Editor’s note: This is the second in a two-part series. Access part one here.
By Chief James J. Gerace and John F. Schmitt
In Part 1 of this series, we laid out the reality of high-stress decision-making. Under pressure, officers don’t typically execute multistep, textbook analytical models. Instead, they often rely on Gary Klein’s Recognition-Primed Decision (RPD) framework: rapidly matching patterns against an internal “mental playbook” and running a fast mental simulation on the first viable option that comes to mind. If the option passes that quick mental test, they execute it, sometimes in a fraction of a second. If it doesn’t, they quickly move on to the next option until they find one that does.
To improve street decisions and accelerate expertise, an agency must expand its officers’ mental library. But how does a modern department actually operationalize this without blowing its budget or pulling patrol officers off the street? In the spring of 2025, the authors joined forces to tackle that very question. We partnered to train the patrol sergeants of the Colonie Police Department in creating and facilitating decision-making exercises grounded in the five fundamentals outlined in Part 1.
The goal was straightforward: Equip frontline supervisors with the tools to build and run high-yield Tactical Decision Games (TDGs) right at roll call. Equipped with these skills, sergeants authored the scenarios, facilitated the debriefs and drove daily execution during standard shift briefings.
Colonie PD’s three-pillar micro-dosing framework
In the summer of 2025, Colonie PD implemented a 13-week micro-dosing pilot program titled “Transforming Roll Call: The Impact of ‘Micro-Dosing’ Training on Officer Performance.”
Built around the core operational motto that “the body won’t go where the mind has never been,” the program delivered 15- to 20-minute training sessions during shift briefings, structured around three distinct learning modalities:
- Oral recall (daily): Active verbal retrieval of department policy and legal standards to keep administrative parameters fresh.
- Skill demonstrations (weekly rotation): Hands-on manipulation of critical equipment such as portable radios, TASER platforms, 40mm less-lethal launchers, tourniquets and pediatric first-aid equipment.
- Tactical Decision Games (weekly rotation): Low-tech, scenario-based discussions requiring officers to commit to tactical choices under compressed timeframes and articulate their rationale out loud.
A hidden key: Building tool mastery to free up cognitive bandwidth
At first glance, practicing tourniquet wraps or radio manipulation might seem separate from tactical decision-making. In reality, they are deeply intertwined.
Cognitive science shows us that human working memory is limited, especially under stress. When an officer is unfamiliar with or unpracticed in using their physical gear, cognitive resources are consumed simply trying to manipulate the tool. Fumbling with a TASER or struggling to change a radio channel during a crisis creates high cognitive load, which “steals” attention away from threat assessment and tactical judgment.
Colonie PD’s pilot incorporated a crucial operational lesson: You cannot separate physical skill mastery from cognitive decision-making. By micro-dosing mechanical skill demonstrations alongside TDGs, the department attempted to build automaticity with duty equipment.
When officers achieve mastery over their tools, their physical mechanics can become more automatic. This can free up critical mental bandwidth, allowing an officer to focus on pattern recognition, environmental cues and sound decision-making when adrenaline spikes.
Evaluating the impact: The Finn Institute findings
To determine whether roll-call repetitions could yield measurable improvements in officer readiness, researchers from the John F. Finn Institute for Public Safety conducted an independent evaluation of our 13-week pilot.
They tracked patrol officers and shift sergeants across all operational lines, collecting data through pre- and post-program written knowledge assessments, hands-on skill evaluations and surveys of officers and supervisors.
The findings yielded several actionable insights for law enforcement executives and trainers.
Recall knowledge and policy retention
Across all three shifts, the departmental average on policy and legal standards assessments rose from 51% on the pre-test to 82% on the post-test. The improvement suggests that frequent, low-stakes retrieval exercises can help officers retain important policy and legal knowledge.
Physical skill mastery
By pairing weekly skill demonstrations with cognitive repetitions, officers achieved performance gains over their baseline assessments at the start of the program. These gains support the value of repeated practice in building familiarity and proficiency with essential equipment.
Developing mechanical automaticity may also help prevent physical tool manipulation from consuming valuable mental bandwidth during critical incidents.
Accelerated growth for less-experienced officers
The evaluation revealed that micro-dosing was particularly well received by junior personnel. Approximately 90% of newer officers reported increased confidence in making tactical decisions on patrol.
By exposing junior officers to simulated operational dilemmas during roll call, the department sought to accelerate the development of their pattern-recognition skills.
More purposeful supervision and mentorship
Interviews revealed strong support among shift sergeants and patrol officers for structured TDG briefings as an improvement over traditional, passive roll calls.
Sergeants reported that facilitating decision games sharpened their own instructional skills, reinforced agency doctrine and created a natural framework for mentoring newer officers on shift.
Operational friction points to plan for
While the Finn Institute evaluation documented improvements in knowledge, equipment proficiency and self-reported tactical confidence, it also highlighted operational friction points that agency leaders should consider.
Preventing “veteran burnout”
Senior officers with 10 or more years of experience exhibited lower engagement, sometimes viewing the training repetitions as redundant and unnecessary.
A potential solution is to frame senior officers not as passive students but as co-facilitators and mentors during TDG debriefs.
Position them to share their real-world rationale with junior officers, turning veteran experience into an agency-wide asset.
Additionally, in 2026, the department adjusted the training rhythm to a biweekly cadence, seeking to prevent overall “training fatigue” while preserving long-term momentum.
Managing roll-call time and logistics
To avoid delaying shift handoffs or pulling units late to calls, TDG briefings must remain strictly bounded to 15–20 minutes.
Limiting scenario decision points and keeping visual maps simple helps ensure the training remains low-friction, practical and sustainable over the long haul.
Expanding the decision-making playbook
As interest in decision-making training gains national traction, highlighted by Police1’s launch of its “Decision Point” video series, agency leaders often ask: “What’s the difference between a Tactical Decision Game (TDG) and using a video?”
While both approaches shift roll call from passive listening to active mental processing, they target distinct aspects of cognitive decision-making.
Tactical Decision Games: Building macro “game knowledge”
TDGs use simple sketch maps and brief narratives to train officers to think about the application of tactical concepts: positioning, perimeter containment, resource management, de-escalation and multi-unit coordination under compressed timeframes. They also encourage officers to think “one level up,” like a sergeant or on-scene commander.
Pause Point Videos: Developing “fast eyes” for cue recognition
Pause Point Videos (PPVs) — including body-worn camera footage that presents a tactical dilemma — allow a trainer to freeze the frame at critical decision points. Whereas TDGs focus on tactical concepts, PPVs are particularly well suited for visual and auditory cue recognition.
Pausing a video right before a suspect draws a weapon or shifts body posture can help officers practice anticipation and develop “fast eyes,” sharpening their ability to recognize behavioral threat indicators before violence occurs.
Both tools reinforce the principles of Gary Klein’s RPD model by expanding an officer’s tacit knowledge base.
Stated simply: The more often an officer can say, “I’ve seen this before,” the more readily they may recognize critical cues on patrol.
Combining low-tech TDGs with video-based PPVs creates a balanced, versatile micro-dosing curriculum designed to build confident, resilient decision-makers across every shift.
Building your agency’s decision-making training program
The takeaway from the Colonie PD pilot project is clear: You do not need high-tech simulators or massive training budgets to make meaningful improvements in officer knowledge and skills. You need committed sergeants.
By combining the cognitive science of Recognition-Primed Decisions with low-cost, high-yield decision-making exercises, agencies can transform roll call from a passive attendance check into an active skill-building laboratory.
When you micro-dose challenging tactical dilemmas in training, you give officers more opportunities to practice responding to ambiguity before they encounter it on the street. They can draw from a richer, well-practiced playbook and make decisions with greater confidence.
About the authors
Chief James “Jay” Gerace is a seasoned law enforcement leader with 27 years of police service and the Chief of Police for the Colonie Police Department in New York. He has extensive experience in developing and implementing evidence-based training programs for officers, including a special focus on scenario-based training to mitigate high-risk situations. His work has been published in respected law enforcement trade publications, including the IACP’s Police Chief Magazine and the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin. He has presented in front of leading organizations such as the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C.
John F. Schmitt is the CEO of ShadowBox, LLC, a company that helps practitioners in a variety of domains develop expertise through innovative cognitive skills training. During 22 years as a Marine Corps infantry officer, he pioneered the use of tactical decision games (TDGs), which have since been expanded to other domains, including law enforcement. He is the author of Marine Corps Doctrinal Publication 1, Warfighting, which describes the Marine Corps’ operational doctrine called maneuver warfare. He resides in Auburn, Alabama.
