Montana Disaster & Emergency Services — SECC Familiarization Series
Module 3: SECC Organization Under ISM
Who's who in the SECC — from Command Staff to the section floor.
Modules 1 and 2 covered why the SECC works the way it does. This module gets concrete: who actually staffs the SECC, and where each position fits.
This module walks through the SECC's organization chart (ISM-207) — Command Staff, the Information Management Section, the Resource Support Section, and the Recovery Section — plus a look at the fuller position list the SECC's Position Checklists cover. About 5–7 minutes.
Every SECC activation is led by the SECC Manager, who sets priorities, decides the activation level, and directs the center's overall response. A small group of Command Staff positions support the Manager directly rather than sitting inside one of the three operating sections:
Not every position is staffed at every activation level — more on that in Screen 6.
Led by the Information Management Section Chief, this Section collects, evaluates, and shares information about the event and the status of SECC-assigned resources — and coordinates the SECC's planning products, including the Incident Support Plan.
ICS typically splits resource ordering (Logistics) from funding it (Finance/Admin). ISM combines both under one Resource Support Section — a single place for acquiring, deploying, and tracking resources and services, led by the Resource Support Section Chief.
The Recovery Section coordinates recovery-related activities during and after the response — damage assessment, debris management, and individual and public assistance — led by the Recovery Section Chief.
That's a lot of positions — and that's intentional. The full position list exists so the SECC has a title ready for any role it might need, not because every seat fills at every activation.
The ISM-207 Organization Chart shows the positions most commonly staffed. The fuller position list — the one this module just walked through — supports the SECC's Position Checklists, giving every plausible role a defined checklist just in case it's needed.
Before the knowledge check, here's the shape of the SECC's organization:
SECC Manager plus PIO, Liaison Officer, Deputy, Safety Officer, and Legal Counsel.
Information Management, Resource Support, and Recovery — each with their own units.
The full position list is a navigation tool — actual staffing scales with activation level.
No score, no pressure — just a quick way to reinforce the key ideas.
1. Which position leads the overall SECC during an activation?
2. Which section combines resource ordering and funding into one place, unlike a typical ICS structure?
3. Why does the SECC maintain checklists for positions that aren't staffed at every activation?
4. Which unit includes the Community Lifelines Analyst and Hazards Analyst?
Content in this module is drawn from the Montana DES SECC Operations Manual (2026), ISM-207 Organization Chart, and Position Checklists (2026). This is a familiarization course; it is not a substitute for position-specific training or the manual itself.