not exist Participating in NQS or using EOC Skillsets
27 is not required for FEMA grant eligibility However the EOC Skillsets help improve the
28 professionalization of EOC personnel and contribute to the resiliency of our Nation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 1
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
29 Background
30 Mutual aid involves sharing resources including personnel between jurisdictions or
31 organizations1 The National Incident Management System (NIMS) describes standard structures
32 and vocabulary to enable personnel to work together no matter where they come from For on-
33 scene personnel these standards include the Incident Command System (ICS) which defines
34 common position titles and responsibilities
35 National Qualification System (NQS)
36 NIMS builds a foundation to support the development of a national qualification systemmdashOr NQS which 37 provides jurisdictions and organizations with guidance to certify their personnel according to national 38 baseline qualifications Through NQS FEMA is developing a common language tool set and approach 39 for qualifying certifying and credentialing deployable incident personnelmdashenabling mutual aid partners to 40 communicate resource needs quickly and precisely
41 For more information on NQS see wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
42 Flexibility The Need for Skillsets
43 Flexibility is a guiding principle in NIMS meaning that NIMS structures are adaptable to any
44 situation This applies well to EOCs which do not have a common organizational structure
45 equivalent to ICS and vary widely in terms of authorities resources and missions You as an
46 EOC leader are best positioned to understand these variables and determine how to organize
47 your EOC As a result EOC position titles and responsibilities are also quite diverse EOC
48 skillets define tasks associated with common EOC functions giving you building blocks to
49 define qualifications for your EOC personnel no matter what organization structure or position
50 titles you use Additionally EOC Skillsets facilitate mutual aid by establishing common
51 terminology for defining requirements when requesting personnel while remaining flexible enough
52 to accommodate the diversity of EOC organizational structures across the Nation
53 Common EOC Functions
54 Regardless of structure EOC staff typically perform these common functions
55 Collect analyze and share information
56 Support resource needs and requests including allocation and tracking
57 Coordinate plans and determine current and future needs and
58 In some cases provide coordination and policy direction
59 EOC Skillsets describe these functions in terms of discrete responsibilities aligned with
60 demonstrable tasks that leaders can use to build EOC PTBs qualify personnel and define
61 requirements when requesting personnel through mutual aid
1 For additional information on common mutual aid practices terminology and processes see the NIMS Guideline
for Mutual Aid httpswwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
2 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
62 How Are Skillsets Different from Position Task Books (PTB)
63 Many incident personnel are already familiar with PTBs which define demonstrable tasks for on-scene 64 positions Performing these tasks supports a personrsquos qualification for a position
65 EOC Skillsets are different because unlike on-scene positions which exist within ICS EOCs have no 66 standard organizational structure and no standard to follow in building positions and PTBs EOC leaders 67 can therefore mix and match skillsets to build EOC PTBs that align with the roles and responsibilities of 68 positions in their EOCs
69 Like PTBs skillsets establish minimum performance criteria Unlike PTBs skillsets can be combined in 70 multiple ways to describe a variety of positions This allows EOC leaders to qualify their personnel with 71 the skills or combination of skills necessary to perform the functions of their EOC
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 3
72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
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Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
1 EOC Skillsets User Guide 2 Introduction
3 Across the United States Emergency Operations Centers (EOC) play a critical role in managing
4 incidents large and small By bringing together representatives from diverse organizations staff
5 in EOCs facilitate the flow of resources and information across organizational lines EOCs vary
6 widelymdashsome support multiple disciplines in a single jurisdiction and some support a single
7 discipline across multiple jurisdictions A ll operate under varying authorities with diverse
8 resources and missions
9 This diversity of EOCs can create challenges when communicating and sharing personnel across
10 EOC organizationsmdashwhich may use different titles for positions performing similar functions or
11 align different responsibilities to similarly titled positions EOC Skillsets provide a flexible
12 approach to EOC qualifications letting you as an EOC Leader build position qualifications
13 according to your organizationrsquos needs and resources As a part of the National Qualification
14 System (NQS) EOC Skillsets support standardized qualifications for EOC personnel while
15 remaining flexible enough to accommodate EOCs of all sizes and kinds You can mix and match
16 skillsets to create the right combination of skills and abilities for your EOC
17 Using these skillsets allows you to build the capabilities and qualifications of EOC personnel
18 expanding the network of qualified EOC personnel who can deploy nationwide The skillsets
19 also help create a national vocabulary so that whenever you need to request additional personnel
20 to support your EOC you can clearly communicate the desired capabilities
21 The ldquoEOC Skillsets User Guiderdquo is for use by any EOC leader at any level of government or
22 within the private sector and nongovernmental organizations (NGO) Its purpose is to explain
23 what EOC Skillsets are and how to use them to construct EOC Position Task Books (PTB)
24 enabling EOC qualification and certification
25 EOC Skillsets are not intended to replace existing qualification systems but to provide m inimum
26 baselines for areas where qualifications do not exist Participating in NQS or using EOC Skillsets
27 is not required for FEMA grant eligibility However the EOC Skillsets help improve the
28 professionalization of EOC personnel and contribute to the resiliency of our Nation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 1
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
29 Background
30 Mutual aid involves sharing resources including personnel between jurisdictions or
31 organizations1 The National Incident Management System (NIMS) describes standard structures
32 and vocabulary to enable personnel to work together no matter where they come from For on-
33 scene personnel these standards include the Incident Command System (ICS) which defines
34 common position titles and responsibilities
35 National Qualification System (NQS)
36 NIMS builds a foundation to support the development of a national qualification systemmdashOr NQS which 37 provides jurisdictions and organizations with guidance to certify their personnel according to national 38 baseline qualifications Through NQS FEMA is developing a common language tool set and approach 39 for qualifying certifying and credentialing deployable incident personnelmdashenabling mutual aid partners to 40 communicate resource needs quickly and precisely
41 For more information on NQS see wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
42 Flexibility The Need for Skillsets
43 Flexibility is a guiding principle in NIMS meaning that NIMS structures are adaptable to any
44 situation This applies well to EOCs which do not have a common organizational structure
45 equivalent to ICS and vary widely in terms of authorities resources and missions You as an
46 EOC leader are best positioned to understand these variables and determine how to organize
47 your EOC As a result EOC position titles and responsibilities are also quite diverse EOC
48 skillets define tasks associated with common EOC functions giving you building blocks to
49 define qualifications for your EOC personnel no matter what organization structure or position
50 titles you use Additionally EOC Skillsets facilitate mutual aid by establishing common
51 terminology for defining requirements when requesting personnel while remaining flexible enough
52 to accommodate the diversity of EOC organizational structures across the Nation
53 Common EOC Functions
54 Regardless of structure EOC staff typically perform these common functions
55 Collect analyze and share information
56 Support resource needs and requests including allocation and tracking
57 Coordinate plans and determine current and future needs and
58 In some cases provide coordination and policy direction
59 EOC Skillsets describe these functions in terms of discrete responsibilities aligned with
60 demonstrable tasks that leaders can use to build EOC PTBs qualify personnel and define
61 requirements when requesting personnel through mutual aid
1 For additional information on common mutual aid practices terminology and processes see the NIMS Guideline
for Mutual Aid httpswwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
2 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
62 How Are Skillsets Different from Position Task Books (PTB)
63 Many incident personnel are already familiar with PTBs which define demonstrable tasks for on-scene 64 positions Performing these tasks supports a personrsquos qualification for a position
65 EOC Skillsets are different because unlike on-scene positions which exist within ICS EOCs have no 66 standard organizational structure and no standard to follow in building positions and PTBs EOC leaders 67 can therefore mix and match skillsets to build EOC PTBs that align with the roles and responsibilities of 68 positions in their EOCs
69 Like PTBs skillsets establish minimum performance criteria Unlike PTBs skillsets can be combined in 70 multiple ways to describe a variety of positions This allows EOC leaders to qualify their personnel with 71 the skills or combination of skills necessary to perform the functions of their EOC
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 3
72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 5
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
29 Background
30 Mutual aid involves sharing resources including personnel between jurisdictions or
31 organizations1 The National Incident Management System (NIMS) describes standard structures
32 and vocabulary to enable personnel to work together no matter where they come from For on-
33 scene personnel these standards include the Incident Command System (ICS) which defines
34 common position titles and responsibilities
35 National Qualification System (NQS)
36 NIMS builds a foundation to support the development of a national qualification systemmdashOr NQS which 37 provides jurisdictions and organizations with guidance to certify their personnel according to national 38 baseline qualifications Through NQS FEMA is developing a common language tool set and approach 39 for qualifying certifying and credentialing deployable incident personnelmdashenabling mutual aid partners to 40 communicate resource needs quickly and precisely
41 For more information on NQS see wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
42 Flexibility The Need for Skillsets
43 Flexibility is a guiding principle in NIMS meaning that NIMS structures are adaptable to any
44 situation This applies well to EOCs which do not have a common organizational structure
45 equivalent to ICS and vary widely in terms of authorities resources and missions You as an
46 EOC leader are best positioned to understand these variables and determine how to organize
47 your EOC As a result EOC position titles and responsibilities are also quite diverse EOC
48 skillets define tasks associated with common EOC functions giving you building blocks to
49 define qualifications for your EOC personnel no matter what organization structure or position
50 titles you use Additionally EOC Skillsets facilitate mutual aid by establishing common
51 terminology for defining requirements when requesting personnel while remaining flexible enough
52 to accommodate the diversity of EOC organizational structures across the Nation
53 Common EOC Functions
54 Regardless of structure EOC staff typically perform these common functions
55 Collect analyze and share information
56 Support resource needs and requests including allocation and tracking
57 Coordinate plans and determine current and future needs and
58 In some cases provide coordination and policy direction
59 EOC Skillsets describe these functions in terms of discrete responsibilities aligned with
60 demonstrable tasks that leaders can use to build EOC PTBs qualify personnel and define
61 requirements when requesting personnel through mutual aid
1 For additional information on common mutual aid practices terminology and processes see the NIMS Guideline
for Mutual Aid httpswwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
2 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
62 How Are Skillsets Different from Position Task Books (PTB)
63 Many incident personnel are already familiar with PTBs which define demonstrable tasks for on-scene 64 positions Performing these tasks supports a personrsquos qualification for a position
65 EOC Skillsets are different because unlike on-scene positions which exist within ICS EOCs have no 66 standard organizational structure and no standard to follow in building positions and PTBs EOC leaders 67 can therefore mix and match skillsets to build EOC PTBs that align with the roles and responsibilities of 68 positions in their EOCs
69 Like PTBs skillsets establish minimum performance criteria Unlike PTBs skillsets can be combined in 70 multiple ways to describe a variety of positions This allows EOC leaders to qualify their personnel with 71 the skills or combination of skills necessary to perform the functions of their EOC
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 3
72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 5
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
62 How Are Skillsets Different from Position Task Books (PTB)
63 Many incident personnel are already familiar with PTBs which define demonstrable tasks for on-scene 64 positions Performing these tasks supports a personrsquos qualification for a position
65 EOC Skillsets are different because unlike on-scene positions which exist within ICS EOCs have no 66 standard organizational structure and no standard to follow in building positions and PTBs EOC leaders 67 can therefore mix and match skillsets to build EOC PTBs that align with the roles and responsibilities of 68 positions in their EOCs
69 Like PTBs skillsets establish minimum performance criteria Unlike PTBs skillsets can be combined in 70 multiple ways to describe a variety of positions This allows EOC leaders to qualify their personnel with 71 the skills or combination of skills necessary to perform the functions of their EOC
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 3
72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 5
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
72 How to Use EOC Skillsets
3 As an EOC leader seeking to qualify your personnel you can choose which skillsets and
4 combinations of skillsets to assign to specific positions in your EOC to enable qualification and
5 support effective operations To do this follow the steps outlined in Table 1
Table 1 Steps to Using EOC Skillsets
Using EOC Skillsets Specific Actions
Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
Determine your organizationrsquos EOC structure and processes based on authorities resources and mission
Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC PTBs
Align EOC Skillsets with the positions in your organizational structure
Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
Step 3 Use EOC PTBs to Qualify Personnel
Issue EOC PTBs to personnel and begin the qualification process
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
7
7
7
76 At the end of this process you will be able to qualify EOC personnel based on your EOCrsquos
77 unique needs
78 Step 1 Determine Your EOC Organizational Structure
79 EOCs vary in their missions authorities and resources Some have an incident support role
80 others may lead incident management efforts and some change roles according to the type of
81 incident NIMS does not endorse a preferred organizational model for EOCs nor a standard
82 approach to defining EOC positions Organizational requirements and capacity drive the
83 structure of each EOC organization If your EOC already has an established structure there is no
84 need to change it solely to apply the EOC Skillsets just proceed to Step 2
85 Table 2 sho ws some benefits of three kinds of organizational structures described in NIMS Your
86 EOC may use one of these structures a combination of elements from different structures or a
87 structure not listed here These organizational structure examples are not intended to be
88 mandatory definitive or exclusive2 There are advantages to each kind of structure so it is up to
89 you to det ermine the structure that works best for your EOC
90 Each of these structures can be expanded or contracted based on available personnel and the
91 incidentrsquos needs Some EOCs might have multiple people in each section some might have a
92 single person performing multiple functions You should consider both minimum and maximum
93 staffing levels when determining position responsibilities and required skills
4 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
2 For additional information and details on these structures see pages 35-39 116-123 in NIMS
httpswwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 5
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 2 Sample EOC Organizational Structures
Structure Benefits
ICS or ICS-like Structure The ICS organizational structure is familiar to many with ICS training It most closely aligns with the structure used for on-scene incident management
Incident Support Model Structure
This structure puts the EOC Director in direct contact with those conducting situational awareness and information management It streamlines resource sourcing ordering and tracking
Departmental Structure
By operating in the context of their normal relationships departmentagency representatives can function in the EOC with minimal preparation and startup time
94 Step 2 Align EOC Skillsets with Positions to Create EOC Position Task Books
95 Once you have determined the organizational structure that best fits your EOC reporting
96 structure and functional alignment use the skillsets to build each EOC PTB This process
97 involves three actions
98 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
99 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets to reflect the needs of your EOC
100 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to complete the task book
101 Action 1 Align the EOC Skillsets with your organizational structure
102 As an EOC leader you determine the skillsets your personnel need to achieve the EOCrsquos
103 mission Given the diversity of EOCs across the nation many different skillset alignments and
104 combinations are possible Ultimately you decide what you need Table 3 provides an overview
105 of the skillsets and Appendix 2 describes them in greater detail Appendices 3 and 4 provide
106 examples of EOC Skillsets aligned with various organizational structures
107 Tip The inclusion of Common Tasks Leadership Tasks andor the Policy Group skillset(s) will determine 108 where a position falls within your organization structure The inclusion of one or more of the remaining 14 109 skillsets will determine what that position will do
110 As you group skillsets together to build your desired reporting structure and to align staff
111 responsibilities consider the following guidelines
112 Skillsets cross positions Assign the same skillset to multiple positions
113 Positions complete multiple skillsets Assign multiple skillsets to a single position
114 Supervisors receive leadership tasks Assign leadership tasks to all supervisory positions
115 All positions receive common tasks Assign the common tasks to every position except
116 members of the Policy Group As outside representatives tasked with making multiagency
117 decisions members of the Policy Group are not expected to complete tasks beyond those
118 contained in the Policy Group skillset
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 5
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
119 Tip When aligning skillsets with positions consider both personnel rolesresponsibilities and your EOCrsquos 120 standard processes such as resource ordering This can provide a helpful check in your alignment See 121 Appendix 3 fo r examples
122 Table 3 EOC Skillsets
Location
Policy Group
Leadership Tasks
Common Tasks
Function
Understand the Resource Requirement
Source Resources
Acquire Resources Externally
Track Resources
Information Management
Situational Awareness
Recovery Coordination
Planning
Organizational Representative
Finance
EOC Facility Management
Legal
Public Affairs
Performance Improvement
123
124 Action 2 Determine whether to add tasks to individual skillsets
125 EOC Skillsets establish minimum criteria for EOC qualificationsmdashthey do not cover the full
126 range of activities that EOC personnel could perform depending on your own agency
127 requirements As an EOC leader you have the authority to add content to the baseline template
128 When compiled the EOC PTB should describe the full range of roles and responsibilities for a
129 position and contain all tasks a trainee should perform to be qualified in hisher assigned
130 position
131
132 133
134 135 136
137 138
Tips for Compiling an EOC PTB
- Skillset order is not important Because tasks can be completed in any order the order of the skillsets does not matter when compiled into an EOC PTB
- Include the Common Tasks once Trainees must complete common tasks once per EOC PTB If a person is trying to qualify for a second positionmdashfor example in preparation for a move to a leadership rolemdashyou can decide whether to reevaluate completion of the common tasks
-Use any name that meets your needs Position names vary across the country- use the title that makes the most sense for your organization
OneResponder FEMA is developing a technology solution to support the implementation of
NQS OneResponder will be a free web-based application hosted in a cloud environment that is accessible to all members of the whole community When complete it will provide EOC leaders with the ability to build manage and issue EOC PTBs in a virtual environment
6 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 1 EOC PTB for a nonsupervisory nonPolicy Group position
Figure 1 Qualification Certification and Credentialing
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
139 Action 3 Add evaluation forms and other documentation to 140 complete the task book
141 Typically PTBs come with additional guidance such as
142 evaluation forms and introductory language on how to use
143 PTBs This helps ensure consistency in processes and
144 standards beyond demonstrable tasks such as physical and
145 medical fitness requirements Your jurisdiction or organization
146 may provide direction on evaluation tools and processes If
147 not NQS provides evaluation forms descriptions of a best-
148 practice evaluation processes and general guidance on PTB
149 evaluation in the NQS guideline and PTB introductory
150 language3
151 Once you have added any evaluation sheets or introductory
152 language to the skillsets you have created an EOC PTB similar
153 to an NQS incident management PTB See Figure 1
154 Step 3 Use EOC Position Task Books to Qualify 155 Personnel
156 An EOC PTB is a tool in the qualification certification and credentialing process for your EOC
157 NIMS uses a performance-based approach that focuses on verifying the capabilities of personnel
158 to perform in incident-related positions Figure 2 depicts the continuum of integrated
159 qualification certification and credentialing processes described in NIMS For additional details
160 see the NIMS Guideline for the NQS
-
161
162 An additional aspect of qualifying personnel is documenting completion of required trainings
163 The EOC Skillsets do not specify any accompanying trainings but FEMA provides training
164 guidance through the NIMS Training Program Please refer to httpstrainingfemagovnims for
165 additional information
3 To see PTB introductory language and the NIMS Guideline for the National Qualification System visit wwwfemagovnational-qualification-system
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 7
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
166 Appendices
167 Appendix 1 EOC Skillsets Template
168 The EOC Skillsets template contains the following sections as shown in Figure 3
169 Figure 3 EOC Skillsets Template
170 Major Tasks These items summarize groups of similar tasks necessary to perform the skillset
171 Tasks These are specific demonstrable actions necessary for successful performance of a
172 skillset Trainees (people seeking to complete a task book) must demonstrate completion of
173 required tasks All tasks require evaluation but bulleted statements are only examples not all are
174 required The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)4 can modify tasks as it sees fit
4 Per NIMS an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is an entity that has the authority and responsibility for
developing implementing maintaining and overseeing the qualification process within its organization or
jurisdiction This may be a state or Federal agency training commission NGO private sector company or a tribal
or local agency such as a police fire or public works department In some cases the AHJ may provide support to
multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (such as an Incident Management Team (IMT))
8 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
175 Codes Each task has at least one corresponding code indicating the circumstances in which the
176 trainee can perform the task for evaluation Evaluators may assess trainees during incidents in
177 classroom simulations and training sessions in functional and full-scale exercises and in other
178 work situations If a task has multiple codes the evaluator may evaluate in any of those
179 circumstances the trainee does not have to perform in all listed circumstances The AHJ may
180 modify codes as necessary
181 Code C Task performed in training or classroom setting including seminars and workshops
182 Code E Task performed during a full-scale exercise with equipment deployed under ICS
183 Code F Task performed during a functional exercise managed under ICS
184 Code I Task performed during an incident or event managed under ICS Examples include oil
185 spill search and rescue operation hazardous materials (hazmat) response fire and emergency or
186 nonemergency (planned or unplanned) events
187 Code J Task performed as part of day-to-day job duties
188 Code T Task performed during a tabletop exercise
189 Code R Task performed very rarely and required only if applicable to the incident
190 Note For national engagement we have left the codes blank and are soliciting the publicrsquos 191 opinions on which would be most appropriate
192 Evaluator Initials and Date The evaluator uses this space during the evaluation period See the
193 National Qualification System (NQS) guideline and Position Task Book (PTB) introductory
194 language for additional guidance When skillsets are compiled into task books the AHJ can
195 evaluate as if they were PTBs and can include corresponding evaluation forms as necessary
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 9
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
196 Appendix 2 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
197 Table 4 below describes each skillset and its associated tasks
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Policy Group
Tasks suitable for positions in a MAC Group policy group including understanding the authorities policies and priorities of the organizationjurisdiction represented to support coordinated incident management among all parties
Demonstrate an understanding of the authorities policies priorities capabilities constraints and limitations of the organization or jurisdiction represented
Demonstrate an understanding of coordinated incident managementUnified Command and the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
Leadership Tasks
Generic leadership tasks applicable to anyone in a leadership position in an EOC
Be proficient in the job both technically and as a leader
Supervise staff to ensure understanding and accomplishment of duties and tasks
Coordinate to foster unity of effort
Common Tasks Common tasks that apply to all EOC Skillsets
Complete tasks associated with your position within the EOC
Understand the Tasks for gathering and understanding Understand and validate requirement
Resource resource needs in order to Communicate requirement in plain
Requirement communicate resource specifications language and use national standards and common terminology
Source Resources
Tasks for understanding resource options in order to acquire resources to support incident operations
Understand potential sources
Develop evaluate and implement courses of action for resource fulfillment
Acquire Resources Externally
Tasks for acquiring resources from external sources
Orderrequest external resources
Track Resources Tasks for tracking acquired resources from mobilization through demobilization
Track resources to destination
Maintain resource status
Information Management
Tasks for gathering handling sharing and archiving incident information
Perform action tracking
Facilitate information sharing and knowledge management
Perform document maintenance and archiving
Situational Awareness
Tasks for gathering and analyzing an incidentrsquos situation information to inform EOC personnel actions and decision-making
Gather data and information
Analyze data and information
Disseminate information
Continued on next page
10 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 4 EOC Skillsets with Major Tasks
Skillset Title Description Major Tasks
Planning
Tasks focused on facilitating the planning process
Reference pre-incident plans
Developwrite plans
Disseminate plans
Facilitate ongoing planning process
Organizational Representative
Tasks associated with organizational representation in the EOC to support incident operations
Represent your organization and support EOC activities
Finance
Tasks related to fiscal management activities in an EOC
Administer financial management for EOC personnel expenditures
Advise EOC leadership and staff on financial matters associated with EOC activities
Recovery Coordination
Tasks focused on applying understanding of community impacts and preparation for long-term recovery
Prepare for long-term recovery
Demonstrate an understanding of community impacts
EOC Facility Management
Tasks associated with the operational and logistical management of the EOC facility
Ensure that EOC facilities and systems are operational
Support the needs of EOC personnel
Ensure safety and security of EOC personnel systems and facility
Legal Tasks for advising EOC staff regarding applicable laws and regulations
Advise EOC leadership and staff on legal matters and provide other legal services
Public Affairs
Tasks for working with the media as well as coordinating and disseminating information to the public
Manage EOC-related efforts to provide information and warnings to the public
Advise the EOC Policy Group leadership and personnel about public information and warnings
Performance Improvement
Tasks for collecting and analyzing information about EOC operations to support process and performance improvements for incidents and the after-action process
Collect and analyze information regarding EOC activation and activities
Suggest process improvements and solutions during EOC operations
Support processperformance improvement following EOC deactivation
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION
198
11
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
199 Appendix 3 Organizational StructureSkillset Alignment Examples
200 The following two examples demonstrate how EOC leaders use skillsets in EOCs with differing
201 organizational structures staffing levels and missions These examples use slightly different
202 lenses to match skillsets to personnel and positions All approaches arrive at the same goal to
203 assign EOC personnel the skillsets they need to be successful in their duties
204 Example 1 Aligning Skillsets with an ICS-like EOC
205 Person A is the director of an EOC that is configured based on the Incident Command System
206 (ICS) (Step 1) The Operations Coordination Section is made up of organizational
207 representatives from various Emergency Support Functions (ESF) The director typically has one
208 person assigned to coordinate and support the ESF representatives and five additional personnel
209 organized according to the structure shown in Figure 4
210
211
Figure 4 EOC Organizational Structure with ESFs 212
213 The director now wants to use the EOC Skillsets to describe the positions in this EOC (Step 2)
214 Since the EOC uses an ICS-like structure the director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Figure 14)
215 as a starting point for skillset alignment However this EOC uses a resource ordering process
216 that does not follow the standard ICS process Instead the Logistics Coordination Section
217 typically does resource tracking and the Operations Coordination Section Chief determines the
218 best source for resources After moving those skillsets accordingly the director completes the
219 skillsetposition alignment for the EOC as shown in Figure 5
12 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
220
222
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
221
Figure 5 EOC Organizational Structure with Skillsets Aligned
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 13
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
223 Example 2 Situational Awareness Section and Planning Support Section
224 Person B is the director of an EOC that focuses on information planning and resources support
225 and uses an Incident Support Model matching the model described in NIMS (Step 1) The
226 director uses the table in Appendix 4 (Table 13) as a starting point in aligning skillsets with the
227 responsibilities of the sections in her EOC The director who has access to enough personnel to
228 assign multiple people to each section can now align the skillsets with individual positions
229 Person B has five people in the Situational Awareness Section and six people in the Planning
230 Support Section (see details in Figure 6 and Tables 5 and 6) when all positions in these sections
are staffed 231
232 233
234 Figure 6 Incident Sup port Model Section Callout
tuational Awareness Section In this section the director has one leader and four support
235
236 Si
237 staff She assigns the leader all the sectionrsquos skillsets plus the general leadership skillset The
238 support staff receive various skillsets associated with the functions they perform
239
240 Planning Support Section In this section the director has one supervisor one Recovery
241 Coordination point of contact and various support personnel As in the Situational Awareness
242 Section she assigns the Planning Support Section Chief the general leadership skillset along
243 with additional skillsets consistent with the mission of the section she opts not to assign the
244 Section Chief the Recovery Coordination skillset but does assign her all other skillsets within
245 the section She assigns the sectionrsquos support staff skillsets according to their respective duties
246 ensuring coverage for all skillsets Ultimately she assigns skillsets as shown in Tables 5 and 6
247
248
14 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Table 6 Planning Support Section
Planning Support Section
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
Table 5 Situational Awareness Section
Situational Awareness Section
Role Skillsets
Situational Awareness Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Section Specialist
Information Management Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 1
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Situational Awareness Specialist 2
Situational Awareness Common Tasks
Information Management Support Specialist
Information Management Common Tasks
Role Skillsets
Planning Support Section Leader
Leadership Tasks Planning Performance Improvement Information Management Common Tasks
Recovery Point of Contact Recovery Coordination Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 1 Planning Performance Improvement Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 2 Planning Information Management Common Tasks
Planning Specialist 3 Planning Common Tasks
Performance Improvement Specialist
Information Management Performance Improvement Common Tasks
249
250
251
252
253
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 15
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Figure 7 Skillsets aligned with an Incident Support Model EOC organizational structure
258
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
254 Appendix 4 SkillsetsOrganizational Structure Crosswalk
255 The Incident Support Model and the Incident Command System (ICS) are two common ways of
256 organizing an EOC Figures 7 and 8 depict how skillsets align within those structures
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Situational
Awareness
Planning
Support Section
Resources
Support Section
Center Support
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director -
PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director -
509 Legal Public Affairs
Information
Management Planning
Leadership
Tasks
EOC Facility
Management
Policy Policy
Situational
Awareness
Recovery
Coordination
Source
Resources Finance
Leadership
Tasks
Performance
Improvement
Acquire
Resources
Externally
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Leadership
Tasks Track Resources
Information
Management
Organizational
Representative
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Incident Support Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
257
EOC Director Legal AdvisorPublic
Information
Operations
SectionPlanning Section Logistics Section
FinanceAdmin
SectionPolicy Group
EOC Director - PTB Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Common Tasks Policy
EOC Director - 509 Legal Public Affairs Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks Leadership Tasks
Policy Policy
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Information
Management
Understand the
Resource
Requirement
Finance
Organizational
Representative
Situational
Awareness
Acquire Resources
Externally
Recovery
CoordinationPlanning Source Resources
Track ResourcesEOC Facility
Management
Performance
Improvement
ICS Model EOC Skillset Crosswalk
259
Figure 8 Skillsets aligned with an ICS-like EOC organizational structure
16 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide
260 Appendix 5 Definitions
AHJ Authority Having Jurisdiction
ESF Emergency Support Function
EOC Emergency Operations Center
FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency
ICS Incident Command System
NGO Nongovernmental Organization
NIMS National Incident Management System
NQS National Qualification System
PTB Position Task Book
RTLT Resource Typing Library Tool
261
PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION 17
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Skillsets User Guide FEMA-NIMSfemadhsgov
262 Appendix 6 Reference List
263 National Incident Management System (NIMS)
264 The Resource Management section of NIMS contains specific information on the
265 qualification certification and credentialing of incident personnel It also defines pertinent
266 terms to ensure common terminology among all qualification system users
267 At the NIMS website users can find links to NIMS documents guidelines and operational
268 tools as well as training information implementation guidance the latest updates and
269 contact information for FEMArsquos regional NIMS coordinators
270 wwwfemagovnational-incident-management-system
271 FEMA Resource Typing Library Tool (RTLT)
272 The RTLT is an online catalog of national resource typing definitions NIMS job titles and
273 corresponding position qualifications and Position Task Books (PTB)
274 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
275 FEMA Training Resources
276 FEMA provides a variety of trainings for incident management and incident support
277 personnel The FEMA training website includes information about independent study as
278 well as in-person courses
279 httpstrainingfemagov
280 NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid
281 The NIMS Guideline for Mutual Aid provides guidance based on common practices for
282 mutual aid agreements compacts and plans for use before and after an incident or planned
283 event Private nonprofit faith-based and government organizations can use this guidance
284 in developing or refining mutual aid agreements or plans
285 wwwfemagovresource-management-mutual-aid
18 NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION PRE-DECISIONAL DRAFT
top related