The document outlines a collaborative research project aimed at enhancing inter-organizational structures during large-scale emergency responses, particularly focusing on a hypothetical chemical explosion incident in Norway. It details a study conducted through interviews with emergency management representatives to identify actors, their capabilities, and communication methods necessary for a coordinated response. The findings emphasize the complexity of collaboration among public, private, and non-profit sectors, highlighting the central role of verbal communication in information exchange.

1. BRIDGING
Resources and Agencies in Large-Scale Emergency Management
EU FP7 Collaborative Project
SEC-2010.4.2-1: Interoperability of data, systems, tools and equipment
www.sec-bridge.eu
Inter-organizational Collaboration Structures
during Emergency Response: A Case Study
ISCRAM 2013
Aslak Wegner Eide,
Ida Maria Haugstveit,
Ragnhild Halvorsrud,
Maria Borén

2. Introduction
 Emergency response often involve multiple
emergency agencies and organizations that
need to collaborate to resolve the situation.
 Reports from large-scale incidents express
concerns over the emergency agencies’ ability
to collaborate and coordinate their work.
 There is a need for an improved understanding
of the underlying structures that govern inter-
organizational collaboration in today's practice.
2

3. Case study
 Aim: Examine the collaborative structures that could appear
between organizations and agencies that would be deployed in
response to a hypothetical, large scale incident in Norway.
- Identify and categorize the actors that would be involved.
- Clarify the capabilities and knowledge those actors would possess.
- Examine how the actors would interact and communicate.
3

4. Incident scenario
 Hypothetical incident scenario described
by text, maps, and 3d illustrations.
 Validated by experts to achieve a sufficient
degree of realism and complexity.
 Main event: A large-scale explosion occurs
in a factory known to store chemical fluids.
 Divided into 3 unfolding phases.
4

5. Method
 The study consisted of semi-structured interviews with 11
representatives from emergency agencies and organizations.
 The hypothetical incident scenario was presented to the
participants in a sequential manner (from phase 1 to 3).
 For each phase, the interviewees were asked to explain:
- Which actors they thought likely to take part in the response effort.
- What capabilities and knowledge each actor would contribute.
- How the identified actors would interact and communicate.
 Interview guided by a predefined template that was filled in.
5

6. Results: Actors and Capabilities
 A cluster analysis of the data resulted in five categories of actors
that are plausible contributors to the emergency response effort:
1. Emergency agencies (16)
2. Supporting organizations (11)
3. External expert organizations (12)
4. Informants (2)
5. Other actors (5)
6

7. Results: Communication network
7
Support org.
External expert org.
Other org.
JRCC
LRCC
Informants
Police service
Fire and Rescue service
Health service

8. Results: Information Exchange
8
A content analysis was conducted, systematically sorting
out the information that the different actors would need
from and provide to other actors:
50
25
0

9. Results: Communication Means
9
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
For each reported communication path, the interviewees
were asked to describe how the information exchange
was mediated. The frequency of use is illustrated below:

10. Discussion and Conclusion
- The collaborative structures that emerge during emergency
response can be highly interactive and complex, and typically
involves public, private, and non-profit organizations.
- The most central actors in the communication network are
commanding personnel and emergency centrals.
- A substantial amount of the overall communication activity involves
keeping all parties up-to-date on the situation at hand.
- Verbal communication is the most frequently used means for
exchanging information (IT-based support systems are not used)
- Framework for analysis of communication networks
10

11. Future work
 Apply the present methodology to different scenarios and a larger
sample of actors to delineate a generic communication pattern.
 Assess the validity of the present scenario-based inquiry by
applying it to a larger sample of actors/roles.
 Investigate logs from real incidents and conduct a corresponding
analysis of the inter-organizational collaboration networks.
11

12. Q&A
12