PROJECT UPDATES

What we’ve been doing, where we’ve been travelling, and what’s next.

Upcoming Crisis Simulations

This year has been a busy one with crisis simulations as organisations get back into their regular routines after the pandemic. So far this year we've delivered simulations in Jakarta and Marrakech.

Over the next few months, we have crisis simulation exercises booked with clients in Seoul and Hong Kong. If your organisation is interested in conducting a crisis simulation in either location while we're in town, please let us know.

TRAINING

Training workshops and customised training solutions.

Strategic Futures Programme

New for this month, we've introduced our Strategic Futures programme. Leveraging more than two decades of experience in crisis management, Strategic Futures is designed to focus executive teams on strategic issues that may affect their organisations in the medium-term.

We offer three unique sessions:

1. Climate Crisis
2. Shifting Powers
3. AI to AGI

These sessions are applicable for all types of organisations, including companies and NGOs. You can learn more here.

If you'd like to have a chat about how our Strategic Futures programme might fit into your organisation's overall approach to risk forecasting and crisis preparation, please get it touch and we can set up a time to talk.

APPLICATIONS

Updates on our applications.

Whistler

Whistler is a simple and secure whistleblowing application that enables organisations to receive and manage confidential reports from whistleblowers. We launched Whistler 9 years ago. This year, we updated the application to version 2.0. We increased the level of encryption and added case management tools, amongst a host of other improvements.

Pricing starts at $19 a month.

If you're looking for a simple and secure whistleblowing solution for your organisation, you can learn more here.

Incident Manager Application

Incident Manager is the first application that's focused on team performance during a crisis. Crisis events are already inherently challenging. There's no point in adding an additional layer of complexity by forcing teams to use software that increases cognitive load and only serves to make the situation more difficult to manage.

Our goal in developing Incident Manager is to provide software that doesn't get in the way of teams but instead makes them more effective at managing complex incidents.

Please reach out if you'd like a demo.

Tenacio

Tenacio is a project management application designed for individuals with a lot on their plate (like me).

The key benefit of Tenacio is that it cuts through the myriad of projects and tasks and tells you what you need to work on next. It does this based on deadlines, your activity preferences, and when you prefer to work on certain activities.

The application is now in production and I'm using it to manage my own projects. It's already proven its worth as I continue to work on consulting projects, application development projects, writing projects, product development projects, and all of the administration and marketing efforts that go along with those projects. It's bringing order to the chaos.

As I'm using Tenacio, I'm making daily improvements to fine tune the design of the views and to tighten up the algorithms that determine what needs to be worked on next. I hope to be ready to release to a larger audience in the next month or so.

STATION XV

Updates on our in-house gear, sharing a behind-the-scenes look at our design and manufacturing processes.

Last month, I announced the availability of two new accessories: the Travel Folio and Camera Module.

This month, I (finally) got around to hiring a professional photographer to take photos of the bags. The photos are currently being edited and I will be adding them to the website in the next week or so.

I've written a short article on Medium about the launch of Station XV. You can check it out here.

Also check out this long-term review of the Street Satchel.

PUBLICATIONS

We’ve published a number of books on crisis management, travel security and security evacuations.

The Field Guide Series

We've published four books in the Field Guide series:

• The Field Guide to Deployment Planning
• The Field Guide to Personal Security
• The Field Guide to Accommodation Security
• The Field Guide to Transport Security

These books take a deep dive into their respective topics.

If you're a frequent traveller, particularly if you travel to higher-risk locations, you'll find these books to be an invaluable reference.

You can learn more about the Field Guide Series and download a free sample of the books here.

Bulk Orders

Several highly regarded organisations (and one prestigious university) have purchased copies of our books for their teams. If your team would benefit from the knowledge and experience contained in our books, please reach out. We can provide discounts for bulk orders.

READING LIST

Links to interesting articles worth your time.

The Terrorism Warning Lights Are Blinking Red Again Echoes of the Run-Up to 9/11 (Foreign Affairs). Read here.

A new AI tool that accurately measures crowd sizes sheds light on protests roiling Brazil. Former president Bolsonaro claimed 600,000 attended a rally for him, but researchers used the tool to prove it was less than a third of that (Rest of World). Read here.

Kim–Putin ‘strategic partnership’ leaves US and allies with multi-pronged problem. A growing arms trade between Moscow and Pyongyang together with North Korea’s nuclear ambitions are increasingly urgent issues for the United States, South Korea, and Japan (Chatham House). Read here.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place in the South China Sea. A remote outpost of the Philippines in the South China Sea is on the front line of potential geopolitical conflict (The Atlantic). Read here.

China’s South Sea Aggression Is Backfiring. Beijing is ramping up efforts to cow neighbors such as the Philippines in the South China Sea but is getting nowhere fast (Foreign Policy). Read here.

China’s Maritime Disputes. A good explainer by CFR (Council on Foreign Relations). Read here.

How China Could Quarantine Taiwan. Part 1 of a ChinaPower Series by CSIS. Read here.

Pacific islands are no longer free of organised crime. (ASPI). Read here.

Putin’s latest stirring—in Asia and Europe. (ASPI). Read here.

Independent Thinking: Is the South China Sea the world’s next flashpoint? A violent clash between China’s coastguard and the Philippine Navy near an isolated reef has sparked fears of escalation. Will this tiny shoal bring US-China tensions to a head? (Chatham House). Read here.

World Order is in a Downward Spiral. The United States needs a grand strategy to deal with three interconnected threats to global stability (CFR). Read here.

A Global South with Chinese characteristics. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce has sponsored training programs overseas on trade, information security technologies, and more. Beijing uses these training programs to make a case for its authoritarian capitalism. Is it working? (Atlantic Council). Read here.

That’s it for this month, folks.

Thanks for reading and stay safe out there.

Grant Rayner

Spartan9