GIS and Emergency Management—Bridging the Communication-Gap

If you’ve been following my geographic information system (GIS) journey, you know I just hit my one-year mark at Esri. In that time, I’ve shared several insights with my emergency management colleagues to help illuminate the utility of GIS, and how it can be applied to their programs to improve effectiveness. Feedback from readers has been overwhelmingly positive, so as I turn to year two, I am committed to showcasing the art and science behind ArcGIS software and how it can impact emergency management decision-makers. ?

But it’s time I address the one topic that I hear about the most—communications. More specifically, the need to improve interpersonal communication skills when GIS practitioners work with emergency managers (EMs).

Unlike my other blog posts, which have primarily focused on the emergency management audience, I am turning my attention to the GIS practitioner for this one.

The Challenge

One of the professional challenges I was eager to tackle when I joined Esri was the communication gap between EMs and GIS practitioners. I’ve experienced working in a fast-paced operating environment in which I would have appreciated a more proactive, problem-solving, think-outside-the-box communication approach from my GIS staff. And knowing that my experience is consistent with EMs around the country, I’ve spent the last year trying to get a better understanding of the root cause so that I can help solve the problem.

The recommendations within this blog post are grounded on personal experience. Over the last year, I engaged with Esri colleagues who I consider to be bona fide GIS experts, but being an outsider, I was left confused and unable to follow internal conversations for the first few months of my employment. So, I began testing out ways in which my own communication gap could be improved, and in the end, I’ve been able to create a safe space where my coworkers and I can effectively communicate and understand what the other is saying.

What Does the Communication-Gap Look Like?

It’s important to establish up front that we—emergency managers—acknowledge the communication gap between our two professions. And we are aware that the gap exists from the operator level up to the executive level. And just like when we collaborate with other industries and professionals, we want to improve our relationship with our GIS staff so we can collectively be more effective when it counts the most. We want to do better and learn how to have more productive conversations (see my previous blog post for some additional thoughts), but frankly, we need our GIS counterparts to be more proactive and speak up when it comes to problem-solving. We need your help!

To help characterize what a typical communication-gap may look like, I’ve included two examples below:

Example conversation #1: The emergency management team is managing an incident in the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), and they realize that a visual product would help the team better understand the situation. The initial event triggered cascading impacts that weren’t anticipated. They need to mobilize more resources, and key decisions have to be made. They task the planning section chief, who tasks the situation unit leader, who then tasks the GIS analyst to create a product, which may look like this: "Can you please create a map of the incident area and highlight any areas of concern?"

The GIS analyst brings the team a printed map with a few polygons highlighting the impacted area and some points to show the location of critical infrastructure. Although the team appreciates the time it took to create the deliverable with such short notice, the product fails to provide the additional context and information that would allow the group to make critical decisions. The team breaks to continue the response effort, and requests for additional GIS products are reduced to just “updating the map.”?

Example conversation #2: The director of emergency management convenes a meeting to discuss available technology to improve operations, specifically around a common operating picture and real-time asset tracking. When asked how GIS can contribute to the solution, the GIS practitioner explains that ArcGIS Dashboard, ArcGIS Velocity, ArcGIS Mission, and ArcGIS Experience Builder can be leveraged, but the organization will need additional servers and ArcGIS Enterprise licenses— in addition to ArcGIS Online. It will also need to build an API to the incident management system and include a feature service to ensure that the right data feeds are visualized for command staff.

Let’s examine the issues within the two examples above to better determine ways to improve interpersonal communication styles. ?

First, example conversation #1 lacks additional exploratory questions and inquisitive discussion by the GIS practitioner. By asking follow-on questions, the GIS practitioner would have gotten a better understanding of the problems that are going to be solved with the help of the product. In the absence of questions, the EM thinks the GIS practitioner understands exactly what is needed, and the decisions that will be made from the product. Similarly—and in the spirit of all sides taking accountability—I have previously offered advice and guidance to EMs in this blog post, Questions to Ask your GIS Analyst to Enhance Your Capabilities, encouraging them to ask better questions, as well.

In contrast, the issue with example conversation #2 is that the response is far too technical. The response assumes that everyone in the room has an in-depth understanding of ArcGIS, it’s extensions and services, and the equipment needed to run the programs. This approach can come off as arrogant, unapproachable, and unrelatable. How do you know if this is you? If the responses you typically get tiptoe around a solution and they talk generically about the technology’s use case for a particular problem set, or you walk away from the conversation without any tasks or requests to expand your use of ArcGIS, you now know you’ve missed your audience.

Recommendation #1: Go Ahead. Be Candid.

As I explored ways to improve my own communication style with the Esri team, I had to practice radical candor. The only way they would be able to adjust their approach was if I was open, honest, and admitted that I needed their help, which looked something like this: ?

-????????? As an emergency manager, I’m not a GIS expert, but this is why I have you here to help me.

-????????? My awareness of, and comfort level with, information technology systems is relatively basic. In fact, it’s embarrassing. I’m not an early adopter. I don’t understand coding, and I don’t know how to make a map or dashboard. But I’ve used them as an executive when making life and property-saving decisions during an active response—many times over.

-????????? I want to learn how to better apply GIS to emergency management and be a team player, but we need to figure out how to better communicate.

-????????? I’m not fluent in GIS terminology, so I’d like to figure out a way to talk about capabilities and functions without all the technical speak. Can you teach me what you know?

-????????? I realize you’re not a professional emergency manager, so I will also do my best to minimize the technical jargon on my side. I’m happy to teach you anything about emergency management if you’re interested.

While those examples are from the point of view of an EM, the talking points can be pivoted to GIS practitioners. This simple act of level-setting with the team and acknowledging my own limitations lowered the conversation barriers immediately. Most importantly, it gave each of us permission to ask questions and to clarify things in perpetuity, and it also showed my willingness to learn their tradecraft.

To learn more tips and tricks on putting radical candor into practice, check out the book Radical Candor by Kim Scott.

Recommendation #2: Give Us a Menu We All Understand ?

If you’ve made it this far into the blog post, I am going to assume a few things about you as a GIS practitioner:

(1) You want to be a collaborative problem solver and partner with your EM counterparts.

(2) You’re willing to learn how to help improve communications (from your side of the table, of course).

(3) You’re prepared to put in the work to engage in open communication with your emergency management colleagues to make a difference and improve outcomes.

But before you start re-engaging in conversations around the utility and capabilities of GIS as a technology system, consider this scenario:

You’re at your favorite steak house restaurant. Upon reading the updated menu, where you once saw “grilled ribeye topped with onions and garlic butter,” you now read these words: nutraceutical,?oignon brule, paupiette, involtini, and?coulis. You’re not sure if that’s the same menu item as before, or if it’s something completely different. Instead of being impressed, you end up frustrated because you accidentally ordered the wrong thing.

Rather than presenting the patron with a menu they understand, the chef chose to impress his customers by explaining the menu in technical culinary terms. Like the chef, GIS practitioners need to explain their tradecraft in non-technical terms. When your team asks for a product or solution, give them a menu of options they can understand, using terms they use every day. Using technical jargon is often less effective, and frankly is less impressive than you think, when working in a fast-paced environment. In my experience, it often doesn’t lead to additional investments in the technology, either.

Recommendation #3: Understand the Mission Space

I realize this next recommendation will require some work on your part, but I promise it will pay dividends.

In many cases, emergency management organizations don’t have their own GIS staff, so they borrow the capability from other agencies or partners. Does this resonate with you? Taking on the challenge of working in an EOC is commendable, but if you don’t take the time to understand the mission of emergency management, your products will fall short of helping to solve wicked problems.

Training and Exercises

There are many independent study courses that you can access online to learn more about emergency management—and the good news is, they are free. At a minimum, I recommend that all GIS practitioners who support emergency management organizations take Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Incident Command System (ICS) 100, ICS 200, and IS-922.A Applications of GIS for Emergency Management. In addition to these, your local emergency management organization may also provide training relative to its threats and hazards.

Does the emergency management organization you support run exercises or drills? I’m guessing it does. In fact, it probably conducts several a year. Since most exercise scenarios include a geospatial component (we’re always focused on where the incident is occurring, right?), there is an opportunity for you to participate. Exercises are conducted in a no-fault environment that allows you to practice problem-solving just as you would during an activation. And in addition to becoming more accustomed to the mission of emergency management, exercises can also help you narrow down product templates, data feeds, and sample visualizations that you can leverage later. How should you get involved? I recommend reaching out to the agency’s lead exercise planner and ask to be a part of the exercise planning process. Through this, you can ensure the exercise scenario and injects include an element of testing the GIS capability, which will help you identify areas for improvement to implement in the future.

Plans and Frameworks

In addition to training and exercises, emergency management is flush with governance and doctrine that outlines our mission space, from the local level all the way up to the federal government, including the private sector and non-profit organizations. At a minimum, I recommend GIS practitioners read the National Preparedness Goal, as well as the National Response, Recovery, Mitigation, Protection, and Prevention Framework documents. Like training, your emergency management organization should have its own operational plans, policies, and procedures that guide its preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation activities. Reading these documents will give you insights into the capabilities and functions that the organization will manage—which should give you ideas on how best to apply GIS to meet the organization’s needs. Most importantly, you will immerse yourself in how the emergency management organization does business.

Know the Essential Elements of Information

As a GIS practitioner, data is always top-of-mind. In emergency management, data is how we make decisions, and being able to break big data down into individual elements of information is critical. Nuances in the elements of information can inform the level to which we activate the EOC, how and where we position resources, and which partners and stakeholders need to come to the table to help with the response and recovery effort.

Essential elements of information (EEIs) are singular pieces of data that your EM cares about deeply, and your director, EOC manager, operations chief, and watch desk account for all of them when making decisions. If you aren’t familiar with your organization’s EEIs, reach out and ask. In all likelihood, the EOC manager, planning section, or watch desk will have this information to share with you.

Why are these important? EEIs should point you in the right direction as to which data feeds and layers you will need to build out to make the right kind of GIS product for each threat and hazard. It will also give you insights into how elements of information feed into the greater decision-making process.

For an additional overview, check out this video: The Essential Emergency Manager?

Recommendation #4: Raise Your Hand and Ask Questions

This final recommendation may make you the most uncomfortable, especially if you identify as shy, introverted, and don’t like bringing attention to yourself. The ultimate challenge being issued to you here is to raise your hand, speak up often, and ask good questions.

Going back to example conversation #1 above, one of the biggest opportunities the GIS practitioner missed was the chance to ask clarifying questions. In my previous blog post, Do You Really Need a Map For That, I discuss this issue in detail, but I’d like to draw attention to one important section:

In most cases, non-GIS people are not aware of the extent ArcGIS technology is available to them beyond mapping, nor are they always aware of the capabilities that technology can bring to the decision-making process. Knowing that most emergency managers' experience with GIS is limited to maps, you should feel empowered to offer other solutions that might help them make better-informed decisions.

When asked to create a map, ask prodding questions about the decisions that will be made, who will be reviewing the product, and if a spatial depiction of information is necessary. It is perfectly acceptable to ask your section chief, the command center manager, or even your director the following questions:

·???????? Would it be valuable to see numbers, knowledge graphs, link analysis, or infographics, to better understand the situation?

·???????? Beyond points on a map, what additional analysis or context do you need to inform your decisions?

·???????? Will this be released publicly or to external partners?

·???????? Is a map the best way to tell this story?

Understanding the cadence and urgency of an active EOC, it’s all too common for personnel to avoid asking additional questions. The EOC’s unique environment gives the impression there isn’t time to answer questions, so most people receive a task and get right to work. That is precisely why this next part is really, really important: Unless the requestor asks for spatial analysis for specific reasons, it's best to dig deep and figure out the decisions that will be made from your product—strategically, operationally, and tactically. Your questions will inform how you go about creating your product, and the additional analysis and context that is needed,?from you, to inform decisions.?

In addition to asking clarifying questions to ensure your product will meet the needs of the decision-makers, I strongly encourage you to take a seat at the meeting table. Go to as many meetings as you can until you understand the mission space. Most importantly, engage in the conversation to get a better understanding of how decisions are made and the different types of data and visualizations that will be needed to make them effectively and efficiently—just remember to leave the technical jargon at the door when you enter the room.

Call to Action:

The recommendations above were gleaned from my own experience in navigating the world of technology as an emergency manager. While every work environment and team is different, I’m confident that by putting some of these recommendations into action, your conversations will become more productive and your output, more useful. I also encourage you to share what you’ve learned with your emergency management team. Acknowledging that you’re aware of the communication gap will go far. And coming forward with actions you plan to take to improve your side of the conversation will go even further.

I’d like to hear from you! As a GIS practitioner, what are the specific hurdles you are experiencing in bridging the communication gap with your emergency management colleagues? I’d love to hear about them so we can solve problems together.