Differences in competence may be significant between Homeland Security (HS) professionals who hold four-year degrees in related fields and those with no college degree. We do not have in place a mandatory accreditation program—or a process of any kind—to provide qualification approval for candidates in the field of protecting our homeland.
The Emergency Management Accreditation Program is standard-based and voluntary, developed for state and local-government programs responsible for coordinating prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery activities for natural and human-caused disasters. Assessment and accreditation are based on compliance with collaboratively developed national standards from existing practitioners.
If we had a national certification board, this would provide improvements and acceptable, universal standards. It would establish baseline qualifications for civilians and military who work in the HS occupational field.
Leaders need to be talented people who care about what they are doing and have a genuine desire to do a good job. They are responsible for influencing those who are under their care. But in the field of HS management, research into organizational and cultural theories has been inadequate, and preparation is lacking.
An HS/emergency-management (EM) practitioner needs to be able to oversee an emergency, direct resources for diffusing crisis, recognize impending disaster, prepare for recovery, and communicate effectively, all while understanding and managing risk. For people to learn how to do this well, we need to identify patterns, trends, and themes. This takes research.
Civil defense has previously been considered appropriately handled by the military. Natural disaster relief has been considered the responsibility of a relief agency. Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) takes care of both of these. Therefore, an HS practitioner should be able to make use of tested academic theories, within the confines of leadership needed at the moment and the overall team's needs. Through our lack of certification for HS and EM personnel, we not only create disorganization, we also fail to protect consumers from false expectations.
Most county emergency managers have collateral duties beyond their primary responsibilities. They report that county governments are not prepared, nor do they have the proper credentials and leadership skills, to meet federal mandates for disaster preparedness. This raises the question of how committed local governing agencies are to complying with the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
Because the requirements differ for managing natural disasters and civil defense, two divergent paths have evolved. Protecting our nation from any kind of attack is the number-one priority for the DOD. But for our defense to be active and layered, not only the DOD, but also the DHS and local authorities must participate aggressively.
All federal agencies must justify resource expenditures and funding, so it is likely that they step across established boundaries to elevate their functions in the eyes of executive leadership, and to convince leadership of their importance. But in the DHS, civilian leadership—even at the highest levels—has little academic exposure to the field. Many managers have never had to make critical decisions in high-level strategic planning and execution.
The U.S. Northern Command plans, organizes, and executes homeland defense and civil support missions for the military. And yet we are not prepared to use the military in a robust manner as a complement to and reinforcement of civil forces. The military clearly has the resources to provide security for local authorities. But a cross-pollination of active duty officers, which would advance information and culture sharing, has not occurred.
This is because federal agencies do not support an inter-agency environment—which is precisely what we need, along with assessment and accreditation in Department of Homeland Security roles. The President has called for a national strategy to develop security professionals. So far, little has been done.