Workforce Management Featured Article
Call Center Troubles Plague the U.S. Park Police Dispatch Center
Call centers play a significant role in any business operation. In addition to being a main contact point for partners, customers and clients, they’re also responsible for maintaining communications and fulfilling obligations. For police dispatch centers, call center operations are paramount.
But what happens if the location where these important operations take place are uninhabitable for work, such as birds flying throughout the office, or mold infecting the workspace? While it may sound impossible, news reports point to a similar real-life situation in the U.S. Park Police dispatch center in southeast Washington.
Because of its location near so many important landmarks and monuments, it's hard to think disorganization and missed problems could happen, but according to an investigation conducted by an Interior Department Inspector, there are a number of serious problems to address.
One recent incident that occurred due to the center’s problems was a missed alarm about a broken sprinkler system went off to warn officials about the situation occurring in a historic building in Arlington National Cemetery. While it was sent to the center for dispatching, it never made it to anyone because the alerts were being sent to a computer in another room. The result was flooding and damage to the building and historical artifacts.
More details about the problems plaguing the center are detailed in this Washington Post article and include a lack of training for dispatchers, staffing issues, a leak in the building's roof and what appears to be black mold. No dedicated backup location, outdated phone equipment and important alert recognition software that has never been installed.
At the time of the report, National Park Service Direction, Charles F. Sams III, told the Washington Post it was, “working to mitigate the bird infestation and upgrade the conditions of the space, or possibly enter into an agreement to move in with the District’s Office of Unified Communications (News - Alert).”
Edited by Luke Bellos
