What a tabletop exercise should cost in preparation time

Clients sometimes expect a tabletop exercise to be a four-hour event with no preparation. That produces polite discussion, not stress-tested decisions.

Sponsor time: two hours

An executive sponsor should meet the facilitator to confirm objectives, sensitive topics to avoid, and which roles must attend. Without sponsor backing, department heads treat the exercise as optional.

Participant prep: one hour each

Each participant receives a brief describing their role, the exercise rules, and documents they should skim beforehand — usually the relevant continuity playbook sections and the communication tree. One hour is enough if materials are concise.

Logistics coordinator: three hours

Someone on your team books the room, tests video links for remote participants, prints inject schedules if used offline, and confirms catering does not delay the afternoon injects. Minor detail, but delayed lunch breaks compress decision quality.

Facilitator preparation: typically six to eight hours

We review your industry incidents, prior exercise reports, and regulatory context. Custom injects take longer than recycled scenarios — and produce better findings.

Total organisational load

For ten participants, expect roughly fifteen hours of internal staff time plus the half-day session. That investment is modest compared to discovering communication failures during a real incident.

Signs you are under-prepared

Participants ask “what is our plan for this?” during the exercise instead of debating choices. The facilitator ends early because discussion stalls. Findings repeat issues from prior years.

Budget preparation time in the project plan. Your exercise will test the organisation, not the facilitator’s improvisation skills.