The Easy Ones Get Coached
When accountability depends on who you're dealing with, the standard isn't really the standard anymore. Sometimes the easiest employees to coach end up receiving the most coaching—and that's a leadership problem.
AI Has Entered the Chat.
AI isn't coming to the 911 center. It's already here. The question isn't whether we use it—it's where we use it without losing the human judgment that makes emergency communications work.
Who...or What, Should Answer the Phone?
AI is already answering non-emergency calls in one 911 center. Is it replacing dispatchers—or giving them back the attention they need when it matters most?
The Unwritten Rules of 911 Dispatch
Every profession has rules. Dispatch has more than most.
What's Actually in Your Console Bag?
911 dispatchers may be the only people who bring enough supplies to work a 12-hour shift, survive a minor natural disaster, treat a headache, feed a small family, and charge every electronic device manufactured since 2012.
Nobody Calls 911 to Tell You You're Doing a Great Job
In dispatch, doing everything right often means nothing memorable happens. Good work can become invisible simply because we expect it. Maybe it’s time we got better at noticing the people quietly getting it right, shift after shift.
The Problem With “Thick Skin”
Dispatch requires thick skin—but we should be careful about what we’re asking people to be resilient against. There’s a difference between handling the realities of the job and tolerating a workplace that makes an already difficult profession harder.
Stop Buying Dispatchers Another Screen
More technology doesn’t always mean better operations. As 911 centers add more screens, systems, alerts, and data, maybe it’s time to ask a different question: Is this actually making the dispatcher’s job better?
Your Best Dispatcher Might Make a Terrible Supervisor
Being great behind the console doesn’t automatically make someone a great leader. The skills that make an exceptional dispatcher and the skills required to lead people aren’t always the same and promotion should be the beginning of leadership development, not the end.
Why Hold Traffic?
Why I created a place to talk about leadership, technology, culture, and life in 911