the Drill
So recently, we had our annual mandatory evacuation drill at work. Overall, I'm really pleased how it turned out.
Yours truly was the driving force in planning it out as well as its execution.
Not that I mind because Emergency Response Team (ERT) stuff - and by extension, EMT stuff - is my passion. I'm super happy that this is officially part of my job and I enjoy it.
But still, it took a few months of planning.... all for a 30 minute drill. And I did everything.
Well, I still got guidance from my boss. And I didn't actually start the planning from scratch. I took last year's drill materials but added my own updates to it. And sure, since this company had a drill last year, a lot of the employees knew what to expect because they were also around back then.
But for this year, our company has grown. We have one new building, and a bunch of new employees who are relatively new. And I count myself in that category.
In addition, the same morning before the drill, I scheduled a drill prep meeting for our ERT which has about 20-30 members. All volunteers. And I'm glad to say that most of them attended and participated in the drill, even the brand new members.
Anyways, it was yours truly who led the meeting, made the presentation in front of everyone, etc etc. And even though I love this shit, am experienced in ERT, and don't mind doing it at all.... my job title is still a pretty junior role. And I'm doing all this leadership stuff for a group of 20-30 people. Yes, I know they're all volunteers; so it's not as if I have that many subordinates at work on a regular basis. But it still counts. (After all, my official job description says I am to "participate in the emergency response team", not lead it.)
The drill itself wasn't perfect. Wasn't expecting it to be. There are improvements to be made, including myself. But that's alright. Not the biggest sin in the world.
Although one guy at work complained to me about "your ERT" (which in actuality, I don't mind because it indeed IS my ERT and I'm proud to say that). I quietly did more investigation on the side and have come to the conclusion that if one area of the drill was indeed disorganized, it wasn't because of my ERT. And that guy was arguing with me about what the "Missing/Unaccounted Headcount" forms are for.... I know I'm right. And I have the procedure to back me up. But this guy used to be on the ERT! Not sure exactly why he's thinking the way he's thinking, but in this case, it's wired all wrong.
Still, what matters most is that the drill went well overall.
My boss is happy.
My boss's boss is happy.
Our Emergency Trainer who observed the drill is happy.
I did a good job with all this. And I'm taking that to the bank.