How To Train Your Leaders for Critical Incidents

In policing, we have placed a strong focus on training our officers for critical incident response. Officers receive active shooter training, tactical training, and instruction in de-escalation techniques. The reality is that officers today are more prepared for critical incidents than ever before. That does not mean there is not more work to be done, but it is a solid start.

There is still a major gap in critical incident response training.

Leadership.

When we study the failed response at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, the common thread running through nearly every mistake was a lack of effective leadership. I am not saying that officers who failed to act despite direct orders should not be held accountable. Rather, a well trained and prepared leader could have drastically changed the outcome of such a tragic event.

So how do we train leaders to act under intense stress?

When I taught Vehicle Pursuits for Leaders at a large police department, I focused far more on the stress of taking action than on the mechanics of managing a pursuit. Most supervisors already understood policy, radio procedures, and termination criteria. That was not the hard part.

The hard part was deciding.

The moment a pursuit started, time compressed. Information was incomplete. Multiple voices came over the radio at once. Every decision carried risk. Ending a pursuit too early could allow a dangerous offender to escape. Letting it go on too long could get someone hurt. Leaders felt the weight of knowing that whatever happened next would be tied directly to their call.

In the fog of war, decision making becomes difficult. In Uvalde, we saw leaders delay decisions, defer responsibility, and wait for clarity that never came. The problem was not a lack of policy. It was a lack of effective leadership under stress.

If we want leaders to perform under pressure, we have to train them under pressure.

That does not mean yelling at them or creating artificial chaos. It means placing them in realistic scenarios where they must make decisions with limited information, competing priorities, and real consequences. Tabletop exercises, when done correctly, are one of the most effective tools for this type of training.

Leaders should be required to articulate their thinking in real time. They should practice committing to a course of action, adjusting when new information arrives, and owning the outcome. They need to experience what it feels like to be the decision maker when the clock is running and people are looking to them for direction.

The goal is decisive, accountable leadership when it matters most. That level of performance can only be achieved through deliberate training and preparation.