Developing Advanced Crew Resource Management (ACRM) Training: A Training Manual(23)

Overview of CRM Procedures Development Activities

.All airlines should plan these three steps: 1) identifying CRM needs, 2) specifying procedures, and 3) refining procedures.   
.It is vital for an airline to identify a few operationally significant CRM- related performance problems.
Planning for the Main Development Activities
The development of CRM procedures is based on airline-specific operations, but there are several basic steps that should be considered by all airlines. Those steps are presented in this part, and include the identification of CRM needs, the specification of the procedures, and the refinement of those procedures.
Identification of CRM needs is based on the most important crew performance problems at an airline. Training departments may not know how to start looking for these problems, so it can be useful to first review industry-wide reports to learn where other airlines have the greatest crew performance problems. Industry sources of information can help locate general problem areas that are more likely to be accepted by an airline which might otherwise be defensive about its own pilot population. When several general areas have been identified, the airline can then look at its own safety and training reports to start pinpointing its own specific problems in those areas. The identification of CRM problem areas is ongoing, as initial problems are resolved and new problems surface. To ensure initial success and long-term acceptance, it is vital for the airline to identify a few operationally significant CRM-related performance problems for procedure development. Once the problems have been isolated, they are reviewed to determine if they point to operating standards, training, or a combination of those needs.
Specification of CRM procedures uses the airline performance problems and CRM needs to determine the procedures that will address them. This is the first pass at specifying the new procedures, so the development team should be encouraged to examine a range of possible procedures and consider a number of different areas where these procedures could be implemented. This is a major step for the development team, and planning considerations include making sure the team members have sufficient time and access to airline resources so they can develop a credible set of initial CRM procedures.
The refinement step is based on a comprehensive review of the CRM procedures. Individual procedures, along with other options, must be reviewed by all departments affected by the
.Consider forming a CRM procedures development team rather than having just one developer.
changes including training, flight operations, and fleet management departments. The refinement process is essential for improving the CRM procedures and for gaining acceptance across departments. These three steps require forming a broad-based development team and continued communications with the organization; elements are that discussed next.