Don't Brief, Certify

“Briefing is the wrong word. It implies a passive, one-way transfer of information. What we needed was certification: active verification that people truly understood what they needed to know.” – L. David Marquet

The Problem with Briefings

In the Navy, and in most organizations, the standard method for ensuring people are prepared is the briefing. Before an operation, someone stands at the front of the room and talks through the plan. People sit, listen, nod, and then go execute. The assumption is that hearing equals understanding.

Marquet discovered that this assumption is dangerously wrong. On the Santa Fe, he found that crew members would sit through briefings, answer “yes” when asked if they understood, and then go to their stations without a clear picture of what they were supposed to do or why. The briefing had transferred words but not understanding.

Why Briefings Fail

The Briefing Model (Passive):

• One person talks, everyone else listens
• Understanding is assumed, not verified
• “Any questions?” is asked but rarely answered honestly
• People are reluctant to admit confusion in a group setting
• The briefer feels good because they delivered the information
• The audience feels covered because they attended

The Certification Model (Active):

• Understanding is verified through demonstration
• People must articulate what they know, not just confirm they heard
• Gaps in knowledge are identified and addressed before action
• The burden of proof is on the learner to demonstrate readiness
• The focus is on whether people are prepared, not on whether information was delivered

The Certification Approach

Marquet replaced briefings with certifications. The difference was not cosmetic. It was structural. In a certification, the person being certified must demonstrate their understanding rather than simply confirming that they heard the briefing.

How Certification Works

The certification process followed a consistent pattern on the Santa Fe:

1. State the goal. The certifier (usually a supervisor) states the objective of the upcoming operation or task.

2. Ask the operator to explain. Instead of briefing the operator on the plan, the certifier asks the operator to explain their understanding of the plan, including contingencies.

3. Probe for depth. The certifier asks follow-up questions designed to test whether understanding goes beyond surface knowledge:

   • “What could go wrong?”
   • “If condition X changes, what would you do differently?”
   • “Why are we doing it this way instead of that way?”

4. Certify or remediate. If the operator demonstrates adequate understanding, they are certified to proceed. If gaps are found, they are addressed immediately, before the operation begins.

5. Document. The certification is recorded, creating accountability and a record of preparedness.

“We didn’t ask ‘Do you understand?’ because people will almost always say yes. We asked them to show us they understood.” – L. David Marquet

Real-World Application on the Santa Fe

The certification model was applied to every significant operation on the submarine: surfacing, diving, weapons handling, reactor operations, tactical maneuvers. No one was allowed to perform a critical evolution without first being certified.

Certification in Action

Before a complex torpedo loading operation, the traditional approach would have been for the weapons officer to brief the entire team: “Here’s the plan, here are the steps, here are the safety precautions. Any questions? No? Let’s go.”

Under the certification model, the weapons officer instead turned to each key member of the loading team and asked: “Walk me through the procedure. What is your role? What are the critical safety steps? What would you do if the torpedo jammed during loading? What emergency signals should you know?”

Each team member had to demonstrate their readiness. When one sailor could not adequately explain the emergency procedures, the operation was paused until that gap was filled. The delay was fifteen minutes. The potential consequence of proceeding without that knowledge was incalculable.

Extending Certification Beyond Technical Skills

While certification began with technical operations, Marquet extended the concept to broader areas of understanding. He believed that true competence required not just technical knowledge but also an understanding of the organization’s goals, priorities, and decision-making criteria.

Certifying Organizational Understanding

Marquet began certifying that people understood:

• The mission. Not just “what we’re doing” but “why we’re doing it” and “how this fits into the larger picture”
• Decision-making authority. Each person should be able to articulate what decisions they can make on their own and what decisions require consultation
• Priorities. If two objectives conflict, which takes precedence? People who understand priorities can make better autonomous decisions
• Values and standards. What behavior is expected, what is unacceptable, and why

This broader certification ensured that when people exercised their authority (Control), they did so with full understanding of the context (Clarity). The three pillars were interdependent, and certification was the bridge between Competence and Clarity.

The Cultural Shift

Replacing briefings with certifications changed the culture of the Santa Fe in subtle but important ways.

From “Cover Your Back” to “Get It Right”

Under the briefing model, the focus was on compliance: “I briefed them, so if something goes wrong, it’s not my fault.” The briefing existed to protect the briefer, not to prepare the operator.

Under the certification model, the focus shifted to outcomes: “Are the people doing this work actually ready to do it well?” Certification existed to ensure success, not to distribute blame. This shift in intent changed everything about how preparation was conducted.

Supervisors stopped going through the motions of delivering information and started genuinely investing in their team’s understanding. And team members stopped passively absorbing and started actively engaging, because they knew they would be asked to demonstrate their knowledge.

Mechanisms, Not Programs

Marquet repeatedly emphasizes that the changes on the Santa Fe were not programs. Programs have start dates and end dates. They are announced with enthusiasm and quietly abandoned when the next initiative comes along. What Marquet implemented were mechanisms: specific, repeatable practices embedded in the daily operation of the submarine.

What Makes a Mechanism Stick

A mechanism, as Marquet defines it, has these characteristics:

• It is specific. Not “improve communication” but “before every operation, the operator must explain their plan to the supervisor.”
• It is repeatable. It happens the same way every time, creating consistency.
• It is embedded in the workflow. It is not a separate activity that competes for time. It replaces an existing activity (briefings) with a better one (certifications).
• It is observable. Others can see whether it is being done, which creates accountability.
• It survives leadership changes. Because it is structural rather than personality-dependent, it persists when the leader who introduced it moves on.

Practice: Replace a Briefing with a Certification

Choose one regular briefing in your organization and convert it to a certification:

1. Identify the briefing. Pick a recurring meeting where someone presents information to a group.
2. Flip the script. Instead of presenting information, ask attendees to demonstrate their understanding of the key points before the meeting begins.
3. Ask probing questions. Go beyond “Do you understand?” to “Explain how you would handle situation X.”
4. Address gaps in real time. When someone cannot demonstrate understanding, use it as a learning moment, not a judgment.
5. Measure the difference. Compare the quality of execution after a briefing versus after a certification.

Reflection

How many briefings in your organization are actually transfers of understanding, and how many are just performances where information is delivered but not absorbed? What would change if you required people to demonstrate understanding rather than just confirm they heard it?

Key Takeaways

• Briefings create an illusion of preparedness by confusing information delivery with understanding
• Certification requires people to demonstrate understanding rather than passively receive information
• The certification process includes stating goals, asking operators to explain, probing for depth, and remediating gaps
• Certification extends beyond technical skills to mission understanding, decision authority, priorities, and values
• The cultural shift moves from “cover your back” (I briefed them) to “get it right” (they are truly prepared)
• Mechanisms, not programs, create lasting change: they are specific, repeatable, embedded, observable, and survive leadership transitions