Incident Response (IR) Exercise Phases Establish Exercise Interval and Planning timelines: First, establish the IR exercise execution interval (i.e., Annally, bi-annually, quarterly, monthly, etc). From the set interval back track time for planning and approval of exercises. Exercise Design & Development: Guided by leadership intent and program priorities, this phase involves using risk assessments, plans, policies, and past After-Action Reports (AARs) to design exercises