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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nTabletop exercises are used to prepare for a variety of different threats and they are commonly used in cybersecurity. However, they can be used in a wide range of environments. For example, the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, also known as Martyn\u2019s Law<\/a>, places a responsibility on certain premises to consider the risks posed by terrorism and how they would respond to a terrorist attack. Tabletop exercises can be an incredibly effective way to help an organisation comply with Martyn\u2019s Law as they can examine whether the procedures they have in place are appropriate and effective at keeping people safe.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tabletop exercises are a cost effective way to put participants in the mindset of a real world emergency in a safe and controlled setting. This allows teams to discuss their roles and the actions that they would take as if the incident were real. Teams can therefore use tabletop exercises to ensure that everyone understands their roles and can work well together in a crisis. They can also be used to test the robustness of systems that are already in place and to identify any potential lapses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s important to note that these exercises are not <\/strong>intended to highlight blame or to \u2018catch people out.\u2019 They are an opportunity to test the efficacy of security awareness and security protocols before a real world incident occurs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Our wide range of Business Essentials Courses<\/a>, such as Cyber Security Awareness<\/a> and Martyn’s Law<\/a>, can provide you with in-depth knowledge on how to effectively manage potential security threats.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\n As mentioned, tabletop exercises are used in many different fields to test security protocols. However, regardless of the industry, following certain steps can ensure that tabletop exercises are effective and comprehensive. Jack Eisenhauer of the Nexight Group approaches tabletop exercises with three core steps that help to shape the exercise before, after and during the discussion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n These stages are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s important to remember when conducting a tabletop exercise that they are team <\/em>discussions and should involve numerous different people. Whilst the individual who organises the exercise and creates the scenario may be a senior member of the team, everyone who takes part in the exercise is important and should be treated as such. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Avoid having just one person lead the exercise and dictate the outcomes, especially if this does not reflect the position that someone would have in a real world situation. To support a collaborative environment allow the team to act as they would, including autonomously where appropriate, so that everyone can exercise what their responsibilities would be in a real situation. <\/p>\n\n\n It can be helpful to have a facilitator, who may be someone external to the department or organisation, to guide the exercise as they will know when to take a step back so that the team can act of their own volition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Below you will find 5 brief examples of tabletop exercise scenarios. The efficacy of a tabletop exercise often lies in its believability and similarity to a real world event. As such, it\u2019s important when preparing a tabletop exercise that the scenario you create is relevant to you. The scenarios provided below are intentionally broad so that you can tailor them to your specific environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As mentioned above, when designing a tabletop exercise it should be realistic for your setting and have clear objectives and outcomes. As such, it can be helpful to identify key discussion points for each scenario which can help to guide the exercise. For example, discussion points for Scenario 5 may include: <\/p>\n\n\n\n As with the scenarios themselves, these discussion points should be tailored to your environment and the people working on the tabletop exercise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n There is no set timeframe for how often tabletop exercises should be conducted. The regularity of these exercises is greatly dependent upon your environment, team and resources. Tabletop exercises enable organisations to check that everyone is aware of their roles and responsibilities during a security threat and that there are no gaps in protocol. As such, if a tabletop exercise highlights that a team fully understands their responsibilities, can act in a timely and autonomous manner and that there are no or minimal security risks, it should not need to be conducted several times over. In this instance, focus can shift to maintaining the protocols and processes which are working effectively. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, if a tabletop exercise highlights a lack of awareness of responsibilities and significant security risks, then it can be helpful to repeat these exercises once improvements have been made. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Tabletop exercises should be conducted regularly to ensure that systems reflect changes both externally, such as the discovery of a new type of threat and internally, such as leadership changes. Whilst different industries and sectors have different needs, a good general rule of thumb is to conduct tabletop exercises at least twice a year. However, the regularity must reflect the needs of your specific organisation as some organisations may require more frequent exercises than others. <\/p>\n\n\n Tabletop exercises are a cost effective and timely way to ensure that security standards are maintained and that teams know what to do in the event of a security breach. Taking the time to make these exercises realistic and specific to your setting enables you to accurately and collaboratively prepare for a wide variety of crises. Tabletop exercises should be conducted with a \u2018no fault\u2019 approach so that employees feel confident to make mistakes that they can learn from and to improve their understanding of how to respond to a potential threat. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Tabletop exercises are used in many different fields to test security protocols. Learn about how you can use them in your organisation here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":72,"featured_media":81693,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[91,86],"class_list":["post-81685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-safety","tag-safety-management","tag-workplace-safety"],"acf":{"schema_disabled":false,"schema_properties_FAQPage_question_answer":null,"schema_properties_HowTo_howto_tools":null,"schema_properties_HowTo_howto_supplies":null,"schema_properties_HowTo_howto_steps":null,"schema_properties_WebPage_cssSelector":null,"schema_sameAs_repeater":null,"schema_custom_json_repeater":null,"schema_custom_json_override":false},"yoast_head":"\nPurpose of Tabletop Exercises<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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<\/div>Looking for More?<\/h3><\/div><\/div>
\n\n\n\nHow to Conduct a Tabletop Exercise<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n Engage
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\n Learn
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![\"Group](\"https:\/\/www.highspeedtraining.co.uk\/hub\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tabletop-1.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nTabletop Exercises Examples<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nHow Often Should Tabletop Exercises be Conducted? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nFurther Resources:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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