Using InCAS and the Annual Report Information Sessions for Principals October 2008
2012 Annual Reportpd.norcom.org/docs/misc/2012 Annual Report Final.pdf2012 Annual Report Presented...
Transcript of 2012 Annual Reportpd.norcom.org/docs/misc/2012 Annual Report Final.pdf2012 Annual Report Presented...
2012 Annual Report
Presented to the Principals Assembly
April 12, 2013
NORTH EAST KING COUNTY REGIONAL PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNICATION AGENCY
NORCOM
PO Box 50911
Bellevue,WA 98015
Phone: 425-577-3700
Fax: 425-577-5701
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MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Phone: 425-577-5671
Fax: 425-577-5701
E-mail: [email protected]
Tom Orr
PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
Thank you for your interest in NORCOM. Having begun operations in mid-2009, NORCOM is a relatively new agency that sets the bar for multi-discipline and multi-jurisdictional consolidated emergency communications services. I was honored to be selected to serve as NORCOM’s first permanent Executive Director beginning De-cember 15, 2012. In the following pages, we report to you on NORCOM’s progress in 2012. Our report details our journey and pro-gress towards achieving our vision of a world-class regional communications agency. Credit for that progress goes to the outstanding employees at NORCOM, our member agencies, an outstanding Interim Director, Pam Bissonnette, and the leadership and guidance of the members of our Governing Board. Our report not only details the many challenges that come with instituting a best-of-breed agency such as NOR-COM but also the many accomplishments achieved while tackling those challenges head on. As you will see, NORCOM has a group of talented and highly-professional personnel dedicated to NORCOM’s mission and pur-pose. It is they who day-in and day-out make NORCOM the stellar agency that it is. Chief among NORCOM’s challenges has been the implementation of a large, next generation, integrated commu-nications records management system (ICRM) that unites all of NORCOM’s fire and police agencies. The project has proven challenging and will continued to do so for the near future. With the retention of Online Business Systems in the summer of 2012, NORCOM saw significant progress in project management and the development of a timetable and methodology for achieving successful completion of the project. It is important in projects of such magnitude to recall the Vision that led to its inception. That Vision is a shared vision of three like-minded emergency communication agencies and the elected officials and chief executives of the 71 fire and police agencies they serve. Together they sought to establish a first-ever regional ICRM system that goes not only beyond the boundaries of cities and districts but also between counties. These far sighted agencies and individuals recognized that crime is borderless; that the closest asset for response to a medical emergency is not always where the call originates; and that major fires or mass casualty events require coordina-tion of responding units from many disparate jurisdictions. The ICRM system was conceived with these facts in mind. Upon completion, the ICRM system will not only con-nect all 19 NORCOM agencies within NORCOM but will also connect 52 other police and fire agencies served by SNOCOM and SNOPAC in Snohomish County. The concept was innovative and did not exist in 2009. NORCOM, SNOCOM and SNOPAC recognized that with all projects of this magnitude there would be new issues to identify and resolve as they moved through unchartered waters. Nevertheless, they embarked on this difficult path because it was in the long-term best interest of those we serve – the public. Admittedly, the process has not been as smooth or as swift as hoped. The close of 2012; however, served to signal that substantial progress was being made and that the original Vision remains both achievable and valid.
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Phone: 425-577-3700
Fax: 425-577-5701
NORCOM
PO Box 50911
Bellevue,WA 98015
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Message from the Executive Director 3
Table of Contents 4
Principal Representatives 5
Governing Boards 6
Organizational Chart 7
Team Members 8
Background, Statement of Operating Values & Principals, and Mission 9
Goals of Regionalized Dispatch 10
Governance 11
Interim Executive Director’s Report 12-13
Deputy Director’s Report 14-18
Communications Report 19-27
Information Services Report 28-32
Human Resources Report 33-38
Finance Report 39-50
2012 Awards 51-52
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PRINCIPAL REPRESENTATIVES
Conrad Lee
Mayor
City of Bellevue
Bruce Dodds
Councilmember
City of Clyde Hill
Bob Stowe
City Manager
City of Bothell
Jerry Smith
Commissioner
Duvall Fire Department
Eric Hollis
Commissioner
Fall City Fire Department
Ron Pedee
Chairman
Eastside Fire & Rescue
Penny Sweet
Councilmember
City of Kirkland
Bruce Bassett
Mayor
City of Mercer Island
Michael Luis
Mayor
City of Medina
Eric Adman
Commissioner
Northshore Fire Department
James Knisley
Chief
Skykomish Fire Department
Ken Callahan
Chairman
Shoreline Fire
Bob Jeans
Councilmember
City of Snoqualmie
Tim Osgood
Chairman
Woodinville Fire & Rescue
Jay Wiseman
Fire Chief
Snoqualmie Pass Fire
Department
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GOVERNING BOARD REPRESENTATIVES
Brad Miyake Deputy City Manager
City of Bellevue
Bob Van Horne Fire Chief
City of Bothell
Bill Archer Police Chief
City of Clyde Hill
Kurt Triplett City Manager
City of Kirkland
Donna Hanson City Manager
City of Medina
Rich Conrad City Manager
City of Mercer Island
Bob Larson City Administrator City of Snoqualmie
David Burke Fire Chief
Duvall Fire District #45
Lee Soptich Fire Chief
Eastside Fire & Res-cue
Chris Connor Fire Chief
Fire District 27
Jim Torpin Fire Chief
Northshore FD
Mark Bunje Fire Chief
Shoreline FD
Jay Wiseman Fire Chief
Snoqualmie Pass FD
Mark Risen Fire Chief
Woodinville Fire & Rescue
James Knisley Fire Chief Skykomish
Fire District #50
JOINT OPERATING BOARD REPRESENTATIVES
FIRE OPERATIONS POLICE OPERATIONS
Mike Eisner Fire Chief
Bellevue FD
Helen Ahrens-Byington Deputy Fire Chief
Kirkland FD
James Knisley Fire Chief
Skykomish FD #50
Wes Collins Deputy Chief of
Planning Eastside Fire & Rescue
Russ Albertson Deputy Fire Chief
Redmond Fire
Jim Torpin Fire Chief
Northshore FD
Mark Risen Fire Chief
Woodinville Fire & Rescue
Jim Roepke Deputy Fire Chief
Bothell FD
Chris Tubbs Fire Chief
Mercer Island FD
Jay Wiseman Fire Chief
Snoqualmie Pass FD
Chris Connor Fire Chief
Fire District 27
Dave Jones Deputy Fire Chief
Shoreline FD
Bob Rowe Fire Chief
Snoqualmie FD
Linda Pillo Police Chief Bellevue PD
Bill Archer Police Chief Clyde Hill PD
Mike Ursino Police Captain
Kirkland PD
Mark Thomas Police Chief Medina Pd
Ed Holmes Police Chief
Mercer Island PD
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ORGANIZATIONAL CHART
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NORCOM TEAM MEMBERS
TELECOMMUNICATORS
Luke, Pete Prill, Mike Shelton, Greg Tran, Khai Way, Nathan Whitford, Ed
INFORMATION SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
S2 James, Cory S8 Crawford, Melissa S9 Louie, Roky S10 Kolling, Amanda S11 Lorraine, Missy S12 Hogue, Sandy
Orr, Tom Executive Director Mike Mandella Deputy Director Mullen, Sheryl Operations Manager Beisheim, Susan Human Resources Manager Pilo, Gwen Finance Manager Karen Furuya Technology Manager Facer, Heather HR Specialist Smithhisler, Marla Executive Assistant Inman, Charlene Accounting & Benefits Specialist Lehman, Heather Quality Assurance & Public Records Specialist
T3 Stuby, Dave T5 Biladeau, Dawn T6 Martin, Deanna T11 Lucci, Becky T13 McCoy, Krystal T15 Caligiuri, Traci T17 Wood, Mark T18 Vieth, Melissa T19 McCracken, Becky T22 Garcia, Christie T24 Burns, Paula T26 Kronberg, Erin T27 Randall, Josh T28 Nedell, Lieth T29 Hallifax, Ashley T34 Gallichan, Kayla T36 Herzog, Elizabeth T39 Castiglione, Dan T40 Miner, Staci
T42 Alfaro, Jaime (50%) T43 Cannon, Jessica T52 Hoppen, Jami T53 Lowry, Mark T58 Marshaleck, Billy T63 Polzin, Keith T66 Smith, Julie T70 Oien, Tammie T72 Baker, Josh T76 DeHennis, Skip T78 Montemayor, Stacy T88 Olson, Dottie T89 Johnson, Andrew T91 Solberg, Kenny T98 Trimble, Ethan T99 Gilbert, Katy T109 Pekema, Devin T110 Jaeckel, Spencer T112 Curry, Nick
T114 Coggins, Amanda T116 Wall, Devin T117 Bork, Deanna T118 Bonifant, Angel T121 Levang, Andrew T123 Bone, Josh T124 Velasquez, Selina T125 Morrison, Kat T126 Kuempel, Rebekah T127 McLaurin, Linda T128 Tusing, Lindsey (50%) T129 Stiefel, Kelly T130 Mullen, Melissa T131 Melton, Kelsie T132 Farris, Julie T133 Burdick, Chris T134 Finnis, Dan T135 Kask, Heidi
TEAM SUPERVISORS
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NORCOM BACKGROUND
Public safety dispatch in northeast King County was characterized by extensive replication of administrative and operating structures within a relatively small geographic area. Prior to NORCOM’s formation, there were seven different police dispatch agencies (Bellevue, Issaquah, Bothell, Kirkland, Mercer Island, Redmond and the King County Sheriff’s Office) that served the area.
NORCOM’s formation in late 2008 and start of operation on July 1, 2009 consolidated the 9-1-1 call answering and
emergency radio communications service previously provided by Bellevue, Kirkland, and Mercer Island police and
established an experienced management team and operation with the sole mission of answering 9-1-1 calls and
dispatching police, fire and EMS service providers in northeast King County.
STATEMENT OF OPERATING VALUES & PRINCIPALS
Prior to NORCOM’s formation, its Steering Committee prepared a Statement of Operating Values and Principles for the development and operation of a regional dispatch agency. In the spirit of those values and principles, the Steer-ing Committee completed work on a Business and Services Plan and Technology Strategy that serve as the founda-tion for NORCOM’s operation. The key elements of this plan:
Defined services to be provided; Recommended a governance model; Defined the relationship between subscribers to and owners of the regional agency, including a recommended fee structure; Described the appropriate model for the administration; Identified the location of the agency and the principles for a lease agreement; Quantified staffing levels and a cost estimate for implementation of the regional agency; Identified a technology strategy for completely integrated Computer-Aided Dispatch, Records Management, and Mobile technology for NORCOM; Identified start-up and transition costs associated with implementation; Prepared an Interlocal Agreement, By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation forming NORCOM; and Developed an implementation plan, including next steps and a recommended timeframe.
In 2010 NORCOM began the process of implementing performance measures by identifying what the priorities as a
dispatch agency are and tying those priorities to the Operating Principals and Core Values that support the Mission.
MISSION
The core mission of NORCOM is to provide high quality emergency service communications to the public for emergency medical services, fire and police. NORCOM carries out this mission by receiving calls for service; dispatching resources in response to such calls; tracking and coordinating information flow and resources to assist responders; initiating records for all emergency events; and enhancing effectiveness, efficiency, coordination and interoperability of emergency service providers.
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GOALS OF REGIONALIZED DISPATCH
LEVEL OF SERVICE
NORCOM is achieving a number of goals through the regionalization of dispatch services. First and foremost are the advances in communications among NORCOM’s participants that are made possible through a collaborative approach. Improved communications services depend on the collaboration of NORCOM’s member agencies. NORCOM’s operating services boards meet regularly to define and refine shared service protocols and to collabo-rate on level of service improvements. Response times are being enhanced because of the elimination of the transfer of Fire/EMS calls between dispatch agencies. Both police and fire services are developing their respective integrated records management systems (RMS), so that first responders will have real time access to regional in-formation through a single records system. Member agencies are also realizing level of service improvements with the implementation of integrated Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD), mobile, and RMS. EFFICIENCY & COST AVOIDANCE
There are a number of efficiencies associated with regional dispatch. Rather than duplicating administrative struc-tures and facilities at multiple dispatch centers, NORCOM allows for member agencies to realize economies of scale. NORCOM’s initial efficiencies are modest because fire dispatch operations were previously consolidated under a contract model. Over time, as NORCOM attracts additional partners, it is anticipated that the operations will become more cost-efficient. Long-term cost avoidance is an important factor in regionalization. Emergency communications center and emer-gency service technology supporting fire and police is becoming increasingly complex and expensive to maintain and replace. By sharing the costs of technology among NORCOM’s partner agencies, regionalization eliminates the need to acquire and maintain multiple technology systems. Over the long-term, NORCOM’s partners avoid costs associated with technology replacement at multiple communications centers, and at each agency. HIGHER DEGREE OF DECISION-MAKING & CONTROL
NORCOM offers its partner agencies a higher level of decision-making and control over dispatch functions. Under the NORCOM governance model, all participants have a voice and vote. The voting procedures give both the smaller and the larger jurisdictions the ability to meaningfully shape the operational and policy decisions made by NORCOM. Elected officials from each of the partner agencies also play an important oversight role for the organi-zation. GREATER CERTAINTY & ABILITY TO CONTROL COSTS
The NORCOM partnership model also offers its member jurisdictions greater certainty to determine the nature
and cost of future dispatch operations. Absent NORCOM, the agencies that previously contracted with Bellevue
and Kirkland for dispatch services would have paid higher contract costs without the ability to control the overall
budget. This full cost recovery contract approach would have significant disadvantages – most notably higher
costs without the decision-making control over operations and budget.
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GOVERNANCE
The NORCOM governance model establishes NORCOM as a separate legal entity formed as a non-profit
corporation whose members are public agencies and governed by a board on which all Principals are represented.
GOVERNANCE BOARDS & PRINCIPALS ASSEMBLY
The basic NORCOM structure is quite similar to many other multi-jurisdictional communications center opera-tions. Specifically, there is a Governing Board on which all Principals participate, and which oversees the Agency’s policies and budgets. The Governing Board is composed of the Chief Executive Officer from each Member agency (i.e., City Manager of a city formed as a council-City Manager city; the Fire Chief of a Fire District; or in case of a “strong-mayor city,” the Mayor). To provide oversight, each Principal has designated one member of its legislative body to represent it at the an-nual Principal’s Assembly. The purpose of the Assembly is to receive the Annual Report and to:
- Review the activities for the previous calendar year - Present the work program and significant events for the upcoming calendar year - Present a financial management report - Report on performance benchmarks of NORCOM activities
Principal Assembly representatives advise the Governing Board on these issues. In addition, there are two operational advisory boards—one for fire and EMS agencies, and a second for police agencies. On these Service Boards sit representatives from both “Principal” and “Subscriber” agencies. The Ser-vice Boards provide advice to the Governance Board and to the Executive Director of the agency. The two service boards meet regularly both separately, and together as a united Joint Operating Board.
VOTING
NORCOM’s significant financial and operational decisions require a Supermajority Vote, which means securing affirmative votes of: (1) not less than two-thirds of all Members of the Governing Board in number; and (2) not less than two-thirds of the Weighted Vote of all Members of the Governing Board. Supermajority vote decisions include approval of the annual budget and user fees and the addition of a new principal.
For routine operational decisions, the NORCOM Governing Board strives to operate by consensus. Otherwise
(except for decisions that require a supermajority vote) all Board decisions require a simple majority vote for
approval; unless a Governing Board Member, in advance of a vote, calls for a two-prong majority vote, in which
case the item shall require a majority vote by number and a majority vote by weight for approval.
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INTERIM
EXECUTIVE DIRECOR
Phone: 425-577-3700
Fax: 425-577-5701 E-mail:
Pam Bissonnette PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
INTRODUCTION
The Board provided five priorities for focused attention in 2012. The progress and accomplishments are summarized under each heading.
2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
1. Oversee a successful re‐launch (if technically possible) of New World systems for Police and then Fire
• Established an interagency Technology Committee
• Hired Deltawrx to provide an independent analysis of the problem with the NWS software implementation
• Hired a dedicated Project Manager, Jerry Holcombe, OBS
• Funded and signed MOUs for subject matter experts from Mercer Island, Bellevue, and Kirkland to supplement NORCOM’s project team
• Implemented best practices for software testing, training, and implementation
• Resumed Police use of the NWS CAD
• Demanded and received a plan and schedule from NWS for Fire “Go Live” and completion of the project upon which NORCOM based a “roadmap” for supporting their work
• Established a Steering Committee and new organizational structure for implementing the ICRM program
• Initiated Dispute Resolution to engender greater focus by NWS on success of the project
• Increased NORCOM’s budget by approximately $600,000 from reserves to fund the added costs to accomplish these actions
• Hired special legal counsel to support NORCOM in dispute resolution with NWS
2. Evaluate the Information Technology division and modify if necessary
• Did the first staffing plan for technology since NORCOM’s inception and demonstrated that it is under‐resourced for its current work load
• Repurposed two vacancies from Operations to Technology to support ICRM
• Drafted Service Level Agreement to clarify NORCOM’s and agency future technology needs
• Developed “Plan B” in the event that NWS did not succeed
• Arranged for a significant upgrade of TriTech due to NWS’s inability of providing quality and timely software that would have allowed for its retirement
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• Hired an Interim Technology Director to replace the outgoing director due to his retirement
• Maintained the legacy systems, radio, and MDTs for NORCOM in parallel with supporting ICRM
3. Provide an overall assessment of NORCOM organizational structure, operational abilities, and use of best practices
• Conducted NORCOM’s first employee survey
• Replaced the Operations Manager
• Moved the Training Supervisor under Operations for closer coordination and to reduce conflicts
• Repurposed temporarily the Professional Standards and Development manager position for a Deputy Director of Operations
• Moved the PIO function directly under the Executive Director
• Moved the Quality Assurance/Public Records position under the Deputy Director
• Delayed CALEA certification until NORCOM is more stable under a new permanent Executive Director
• Developed an Action Plan in response to the Employee Survey to implement best practices
• Completed the top three recommendations from the Action Plan by adopting new Cultural Values, improving training and communications, and adopted a more efficient SOP development and approval process
• Met or exceeded standard for call answering
• Corrected an error in the Operations staffing model resulting in the ability to cut 7 positions with the resulting savings
4. Work with the Strategic Planning Committee and the Board to develop and implement a plan to recruit and hire the next Executive Director
• Completed!
5. Progress with securing a Labor Agreement
• Labor Agreement with the Guild approved from June 2012 to December 2015.
• Labor Management Committee formed
• Non‐Represented employees compensation addressed in the 2013 budget
• PERC certification of new supervisor bargaining unit and initial discussions
6. Other significant work items
• Engaged in review and comment on the Regional PSAP Consolidation Study
• Preparation for Smart 911 implementation
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DEPUTY
DIRECTOR
Phone: 425-577-5681 Fax: 425-577-5701
E-mail: [email protected]
Mike Mandella PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
INTRODUCTION
The position of Deputy Director is new to NORCOM and was established in an effort to provide day to day oversight for many of the critical internal operational aspects of NORCOM. The position is being filled on an interim basis, with authorization from the Governing Board. I am thankful for both the opportunities and the challenges to assist in the Executive Director’s vision and efforts to make NORCOM the best PSAP in the county, with an eye toward even greater status and recognition for NORCOM. In early Spring 2012, NORCOM contracted with Agreement Dynamics for the purpose of conducting an employee survey. I was associated with Agreement Dynamics as a variable, part‐time senior associate and assisted with the development of the survey and served as the primary provider of feedback to NORCOM staff relative to the issues brought to bear in the survey. Working with the prior Executive Director (Interim – Pam Bissonnette), an action plan to address the most important aspects of the survey was drafted and implemented. In an effort to minimize costs and to eliminate the need for contract extensions, I was brought on as a NORCOM employee on October 1st and my responsibilities were expanded on October 22nd, at which time I assumed the position of Deputy Director (Interim). My duties and responsibilities include the management and oversight of all day‐to‐day operational aspects of NORCOM with the exception of Technology and Finance and Budget. Direct reports of this position include the Operations Manager, Human Resources Manager and the Quality Assurance and Public Records Specialist. 2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS Employee Survey NORCOM had been in existence only three years as of July 2012, the time of the employee survey. During that time a new public safety communication agency was born from former organizations, and expanded. NORCOM experienced changes in governance, changes in technology, changes in operations, and changes in people. NORCOM embarked on a very ambitious Integrated Public Safety Communications Program that is leading edge. In all this development and transformation, instability and friction can result.
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The employee survey was conducted at a time when the fruits of all this change and transformation could be seen. While there was both positive as well as negative feedback discovered in the survey results, it was obvious that the majority of employees care about NORCOM and want NORCOM to be better. A healthy organization can, and should, take a critical look at itself, and take actions to improve, with the intent to learn from the past, and then move into a better future. This is going to require us all to take positive actions to reform and let go of the past. Given the overwhelming response to the survey and the level of effort that went in to the responses indicates that employees are motivated to do what it takes to assure NORCOM’s success. Employee Cross‐Teams An Action Plan was developed that identified the top priorities for corrective action based on the data from the survey with organization‐wide input. The preferred response actions drove the formulation of "Cross‐Teams". For the purpose of the response actions, a cross‐team is defined as having team members representing the management and supervisor groups, the technology and administrative staff, as well as the telecommunicators. Given that the feedback in the survey indicated an overall dissatisfaction in the lack of employee involvement, and, given the survey also indicated strong employee desire to help take NORCOM to the next level of greatness, the action plan presupposed the use of several cross‐teams. As the purpose, scope and goals of each cross‐team was defined, volunteers from all the groups were solicited. Employees were able to volunteer based on the description of the team and purpose, or nominate a peer. Through the use of cross‐teams, the involvement of staff at all levels, and the strength of NORCOM's dedicated employees, it is anticipated that future surveys will show improvement in those areas.
During 2012, three cross‐teams were formed, each consisting of staff from varying rank and work units who would serve to collaborate on solutions to specific findings of the survey and to act as the representative for their respective work groups. The first such cross‐team and perhaps the most critical team to form, was the Cultural Values cross‐team. I deemed this team as crucial to the success of any cross‐team that would follow, as this was the team dedicated to the development of cultural values that would prescribe work behaviors and attitudes that would provide the most beneficial work environment moving forward. A cross‐team for Operations and Training, and for Communications were also formed soon after.
The Cultural Values Cross‐Team, in the course of six (6) team meetings, developed a means to involve all NORCOM staff in the development of a Cultural Values statement, a representative logo to be used on select NORCOM items (such as coffee mugs, lunch bags, etc), a video to visually depict the meaning of the values as well as the means to gain individual accountability for living these values in the workplace. The abbreviated cultural values statement is:
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C.A.R.E.S. I commit to working
Cooperatively toward a common goal; to being held
Accountable for my words and actions; to showing
Respect to all people I come in contact with; to strive for
Excellence in my work, word and deeds and to being
Supportive of those I work with and for. The Operations and Training Cross‐Team formed for the purpose of assessing related survey feedback and provide specific recommendations, if appropriate, to address: Alignment of the Training Position and Function Under the OPS Manager; Rotation of Supervisors Between six (6) Key Functions; Training Academy Curriculum Changes; Continuing Education; DATA Training; and CTO Assignments with Trainees. This effort resulted in organizational structure and reporting relationship changes that better align to the NORCOM mission.
The Communications Cross‐Team formed to assess internal communication venues for the purpose of seeking to streamline and improve communication between staff and between work units. This highly successful team addressed: SOP Process; WIKI and a NORCOM Discussion Board/FORUM; an Electronic Clipboard; Shift Briefings; Position Briefing Checklists ;Newsletter; and OUTLOOK E‐Mail.
In addition, I established a Labor Management Committee (LMC) that meets on a regular basis (once each month). My previous experience with an LMC – as an elected union official and then as Fire Chief – demonstrated how an effective partnership between labor and management reduced or nearly eliminated grievances, and when managed effectively, improves morale as well as support for change when change is needed.
Another small team established was the Promotional SOP team, created to examine the promotional selection policy and procedures currently in place, and for which there appeared to be a degree of concern. The result of this team is a more transparent and equitable policy and procedure. The edited SOP conforms well to 41CFR Part 60 and CALEA standards, each taken as a “best practice” approach despite the fact that NORCOM is not required to adhere to 41CFR’s uniform guidelines on selection. Next steps include the design and implementation of a selection process for Team Supervisors and the Training Coordinator. Each process will have some similarity, but will be seeking different characteristics of the candidates for each position.
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Agency Audio Requests
NORCOM responded to 1090 audio recording and computer aided dispatch (CAD) log requests from participating and subscriber agencies in 2012. Audio requests are made for a multitude of reasons, to include training, post‐incident analysis, investigative, and prosecutor requests. To improve efficiency, early in 2012, NORCOM rolled out an informational campaign that advised our agencies of the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server; a secure method of electronically delivering audio requests. To date, 50% of our agencies are presently using this method.
165
410448
510
61115
210
313
36
150206
130
2164
92 95
9 30 53 42
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
2009 2010 2011 2012
Agency Audio Requests
BLVPD KIRPD MEIPD 1‐3% Users (BEFD, ESFR, KCSO Prosecutor, NSFD, REFD, SHFD) <1% Users (All other)
Public Disclosure Requests
NORCOM responded to 218 public disclosure requests in 2012. The majority of these requests are made by citizens, law firms, and insurance companies, to include copies of 911 phone calls, police radio traffic, CAD logs, and general agency information.
175 188218
0
100
200
300
2010 2011 2012
Public Records Requests Processed
Total Counts
*2009 data not available.
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2013 INITIATIVES
• Formation of additional cross teams: Employee Involvement, Performance Expectations and Feedback, Recruitment and Retention, Mentorship, Career Track Program and, Employee Recognition Program(currently in progress)
• SOP review and conformance to practice • Supervisor roles and workload • Supplemental survey – Late 2013 • Publish a Request for Proposals for a communications engineering firm to assess current conditions
of existing alpha‐paging systems and propose preventive maintenance and equipment replacement schedules
• Execute a professionally facilitated “Advance” (retreat) for Governing Board and NORCOM senior staff
• Facilitate the successful negotiation of a multi‐year term collective bargaining agreement between NORCOM and the supervisors union (PSEU519)
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Phone: 425-577-5676
Fax: 425-577-5701
E-mail: [email protected]
Sheryl Mullen PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
COMMUNICATIONS INTRODUCTION The NORCOM operations business unit provides the important role of receiving emergency and non‐emergency phone calls and dispatching field units for 5 law enforcement agencies and 14 fire agencies. STAFFING In 2012, the operations unit consisted of 72 budgeted Telecommunicators (reduced to 70 in April 2012), six Team Supervisors, and one Training Coordinator. Through the training program, all team members are ultimately cross trained to perform the work of call receivers, police dispatchers, and fire dispatchers. In 2012, fully trained Telecommunicators accounted for an average of 71% of NORCOM’s filled positions. CALL PROCESSING Incoming calls may come to NORCOM through 911, 7 digit emergency, or business lines.. NORCOM has consistently met or exceeded the 911 call answer standard as required by King County E9‐1‐1 (90% of 9‐1‐1 telephone calls will be answered within 10 seconds or less during each hour of a calendar quarter). NORCOM’s average call answer time for 911 calls in 2012 was 98.33%. In an effort to ensure 911 and other emergency calls are answered quickly, NORCOM has established a secondary phone queue into which calls can be transferred after an initial screening by call receivers. Calls determined to be non‐emergency are transferred to this queue and answered by designated call receivers. During specific periods of high call volume (4th of July, storm activity, etc), NORCOM makes use of a “surge” queue into which all non‐emergency calls related to that specific event are transferred. All NORCOM Telecommunicators are trained as emergency call receivers and secondary/surge calls are processed by members of the Telecommunicator team.
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2012 Incoming Phone Information
911 Calls 911 Answer % 7 digit EMER Secondary Queue Business
January 12145 95.70% 6383 2342 351February 10258 94.97% 5410 2034 1844March 11317 98.92% 6568 2044 1964April 12165 98.47% 6614 2431 1668May 13395 99.33% 7075 2957 1852June 13517 99.60% 7125 2783 1854July 14588 98.66% 7877 3363 1666August 14448 98.93% 7582 2855 1622September 13595 99.03% 6709 2719 1762October 13241 98.39% 6627 2565 1773November 12233 99.03% 6281 2410 1594December 12428 98.79% 6589 2331 1725Totals 153330 98.32% 80840 30834 19675
911 Calls = Landline, Wireless, & VoIP Calls on 911
911 Answer % = % of hours 911 calls were answered 90% of the time within 10 seconds
7 digit EMER = 425‐577‐5656 (alarm companies, transfers from agency phones, public safety agencies)
Secondary Queue = Calls originate via 911 or 7 digit EMER, are screened, determined to be non‐emergency, and transferred to this queue
Business = 425‐577‐5600 (officers, family members, etc)
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2012 911 Call Answer Time, Process Time, Total Process Time, And Agent Occupancy Rate
AVG 911 Answer Time
AVG 911 Process Time (mins)
Total 911 Process Time (mins)
Agent Occupancy Rate
JAN 0:00:04 0:02:11 73:22:51 ** FEB 0:00:04 0:02:24 362:46:02 ** MAR 0:00:04 0:02:29 470:11:57 63.20%APR 0:00:04 0:02:28 481:27:29 66.87%MAY 0:00:04 0:02:27 502:48:18 67.58%JUN 0:00:04 0:02:19 465:56:30 64.72%JUL 0:00:04 0:02:14 502:57:53 67.60%AUG 0:00:04 0:02:23 531:49:20 71.48%SEP 0:00:04 0:02:16 469:39:15 65.23%OCT 0:00:04 0:02:20 479:17:50 64.42%NOV 0:00:04 0:02:23 464:58:31 64.58%DEC 0:00:04 0:02:24 485:43:19 65.28%Totals 0:02:22 5290:59:15 66.10%** Server Change –complete information not available Average 911 Answer Time: time it took in seconds from the moment the call is presented to the PBX for queuing until the call was picked up by the Call Receiver (King County 911 assumes a 3 second window before NORCOM can physically answer the call)
Average 911 Process Time: time in seconds from the moment the ANI is detected and the query for ALI begins to the moment the CR hangs up (including answer time, call taker answer time, hold time, and talk time.
Total 911 Process Time: sum in seconds of total 911 process time
Agent Occupancy Rate: percent of time in month when call receivers were physically processing 911 calls (does not include 7 digit emergency, business, or outgoing calls)
CALL DISPATCHING While callers are still speaking with call receivers, NORCOM dispatchers are notified of the call and information is relayed to field personnel. Calls are prioritized and dispatched to field personnel quickly with additional information provided as units are enroute. NORCOM uses computer‐aided‐dispatch (CAD) to track call and dispatch information and is currently involved in a regional partnership with SNOCOM and SNOPAC Communication Centers in Snohomish County to develop a shared technology system. Calls requiring police and fire response can be processed and dispatched at the same time through the immediate access to information in the New World (for law enforcement) and TriTech (for fire agencies) CAD systems. The current technology project will consolidate all CAD onto one system.
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2012 All Priority Police Calls
All Calls with a unit Dispatched ‐ NORCOM Initiated
On View and Field Initiated Calls
Calls without a unit assigned ** TOTAL CAD Calls
Bellevue PD 53,380 733 19,510 73,623Clyde Hill PD 2,367 462 263 3,092Kirkland PD 63,436 351 10,530 74,317Medina PD 3,065 605 264 3,934Mercer Island PD 12,620 125 1,786 14,531TOTAL 134,868 2,276 32,353 169,497** Calls without a unit dispatched include E911 Check Calls, Info Documentation/Broadcast. These are not billable calls for service. Police Priority 1/Priority 2 Call Received to Call Dispatched (Goal <1 min) – 2012 Average = 1:02
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC :54 :65 :58 :65 :65 :68 :72 :65 :54 :55 :57 :63
Police Priority 3 Call Received to Call Dispatched (Goal <3 mins) – 2012 Average = 2:00 JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 1:43 1:17 2:05 2:06 2:21 2:06 2:05 2:13 1:57 2:05 2:00 2:08
Police Priority 4/Priority 5 Call Received to Call Dispatched (Goal <1 hr) – 2012 Average = 23:09 JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC 17:33 10:17 26:36 29:19 27:44 22:28 23:27 23:05 27:52 24:56 24:05 20:31 Procedures for dispatch processes are established by NORCOM in conjunction with police & fire representatives through the Fire Service Board & Police Service Board. During the course of 2012 the SOP approval process was streamlined to allow for decisions about new or updated NORCOM SOPs to be made at the lowest applicable level. This has allowed for changes to be implemented more quickly. These boards have also established service levels which NORCOM strives to maintain. Included in the chart above and below are incident volume and response time information.
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2012 Priority 0‐5 Fire Emergency & Non Emergency Calls Bellevue Fire 13357 Bothell Fire 4513 Duvall Fire 776 Eastside Fire & Rescue 8127 Fall City Fire 505 Kirkland Fire 6998 Mercer Island Fire 2153 Northshore Fire 2802 Redmond Fire 6342 Shoreline Fire 6769 Skykomish Fire 295 Snoqualmie Pass Fire 311 Snoqualmie Fire 802 Woodinville Fire 2963 TOTAL 56,713
% of Emergency Fire/EMS call received to call dispatched (Goal=90% in 60 seconds or less) 2012 Average = 86%
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC 85% 86% 85% 83% 83% 87% 86% 86% 87% 84% 87% 88%
% of Emergency Fire/EMS call received to call dispatched (Goal=99% in 90 seconds or less) 2012 Average = 95%
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC 94% 95% 95% 93% 94% 96% 95% 95% 96% 94% 97% 96%
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CAD Calls with One or More Units Dispatched Call Numbers and Percent of calls by Discipline and by Total Calls
2010 2011 2012
Total Calls (3 years)
3 Year Average of Police Calls
3 Year Average of All Calls (P/F)
Bellevue PD 64425 73673 54113 192211 45.96% 32.87%Clyde Hill PD 3073 2880 2829 8782 2.10% 1.50%Kirkland PD 44863 62925 63787 171575 41.03% 29.34%Mercer Island PD 11705 13035 12745 37485 8.96% 6.41%Medina PD 2434 2034 3670 8138 1.95% 1.39%Police Totals ** 126500 154547 137144 418191 100.00% 71.50%
2010 2011 2012
Total Calls (3 years)
3 Year Average of Fire Calls
3 Year Average of All Calls (P/F)
Bellevue Fire 13141 12652 13357 39150 23.49% 6.69%Bothell Fire 4456 4243 4513 13212 7.93% 2.26%Duvall Fire 801 739 776 2316 1.39% 0.40%Eastside Fire 7943 7661 8127 23731 14.24% 4.06%Fall City Fire 480 416 505 1401 0.84% 0.24%Kirkland Fire 6323 6510 6998 19831 11.90% 3.39%Mercer Island Fire 2242 2120 2153 6515 3.91% 1.11%Northshore Fire 2866 2514 2802 8182 4.91% 1.40%Redmond Fire 6598 6150 6342 19090 11.45% 3.26%Shoreline Fire 6730 6355 6769 19854 11.91% 3.39%Skykomish Fire 323 280 295 898 0.54% 0.15%Snoqualmie Pass Fire 236 278 311 825 0.50% 0.14%Snoqualmie Fire 801 778 802 2381 1.43% 0.41%Woodinville Fire 3285 3019 2963 9267 5.56% 1.58%Fire Totals ** 56225 53715 56713 166653 100.00% 28.50%
This chart includes all calls entered into the CAD system with a unit dispatched on them (NOT calls for service by budget definition)
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2012 Dispatched Calls by Call Origination Method
911 7 Digit Emergency
Business Lines
Officer Initiated
Radio Initiated Other
Total 2012
Bellevue PD 3471 464 40 733 18146 19 54113Clyde Hill PD 1105 14 0 462 1247 1 2829Kirkland PD 23539 350 26 351 39508 12 63786Medina PD 1187 15 0 605 1858 5 3670Mercer Island PD 5461 102 5 125 7050 2 12745TOTALS** 34763 945 71 2276 67809 39 137143
911 7 Digit
EmergencyBusiness Lines
Radio Initiated Others Total 2012
Bellevue Fire 9307 1677 10 505 1831 13330Bothell Fire 3147 738 1 68 574 4528Duvall Fire 514 119 2 38 99 772Eastside Fire 5342 1561 8 153 1054 8118Fall City Fire 325 71 2 30 67 495Kirkland Fire 4709 884 28 359 1043 7023Mercer Island Fire 1400 329 9 106 296 2140Northshore Fire 1953 460 0 52 344 2809Redmond Fire 4385 1087 12 78 799 6361Shoreline Fire 4752 1069 0 91 887 6799Skykomish Fire 168 39 1 15 63 286Snoqualmie Pass Fire
102 103 4 33 57 299
Snoqualmie Fire 544 150 0 9 99 802Woodinville Fire 2078 467 2 52 370 2969Fire Totals ** 38,726 8,754 79 1,589 7,583 56,731
** Minor variance in numbers due to some empty origination fields
TRAINING New hire training is an important part of the operations unit. The training section includes a Training Coordinator and ten Communications Training Officers (CTOs). CTOs are Telecommunicators who apply for this important role and receive training through the Criminal Justice Training Commission and from the Training Coordinator. Members of this group instruct the call receiving and police and fire radio academies as well as conduct the one‐on‐one training. New hire employees complete a 10 week classroom academy followed by six to eight weeks of one on one training in order to be tested and released to handle emergency call receiving. As trainers are available, new hire employees then complete a two day police or fire radio academy followed by six to eight weeks of one on one training prior to being tested and released for each of the dispatching positions.
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In 2012, 88% (14 out of 16) of newly hired Telecommunicators successfully completed the 10 week call receiving academy. Of those, 93% (13) were released to work as call receivers, four have successfully completed fire dispatch training and four have completed police dispatch training. Training has been ongoing for those hired prior to 2012 and is continuing for those hired during 2012. CTOs meet as a group on a monthly basis to discuss trainee progress, consistency in training methods, and updated training needs, processes, etc. Continuing education during the past year has focused on King County Criteria Based Dispatch requirements (for medical call taking), Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) updates, and a variety of in‐house and off‐site training classes. QUALITY IMPROVEMENT NORCOM is committed to excellent service. When we receive questions or concerns about our service, an inquiry is conducted. As a result of the inquiry, one of the following may occur: discussion or additional training with a Telecommunicator, a change or clarification of procedure, or a determination that procedures were followed. The trend has been decreasing since going live in July 2009.
2009 was 1/2 of year (July‐December) 1
0
200
400
2009 2010 2011 2012
# of Inquiries by Year
# of Inquiries
In 2012, NORCOM increased efforts to engage all personnel including members of the operations unit. Many members of the operations team participated on a variety of cross teams including: cultural values, communications, and training. Input has also been solicited from the operations group in order to suggest SOP changes and review proposed changes. NORCOM’s Quality Assurance Specialist reviews calls to ensure compliance with procedure, training, and expectations. In 2012, 1,814 quality assurance reviews were conducted on police, fire, and medical calls. An impressive 99.12% of those calls reviewed met or exceeded standards.
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1049 1044
1253
279 221411
50206 150
0200400600800
100012001400
2010 2011 2012
Number of Quality Assurance Reviews Conducted
EMS
PD
Fire
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Phone: 425-577-5692
Fax: 425-577-5701
E-mail: [email protected]
Karen Furuya PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES INTRODUCTION
NORCOM Information Technology and Services (ITS) delivers public safety technology solutions and services to meet the needs of our Communications Center, Police agencies, Fire agencies and our business units: Administration, Finance, and Human Resources.
New World CAD averages 20 million transactions per month; MSP (Police Records and Corrections) averages 16 million transactions per month and New World Mobile averages 2 million transactions per month. Data for TriTech CAD is not available because of the SQL version.
Our mission is to improve efficiencies through automation and the application of new technology. Our goals are to:
• Provide efficient and responsive support to our public safety community.
• Continually improve our support, processes, and documentation.
• Provide professional development for Information Services employees.
• To participate and collaborate with neighboring and regional public safety agencies to provide additional value to our agencies and citizens.
What We Do: The ITS unit is responsible for a broad range of technologies and applications in order to support the many departments and users of our agencies. ITS provides 24/7/365 support for all critical systems. Support and services are broken down into the following categories:
ITS Service Description
Help Desk agency support End user support of NORCOM based software applications and related hardware.
Network/Server Network & Server infrastructure support and maintenance.
Application Maintenance & Support Upgrade, maintenance, and support of applications and interfaces for Communications, Police, Fire and NORCOM administration.
Mobile Computer Hardware Support relating to mobile data computers (MDC) in Police and Fire vehicles.
Fire Alerting Support relating to Locution and Paging. Police Alerting Support for Paging. Radio Infrastructure Radio support for Fire, Police and Dispatch.
GIS Maintenance and Services Support and maintenance of GIS data, layers and maps. GIS service requests.
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ITS Service Description Minor Projects Individual projects (NORCOM or agency) ‐ projects
less than 1 year and less than $5,000. Major Projects Capital projects greater than one year and/or
greater than $5,000. Telephony Phone Systems and related technologies Reporting Agency special report requests Public Disclosure Public disclosure data gathering
Another function of ITS to working closely with and collaborate with other public safety agencies, counties, and municipalities to further meet the needs of our agencies and citizens.
2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS Staff The ITS team has added three top‐notch technical members to the team. In late March, Mike Prill came to us from our own communications staff. The combination of his dispatch knowledge and technical skills has been invaluable in our support area and in the ICRM project. Nathan Way joined NORCOM in April when he left work in the private industry; in fact, some of our agencies, including NORCOM, had been his customers. Nathan holds CISCO CCIE certification, recognized world‐wide as one of the most prestigious professional certifications for a network engineer. The last to join the team in 2012 is Ed Whitford. Ed started in November and brings with him over twelve years of GIS experience including work in emergency preparedness, public safety and mitigation planning. A resident Geographic Information Systems (GIS) expert brings a new skill set to the technical team and expands the services NORCOM can provide our agencies.
ICRM Project
The 2012 year has been a challenging one with our Integrated Communications and Records Management Project (ICRM) project. But with great hardship comes great opportunities. I am pleased to report that the ITS unit has made great strides in the areas of resources, processes, communication and documentation.
The reset of the ICRM project brought much needed resources, direction, and vendor management. One of the first initiatives was to secure a project manager. Key to a successful project is having a great project manager which we have in Jerry Holcombe of Online Business Systems. Jerry is a seasoned project manager experienced in complex projects. He immediately set up a governance structure, communications protocol and a project team. The project team consists of the equivalent of 2 FTE ITS technicians and subject matter experts (SME) from Operations, Fire, and Police.
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Highlights of some of the project team’s accomplishments in 2012 include:
• Development of a suite of test plans.
• Development of effective methods for clear and detailed communication to New World support and development staff.
• Regular and comprehensive communications back to the boards, committees and agencies.
• Documentation of processes.
• Development of end‐user training and documentation.
• Development of a robust software deployment process that reflects best practices.
NORCOM took a proactive approach to identify and resolve issues ahead of receipt of a final software deliverable. This involved inserting NORCOM project team members into the development process in order to identify issues early on and develop fixes that could be incorporated in the final release. Secondly, this process allowed our subject matter experts to prepare training documentation and schedules in advance.
As a result of the collaboration and work between NWS and NORCOM, a schedule and streamlined process for reporting, addressing and testing issues was developed. This process has been so effective that New World Systems included it in what it calls the “Early Adopter” program.
Day‐to‐Day Operations
2211
3705 3471
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
Ticket Cou
nt
NOTIS Tickets
201020112012
2010 2011 2012
The Information Services unit provides 24/7/365 coverage for all critical systems.
NORCOM’s technical team supports:
Users 2000+ Mobile computers 266 Fire Stations 52 Police Stations 5 Jail 1
This means our staff to user ratio is one staff member for every 250 users. With such high demand for ITS support, NORCOM has adopted a system for logging and tracking support requests known as the NORCOM Online Ticket Issue System (NOTIS). This system allows users to submit their issues by creating support tickets. Although effective, NORCOM intends to restructure the system in 2013 to align with contemplated changes to cost allocation.
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2012 Highlights
• Redmond Backup Center – Phase 1 – Dell Site Recovery Management (SRM) setup of mirrored LUNS complete. This is the first step in having copies of our production servers at Redmond.
• Operations desktop replacements and the Bellevue and Redmond locations.
• Mobile Rescue server and client upgrade. This upgrade allowed functionality with Windows 7 operating system on the fire mobile data computers.
• Locution Upgrade‐This upgrade involved reprogramming the file that controls the relays on the programmable logic controller for every station.
• Built a physical desktop environment for NORCOM testing and training.
• Built a new SQL 2005 infrastructure for the 2013 TriTech stabilization project.
• Developed a CADWebview application for our Fire and Police users. The product provides web‐based, real‐time data for calls. CADWebview is also developed as a reporting tool.
• Developed an Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) Playback mapping solution.
• Installation of a new CISCO switch at the Redmond Backup Center. The new switch also provides environmental monitoring.
• Developed a Wiki for discussion forums for NORCOM staff.
Geographic Information Systems
In 2012, we enlisted the services of Port Madison Team for the third and final phase of the NORCOM GIS Data Development Project. This phase included GIS data maintenance backlogs, quality control, staff recruitment, technology transfer and training of our new GIS recruit, and support for key technology implementation milestones. This project was completed Dec 31, 2012.
Now that we have a dedicated GIS Member of Technical Staff we have started to establish working relationships and data sharing agreements with internal and external agencies to ensure we have the most up‐to‐date and accurate addressing information.
Some interesting facts:
• GIS currently supports over 577,000 address points.
• Total road miles: 8,082 road miles
• Total road miles in NORCOM boundary: 3,938 road miles
• Total square miles covered by Police: 61 square miles
• Total square miles covered by Fire: 618 square miles (which includes police)
• Total number of feature classes: 25 (i.e. addresses, streets, response areas, parks)
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HUMAN RESOURCES
Susan Beisheim PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
Phone: 425-577-5674 Fax: 425-577-5704
E-mail: [email protected]
INTRODUCTION The Human Resources Business Unit is responsible for a wide scope of work that includes:
• Recruitment, selection and promotional processes • Coaching and guidance provided to Management staff regarding employee relations • Research and interpretation as it relates to Standard Operating Policies and the
contractual bargaining agreement • Policy development and modifications • Review of proposed personnel actions • Review of all employee evaluations • Compensation studies • Grievance tracking • Protected leave administration • Position description development/modifications and job task analysis • Gathering of data and analysis of resulting metrics as they relate to HR functions
The Human Resources Business Unit values and respects the work of all NORCOM personnel and their unique contributions to an emergency 911 communications center. In that spirit, we make every effort to be highly responsive to our 24/7 workforce, often providing responses to information requests during “non‐business” hours so that our personnel can have their HR needs met, usually within 12 hours of a request, often sooner. In addition to being as supportive as possible to the mission and goals of this center, we are also busy accomplishing many behind the scenes objectives that contribute to staffing, employee relations, and compensation issues.
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2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS Hiring and Testing During 2012 we hired or promoted for the following vacancies: Position Vacancy Number Hired Members of Technical Staff (MTS and MTS – GIS) 3 QA and Public Records Specialist 1 Administrative Clerk 1 CTO’s 4 Team Supervisor 1 Acting Training Coordinator 1 Acting Operations Manager 1 Acting Technology Manager 1 Executive Director 1 Along with the 14 positions filled above, recruitment and selection for the position of Telecommunicator was conducted for three Call Receiver Academies: CRA10, CRA11, CRA12. The Telecommunicator position is the most time intensive of the selection processes. In 2012 we had 701 applicants who completed the following number of tests and evaluations:
701 applicants processed (through 10/31/2012), resulting in: 116 Multiple task/split ear exams administered
83 written exams administered 55 Ergo metric video exams administered 30 preliminary interviews – successful candidates go on to:
a. One hour site visits b. Psychological evaluations c. Computerized Voice Stress Analysis (CVSA) d. Complete backgrounding
16 candidates went on to a successful Final Interview and received an invitation to join an Academy. (these statistics reflect 2012 testing which included CRA12 that actually started in January 2013)
Academies typically run in January and July at the conclusion of a selection process that includes: application on‐line through GovJobsToday; submittal of a third party typing certificate, 4 skills tests, preliminary interview, psychological evaluation, Computerized Voice Stress Analysis (CVSA), site visit, backgrounding via a Personal History Statement, Triple I, and Final Interview. Post offer, candidates take a physical that includes an audiogram and drug test and get fingerprinted. In 2012, only 1.85% of the701 applicants were selected to go to the call receiving academy. This is a rigorous selection process that has resulted in successful academies. Average academy success rate for 2012 was 88%.
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050
100150200250300350400450500550600650700750
410
10030 20 25 10 0 3
75
701
291
116
83 55 3018 16 13
2012 Recruitment Statistics
Submit/Passed
Pending
Withdrew
Scheduled
No Show
Did Not Pass or Submit
National Standards: The HR Division is expected to monitor and report on performance metrics that support staffing models. One critical metric is related to turnover. TURNOVER RATES National/ best practices establish the importance of factoring turnover rates into staffing models. With the hiring of NORCOM’s new Executive Director, HR began tracking this important metric. Current analysis establishes that NORCOM has a higher than average turnover rate and a correspondingly lower than average retention rate. Initiatives begun in 2012 are the first of many steps needed to address these issues.
Telecommunicator Workgroup
Calculating the Average Turnover Rate
Year
2009 2010 2011 2012 NORCOM Average
National Average*
A Total number of employees at the highest staffing level for that year 62 70 65 60
27.90% 17.00%
B Number of new hires that failed to complete the probationary period 5 11 17 4
C Number of experienced employees who left for any reason 4 18 4 10
D Turnover Rate (Turnover= B + C / A) 14.52% 41.43% 32.31% 23.33%
E Retention Rate (Retention = 1‐Turnover) x 100 85.48% 58.57% 67.69% 76.67% 72.10% 83.00%
*National Average based on two lengthy University studies sponsored by the International Association of Public Safety Communication officials
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EXIT DATA
Exit Interview Data
Reasons for Leaving 2009 2010 2011 2012
*Pursue School 1 1 1 1
*Pursue Another Field 0 4 1 2
*Pursue Another Communications Center 2 1 1 1
*Working Conditions 1 1 0 2
*Stay at Home 0 1 1 2
*Moving 0 6 0 3
*Retired 0 0 0 2
*Family/Personal 0 1 1 1
*Promotions 0 0 0 3
*In Lieu of Termination 0 3 0 2
Voluntary Quits 4 18 5 19
Terminations 5 11 17 4
2009 2010 2011 2012 Percent of voluntary terminations that participated in an Exit Interview
25% 68% 55% 77%
RECRUITING/ADVERTISING We continue to affirmatively reach out in our recruitment efforts using a variety of tools including career fairs, bus advertisements, Open Recruitment Night, job postings in numerous locations and electronic postings in 10 ‐15 areas at any given time.
0% 0% 0% 1%1%
48%
7%
12%3%
0%
5%1%
12%9%
1%
2012 Telecommunicator Advertising
Asian Weekly
AWCnet.org
Bus
College Job Board
College Fairs
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PERSONNEL ALLEGATIONS
Allegation
Number Unfounded Exonerated Sustained Disposition Pending
Violation of Rules & Regulations*
4 4
Unsatisfactory Job Performance
4 4
TOTAL 8 8
*Details: • Rules and Regulations:
o Late Arrival: 4 • Unsatisfactory Job Performance:
o 1‐ improper dispatch; 1‐ making personal phone calls; 1‐ inability to perform essential functions; 1‐ inappropriate communications with police department
KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
In addition to the heavy emphasis on recruitment and promotions during 2012, other Key Accomplishments include:
• A signed CBA with the NORCOM Associated Guild. Early in 2012 the composition of the Guild Board changed almost entirely. The Guild Board requested that both parties try negotiating a first contract without legal counsel “at the table” and NORCOM agreed. With a strong interest in producing a contract, both parties were diligent in their efforts and by June of 2012 had reached agreement on a contract.
• NORCOM remains invested in the value of Myers – Briggs (MBTI) communications training, using it most often in the pairing of trainers (CTOs) and trainees; conflict resolution, and team dynamics. During 2012:
o 24 instruments were administered and interpreted to new hires and promoted employees
o 32 facet comparisons were developed and delivered to training teams; facet comparisons highlight where the trainer/trainee are compatible in their communication type and where there are potential challenges
• All non‐represented personnel participated in meetings with the HR Manager within their individual business units with the intent of seeking out and speaking to their work related concerns. The primary issues mentioned were parking, flexible schedules, and compensation issues. The majority of these have now been addressed. A compensation study specific to the Technology Team is scheduled for 2013.
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• Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement (CALEA) – Human Resources is responsible for 62 standards (2nd highest in the organization). CALEA work continued on in 2012, successfully completing a Mock Assessment before the accreditation was postponed.
• The HR business unit collaborated with Paychex to build the infrastructure for HR On‐line. This effort required a significant amount of time dedicated to uploading HR data. This work is on‐going.
• Assisted with the search for new Executive Director, researching recruitment agencies, including a recommendation. Toward the conclusion of the process, HR assisted with the logistics and coordination of interviews and facilitated the Management/Supervisor group for feedback, delivering that information to the Strategic Planning Committee of the Governing Board.
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‐
2,000,000
4,000,000
6,000,000
8,000,000
10,000,000
Salaries Operations Capital Projects Equipment Replacement
2012 BUDGET VS. ACTUAL
Budget
Actual
FINANCE
Gwen Pilo PO Box 50911
Bellevue, WA 98015
Phone: 425-577-5673 Fax: 425-577-5701
E-mail: [email protected]
INTRODUCTION
The Finance Business Unit provides fiduciary support to other business units and has primary responsibility for day‐to‐day management of NORCOM’s financial assets and resources including budget monitoring, accounts payable, payroll, accounts receivable, investments, and fixed assets. Additionally, the Finance Business Unit oversees the development of the annual budget, prepares the annual financial statements, coordinates employee benefits, centralized services, and risk management.
NORCOM is required to file financial statements each year with the Washington State Auditor’s office and is subject to annual audits. The financial statements of NORCOM are prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) as applied to governmental units. The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is the accepted standard setting body for establishing governmental accounting and financial reporting principles.
2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
NEW FINANCIAL SYSTEM Over the past two years, the Finance Manager, with the help of the Finance Committee, has been in the process of selecting a financial system vendor to improve operating efficiency and provide better reporting tools to the management staff and stakeholders. A contract was signed in 2012 with Springbrook Software and implementation began late in the year.
The project will be completed in three phases:
Phase One – Finance & Purchase Order’s Phase Two – Fixed Assets & Extended Budgeting Phase Three – Accounts Receiving Phase one of the implementation will be completed by the end of March 2013 and the entire project should be completed by the end of June 2013.
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2012 EXPENDITURES
The 2012 Budget was approved with an increase of 1.5% in the operating funds. NORCOM ended 2012 within budget and is now in the process of determining how unspent funds from 2012 should be applied in 2013. Once the most important areas of need are identified, the Governing Board will be presented with a proposal to amend the 2013 budget. The graph at the right shows the 2012 Budget vs. Actual broken down by major category.
Expenditures by category are displayed below.
EXPENDITURES BY CATEGORY
Personnel
68%Maintenance/Operations
26%
Capital Expenditures6%
ARTMENT
The overtime logged
ayed
”
Personnel 7,516,989 Maintenance/Operations 2,835,675 Capital Expenditures 666,833 Total 11,019,497$
Actual expenditures for Salaries & Operations were 5% less than budgeted, due primariliy to vacant postions. During the 2013 budget process significant changes were made to the Operations staffing model which had a direct and positive impact on the 2012 and 2013 budget. A staffing analysis was performed for Communications and Information Technology and Services (ITS) Business Units. It was determined NORCOM could cut 7 Communications FTE’s and not impact service levels. Two (2) of these FTEs were shifted to the ITS Unit and the remaining 5 were cut from the 2013 budget and not filled in 2012. A savings of $322,000 resulted.
OVERTIME BY DEP
by each department eligible to earn overtime is displto the right. Supervisors wereclassified “exemptuntil August of 2012when the Governing Board approved Resolution 50
‐
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
12,000
Administration Telecommunicator Supervisors2012 ‐ 10,805 311
HOURS
2012 Overtime by Department
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changing the status of the Supervisors from “exempt” to “non‐exempt” and eligible to earn overtime.
23%
77%
2012 Budget with Administration Costs
Applied as Overhead
Information Services
Operations
Telecommunicator overtime was due to vacant or untrained telecommunicator FTE’s. The overtime
BUDGET BY ACTIVITY
In 2012 the Operating budget was categorized by three major activities, Administration, Operations, and
CAPITAL PROJECTS – Integrated Communications & Records Management (ICRM) Project
The chart below shows what has been spent to date and the amount remaining on the New World ts
listed above equates to approximately 9.5 FTE’s.
Information Services. Below are two graphs, one shows the percentage breakdown for the 2012 budget by activity and one applies Administration costs as overhead.
16%
22%
62%
2012 Budget by Major Activity
Administration
Information Services
Operations
Systems contract. Of the $925,020 remaining, $422,385 is for enhancements and $502,635 representhe amount remaining on the original contract.
New World Systems Contract Spent to Date
Increase from
Change Orders
Remaining Commitment
2008 521,072$ 2,927,902$ 2009 972,809$ 1,955,093$ 2010 830,976$ 155,702$ 1,279,819$ 2011 712,174$ 381,966$ 925,020$ 2012 ‐$ ‐$ 925,020$
Total Spent at 12/31/12 3,037,031$
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The initial budget for the ICRM project was set at $5,065 million. At the end of 2012, $6.6 million was budgeted and $5.6 million has been spent.
In September 2009 NORCOM signed and Inter‐local Agreement with SNOCOM and SNOPAC for the procurement of Computer‐aided Dispatch Technology. The chart below shows all payments made to New World to date.
NET POSITION & CAPITAL ASSETS
NORCOM’s Net Position at the end of 2012 is $9.8 million. The largest portion of NORCOM’s Net Position is invested in Capital Assets. Capital Equipment Reserves ($938,375), Operating Expense Reserve ($111,032), and the Rate Stabilization Fund ($760,000) equal 18% of the Net Position. 9% of Net Position is designated for the Integrated Communications & Record Management Project. The breakdown of NORCOM’s Net Position is depicted in the graph below.
Other Expenses
Consumable Goods 535$ Small Tools & Equipment 20,381$ Computer Equipment 962,823$ Travel & Lodging 9,588$ Training 10,666$ Advertising 486$ Professional Services & Project Consulting 932,042$ GIS Consulting 417,914$ Software Licensing 196,973$
Total Spent at 12/31/12 2,551,408$
5,588,439$
NWS Project Payments SNOCOM SNOPAC NORCOM Total
Milestone Payments 966,236$ 3,149,491$ 1,453,587$ 5,569,314$ Tasks Payments 217,180$ 271,602$ 1,298,218$ 1,787,000$ New World Training & Consulting 65,972$ 247,335$ 73,835$ 387,142$ SSMA ‐$ 903,751$ 1,257,630$ 2,161,381$ New World Travel Expenses 65,036$ 103,221$ 262,576$ 430,83$ Total 1$
3,314,424 4,675,400$ 4,345,846$ 10,335,671$
NORCOM
Revised February 2013 ‐ SNOCOM
Revised October 2012 ‐ SNOPAC
Revised December 2013‐
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BUDGET TO FORECAST COMPARISON
Ever mindful of the economic situation, the NORCOM team always looks toward the future to identify service levels and customer needs, while focusing on efficiency and cost savings. Below is a chart that compares the Business and Services 10 year outlook to NORCOM’s actual budget fo the last 3 years.
A summary of NORCOM’s Capital Assets at December 31, 2012 is shown below:
r
60%
9%1%
8%
9%
13%
2012Net Postion
Invested in Capital Assets, Net of Related Debt
Capital Equipment Replacement Reserve
Operating Expense Reserve
Rate Stabilization Fund
Capital Projects Fund
Unrestricted
Beginning Balance Ending Balanceas of as of
1/1/2012 Additions Deletions 12/31/2012Capital Assets, not being depreciated:Work in progress 3,866,353$ 630,028$ 697,817$ 3,798,563$
Capital assets, being depreciated: Machinery and Equipment 3,032,654 865,285 ‐ 3,897,938 Less: Accumulated Depreciation (1,408,471) 66,199 (453,353) (1,795,625) Capital Assets, being depreciated net 1,624,182$ 931,483$ (453,353)$ 2,102,313$
Total Capital Assets, net 5,490,535$ 1,561,511$ 244,465$ 5,900,876$
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detailed payroll information for each Telecommunicator to refine the estimate used in 2012.
The charts below follow the APCO Retains methodology to determine Net Available Worked Hours. When applied to NORCOM’s staffing model, 26 Call Receivers and 36 Dispatchers are required to cover NORCOM’s current positions.
Call Receivers Dispatchers
Year
Budgeted Outside Revenue
10 Year Forecast
Budget Less Forecasted %
2011* 1,355,355 1,304,095 51,260 2012 1,761,852 1,338,002 423,850 2013 1,532,854 1,372,790 160,064
YearBudgeted
Assessments10 Year Forecast
Budget Less Estimated
2011* 9,218,611 9,327,837 (109,226) 2012** 9,215,556 9,761,144 (545,588) 2013 9,620,170 10,129,563 (509,393)
YearBudgeted
Expenditures10 Year Forecast
Budget Less Estimated
2011* 10,573,966 10,631,932 (57,966) 2012 10,977,408 11,099,146 (121,738) 2013 11,153,024 11,502,352 (349,328)
* Budget numbers do not include Kirkland Annexation**$115,220 EFB applied to 2012 Budget
COMMUNICATIONS STAFFING MODEL AND NET AVAILABLE WORKED HOURS
The staffing analysis performed in 2012 for the Communications Business Unit determined NORCOM could cut 7 Communications FTE’s and not impact service levels. The analysis continued into 2013 using
Working Hours available per year 1,820
12765197135613
Total hours not available . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471Available hours per employee per year 1,349Hours in a year (365 days x 24 hours) 8,760
Staffing ratio (Hours in year/Hours available) 6.49
Calculating the Number of CR's RequiredCR Positions Required on Watch 4.00
Times Staffing Ratio: 6.49CR's Required to be employed 25.97
Less: Vacation & Comp Time Holidays Training, Conferences, Spec. Duty Administrative Leave Sick time, Bereavement LWOP, OJI, JD
Working Hours available per year 1,846
15074102146112
Total hours not available . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413Available hours per employee per year 1,433Hours in a year (365 days x 24 hours) 8,760
Staffing ratio (Hours in year/Hours available) 6.
Calculating the Number of Dispatcher's RequiDispatcher Positions Required on Watc
11
redh 5.83
6.1163
Less: Vacation & Comp Time Holidays Training, Conferences, Spec. Duty Administrative Leave Sick time, Bereavement LWOP, OJI, JD
Times Staffing Ratio:Dispatcher's Required to be employed 35.
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SMOOTHING & IMPACT TO USER FEES During the formation stages of NORCOM it was found that Bellevue was subsidizing the dispatch operation and many agencies would not be able to afford the full cost of doing business. Bellevue agreed to a fixed dollar amount ($5.5 million) paid over a period of 7 years (Smoothing Period), allocated 30% to police and 70% to fire, and applied to agency fees based on their call volume. The amount Bellevue pays, known as “smoothing”, decreases each year. The chart below shows the amount of smoothing to be allocated in each year.
The following depicts an estimate of the smoothing allocation for each agency in the years to come:
BILLABLE CALLS FOR SERVICE
The participating agencies provide the majority of operating revenue to NORCOM. The method ofallocating this revenue source is defined in the Interlocal Agreement, Appendix A. NORCOM’s budget is
of the operating budget is allocated to fire. The 50/50 split was determined by an average of two factors – the staffing allocated to each Charged Operation (Police or Fire) and the volume of calls attributed to each Charged Operation.
The annual average Billable Calls for Service are determined based on the number of Billable Calls for Service for the Charged Operation over the two‐year historical Call Calculation Period. The Call Calculation period is defined at the first calendar quarter of the preceding budget year, and the 7 calendar quarters preceding that.
SMOOTHING PERIOD 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016TOTAL SMOOTHING
575,000$ 1,117,500$ 996,000$ 832,000$ 694,500$ 580,000$ 484,500$ 220,500$ 5,500,000$ Smoothing - Police - 30% 172,500 335,250 298,800 249,600 208,350 174,000 145,350 66,150 Smoothing - Fire - 70% 402,500 782,250 697,200 582,400 486,150 406,000 339,150 154,350
SMOOTHING PERIOD 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016Credit Police Bellevue 345,053$ 335,250$ 298,800 249,600$ 208,350$ 174,000$ 145,350$ 66,150$ $
Clyde Hill (16,616) (17,778) (13,641) (4,891) (4,937) (4,123) (3,444) (1,567) Kirkland (233,593) (223,435) (204,160) (204,473) (160,598) (134,120) (112,037) (50,989)
Medina (21,969) (22,168) (16,364) (5,724) (5,514) (4,605) (3,847) (1,751) Mercer Island (72,875) (71,868) (64,635) (34,512) (37,302) (31,152) (26,023) (11,843)
10 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
154,350 (14,362) (26,271) (1,489)
(21,560) (7,461) (8,960)
36,731) (116,943) (108,398) (89,854) (75,040) (62,684) (28,528) 29,993) (116,943) (107,187) (89,646) (74,866) (62,539) (28,462)
Snoqualmie (12,569) (12,220) (11,172) (9,942) (8,381) (6,999) (5,847) (2,661) Snoqualmie Pass Fire & Rescue (4,852) (4,531) (3,740) (3,175) (2,978) (2,487) (2,077) (945) Woodinville Fire & Rescue (63,692) (59,701) (49,750) (35,854) (32,494) (27,137) (22,669) (10,317)
SMOOTHING PERIOD 2009 20Credit Fire Bellevue 805,124$ 782,250$ 697,200$ 582,400$ 486,150$ 406,000$ 339,150$ $ Bothell (71,015) (72,161) (66,573) (53,747) (45,234) (37,776) (31,556) Eastside Fire & Rescue (136,133) (140,254) (129,225) (99,849) (82,745) (69,103) (57,725) KCFD # 27 Fall City (11,341) (10,202) (8,003) (5,987) (4,689) (3,916) (3,271) KCFD # 45 Duvall (14,979) (14,758) (13,589) (10,234) (8,018) (6,696) (5,594) (2,546) KCFD # 50 Skykomish (5,092) (5,415) (5,063) (3,314) (2,484) (2,074) (1,733) (789) Kirkland (110,564) (109,126) (97,654) (81,915) (67,908) (56,712) (47,374) Mercer Island (34,613) (36,287) (34,430) (27,959) (23,499) (19,625) (16,393) Northshore Fire (50,396) (50,871) (44,115) (34,838) (28,220) (23,568) (19,687) Redmond (156,131) (1 Shoreline Fire (138,839) (1
allocated into two separate cost pools – 50% of the operating budget is allocated to police and 50%
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Call Calculation Period
calculated at 106% of the User Fee that an agency would pay if it were a Principal.
tual aid calls were counted and Advance Life Support (ALS) calls ere charged to each agency involved in the call. After a year of debate and discussion, the Governing
approved Resolution 30 in June of 2010 amending the Calls for Service definition using the “one one bill” philosophy.
This new definition will produce shifting in call volumes between fire agencies until 2013 when all 8 quarters will be counted using the new definition. Because of the shift in calls for service and the financial burden it placed on the fire agencies that provide ALS services, a method was designed to assist with the increase in costs due to the declining calls for service from the new Calls for Service definition.
The ALS Smoothing model, as it has been named, estimates each agencies 2013 allocation and then, based on the overall increase or decrease and number of quarters counted using the new method, applies a variance to the actual call volume. As anticipated, the biggest increase happened in 2012 as NORCOM moved from 3 quarters of data to 7 quarters of data to calculate the 8 quarter average.
Below, a summary of 2012 User Fees compares the full cost to the cost with smoothing applied:
The percentages are applied to the current approved budget, less revenue from all other sources.
Subscriber User Fees are
2009 Allocation
2010 Allocation
2011 Allocation
2012 Allocation
2013 Allocation
2006 Business Plan DefinitionILA DefinitionResolution 30 Amending CFS Definition Approved June 11, 2010
20122006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Data consistent with business plan assumptions was used to determine cost allocations for the 2009 budget year. In 2008, until NORCOM went live in July of 2009, Calls for Service data was not available consistent with the ILA definition; muwBoardcall,
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Billable Calls for Service
Percentage of Charged Operation User Fees
Cost per Billable Call for
Service User Fees
Cost per Billable Call for
ServiceBellevue Police 53,363 40.19% 1,844,194$ 34.56$ 1,844,194$ 34.56$ Clyde Hill Police 1,556 1.17% 53,783$ 34.56$ 48,892$ 31.42$ Kirkland Police 65,047 48.99% 2,247,991$ 34.56$ 2,043,518$ 31.42$ Medina Police 1,821 1.37% 62,933$ 34.56$ 57,209$ 31.42$ Mercer Island Police 10,979 8.27% 379,431$ 34.56$ 344,919$ 31.42$ Bellevue Fire 14,201 24.24% 1,163,011$ 81.89$ 1,163,011$ 81.90$ Bothell Fire 3,860 7.32% 316,096$ 81.90$ 262,349$ 67.97$ Duvall Fire 735 1.40% 60,210$ 81.89$ 49,975$ 67.97$ Eastside Fire and Rescue 7,171 13.04% 587,232$ 81.90$ 487,383$ 67.97$ Fall City Fire 430 9.20% 35,215$ 81.89$ 29,227$ 67.97$ Kirkland Fire 5,883 11.11% 481,803$ 81.89$ 399,888$ 67.97$ Mercer Island Fire 2,008 3.63% 164,444$ 81.89$ 136,485$ 67.97$ Northshore Fire 2,502 4.91% 204,883$ 81.90$ 170,045$ 67.97$ Redmond Fire 7,785 12.99% 637,515$ 81.90$ 529,117$ 67.97$ Shoreline Fire District 7,698 12.69% 630,408$ 81.90$ 523,220$ 67.97$ Skykomish Fire 238 44.00% 19,508$ 81.88$ 16,194$ $ Snoqualmie Fire 714 1.27% 58,473$ 81.89$ 48,531$ $
67.97 67.97
FLSD 2,575 5.59% 210,845$ 81.90$ 174,990$ 67.97$
Full Cost Smoothing Applied2012
Snoqualmie Pass Fire 228 4.50% 18,689$ 81.88$ 15,514$ 67.97$ Woodinville Bellevue Smoothing ‐$ 832,000$ Total 188,792 9,176,663$ 9,176,663$
OTHER REVENUE
The King County E‐9‐1‐1 office collects excise taxes for wireline, wireless, and VoIP services. All Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) in King County receive quarterly distributions from the King County E‐9‐1‐1‐ office if call answering standards set by the office are met. These funds are used to help offset the
The distribution for the last three
due to the outdated wireline
NORCOM’s portion. Over the years, phone usage has evolved from primarily wireline to primarily wireless service. This
cost of operations and are transferred to the operating fund as needed.
years is summarized in the chart to the right.
E‐9‐1‐1 revenues have decreased
formula used to determine
‐
500,000
1,000,000
2011 2012 2013
Total $1,133,199 $1,451,887 $1,330,835
Equipment ‐ 423,000 362,250
IT & NG Costs 455,941 351,629 403,745
VOIP ‐ ‐ 40,707
Annual Wireline 485,322 485,322 262,648
Annual Wireless 191,936 191,936 261,485
1,500,000
E‐9‐1‐1 Revenues
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significant change has negatively impacted the way E‐9‐1‐1 revenue is distributed. King County plans to review this formula in 2014 and change to a formula based on overall workload.
COST PER CALL ‐ A New Metric
Beginning with this Annual Report, NORCOM will be reporting on a national metric known as “Cost Per Call”. This phrase is a term of art and must be distinguished from what is commonly referred to at NORCOM as “Cost Per Call”. Historically, NORCOM has used this phrase to refer to the Costs Billed to Agencies for Dispatched Calls.
The national metric of “Cost Per Call” or CPC is quite different and quite important particularly for evaluating center performance vis‐à‐vis other similar centers. CPC is a common measure of operational efficiency that is used throughout the spectrum of call centers from small to large. This metric also is commonly used to compare one center to another in benchmarking. CPC can simply be a labor cost per call, or it can be a fully loaded rate that includes wage rates in addition to telecommunications, facilities, and other costs.
In determining how to calculate CPC, it is critical to define the variables used and to use them consistently in conducting comparisons with other centers or in evaluating how well the center is using financial resources over time. Although each center will have different equipment and software, each center is providing the same basic service. CPC therefore provides a measure of how efficient that center vis‐à‐vis other centers is with respect to its staffing as well as its maintenance and operations. Monitoring cost per call allows management to determine where to spend valuable funds on technology
vement, and to spot trends that necessitate further inquiry and action.
9‐1‐1 calls and non‐emergency calls. Call takers triage all these established protocols and procedures. Thus, the use of total calls for
is the best means to capture the entire call center workload and is therefore the most CPC calculations as opposed to a focus on just 9‐1‐1 calls or just non‐ one type of call does not provide a full assessment of a call center’s
over time and does not provide for a full comparison to the entire operations of other centers. That said, will also conduct CPC 9‐1‐1 calls as a secondary facet of its CPC analysis.
r Call for Service” and “Cost Per Call”
h on this topic, CPC must be distinguished from methodologies by nication centers bill for their services. Often, such centers bill agencies
Dispatched” (the terms “calls for service” and “calls dispatched” are tion, all types of call centers report the number of “Calls for Service” or es they serve for those agencies’ use in their own reporting and analysis.
and process impro
Distinction between Total Call Volume and individual Call Types
In order to be an effective measure of call center efficiency, CPC must account for the total volume of calls handled by a communications center. As with all primary emergency communication centers, NORCOM handles a mix of emergencycalls and route them according to CPC analysisappropriate measure to include in emergency calls. Singling out onlyperformance
Distinction between “Cost pe
As mentioned in the opening paragrapwhich many multi‐agency commubased on “Calls for Service” or “Callsnot always synonymous). In addi“Calls Dispatched” to the agenci
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Unfortunately, unlike CPC, there is no common agreement or universally accepted definition of what constitutes a “Call for Service.” For example, some centers define “Calls for Service” to be the sum total of all CAD entries made in response to 9‐1‐1 calls, traffic stops by police officers, and on‐view incidents
may not include all these categories or may include other categories.
c
ice” are not a valid basis to conduct comparative analysis between call
2012
• Formed Health Insurance Benefits Advisory Committee;
• Monitor the operational needs of both police and fire/EMS stakeholders and the impacts of the rations budget.
by police officers. Other centers For centers that both bill on a “Calls for Service” basis and also monitor performance and conduct comparative analysis based on “CPC,” it is important not to confuse the two or misunderstand the basidifferences between them and their correct application.
A key point is that “Calls for Servcenters because of the lack of uniformity in how a call for service is defined.
2011 2012Total Expentitures 10,664,946.00$ 10,977,408.00$ Total Workload Calls 406,285.00$ 374,436.00$ C
Cost per Call
ost per Call 26.25$ 29.32$
2012 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Successfully completed fourth State and Federal Single Audit with no findings or management letters;
• Received Washington Finance Officers Association (WFOA) Distinguished Budget Award forAnnual Budget;
• Completed office reconfiguration to accommodate Information Technology and Services and Administrative staff in the open office area;
• Amended MEBT Plan to allow for withdrawals;
• Began implementation of Springbrook Financial Software;
• Completed review of Operations Staffing Model. 2013 INITIATIVES
• Complete implementation of Springbrook Financial System and develop interfaces between Telestaff, Paychex and the new system. Train business unit managers to better understand the new finance system and improve ease of access to their financial information.
• Continue to receive budget presentation award from WFOA.
staffing model that has been adopted and funded in the ope
• Continue to track Net Available Work Hours for Telecommunicators.
• Work with Operations and Information Technology and Services to develop performance metrics.
• Analyze current Rate Model Structure to determine if formula should be changed.
• Develop formula for determining Actual Cost per Call to compare against Billable Cost per Call.
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• Work with Health Insurance Benefits advisory committee to evaluate health insurance optionsand make recommendations that will mitigate costs and provide the best value to the employees of NORCOM.
• Work with Information Technology and Services Team, Technology Committee, and Finance Committee to develop and implement Service Level Agreements between the agencies andNORCOM.
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AWARDS & RECOGNITION
2012 Emergency Medical Dispatchers of the Year (will be honored in April 2013) Mark Wood – Critical Incident
ema – Sustained Exemplary Performance
012 Employees of the Quarter st Quarter: elissa Crawford – Supervisor lizabeth Jung – Telecommunicator
3rd Quarter: Andie Hanson – Supervisor Traci Caligiuri – Telecommunicator
nd Quarter:
Missy Lorraine – Telecommunicator
4th Quarter: ‐ Supervisor
Julie Smith – Telecommunicator
2012 NORCOM Awards Melissa Crawford – Supervisor of the Year Dave Stuby – Telecommunicator of the Year Nathan Way – Technology Team Member of the Year Charlene Inman – Administrative Staff Employee of the Year NORCOM Special Recognition Awards:
Devin Pek 21ME
2Cory James – Supervisor James Lucci
The Edison Award – Nathan Way for innovative solutions to a technical challenge Team Award ‐ The ICRM Team for their relentless pursuit of resolution to numerous technological challenges. The fifteen member ICRM Team consists of: Tech Team
1. Khai Tran 2. Nathan Way 3. Greg Shelton 4. Pete Luke 5. Ed Whitford 6. Mike Prill 7. Karen Furuya
SME 8. Marcia Harnden – Bellevue PD – Police SME 9. Jeff Magnan – Mercer Island PD – Police SME 10. Ken Knott – Mercer Island FD – Fire SME 11. Hobie Hani – Kirkland Fire – Fire SME 12. Denise McAuley – Bellevue Fire – Testing Coordinator 13. Andrew Johnson – NORCOM – Operations SME
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OBS 14. Jerry Holcomb15. Victor Lohr – Project Manager – Online Business Systems ‐ TriTech Upgrade and ICRM
Hogue, Devin Pekema, Jessica Cannon, and
d winners, and to
e – Project Manager –Online Business Systems
to all those who were nominated: Special acknowledgement goes
Telecommunicators – Jami Hoppen, Melissa Vieth, Sandy Curry Nick
Admin Team – Heather Facer Nathan Way Tech Team –
Congratulations to all our 2012 awar all those who were nominated.
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