Five Rookie Telecommunications Operator Mistakes to Avoid

Jan. 13, 2015
Your classroom time is over and your trainer has cut the cord. You’re sitting in that seat alone. Citizens and officers are depending on you. Here are five rookie mistakes that you can avoid.

Becoming a public safety telecommunications operator is one of the most satisfying and exciting things someone can do for a career. Although from the outside it looks sedentary, what happens within that desk-size cubicle is like a wild ride through the streets of your town. While you are in the moment, working a call and especially when you are handling emergency traffic, your eyes might be focused on a half-dozen screens, a handset and a keyboard, but what is happening in your mind is more like a 3D, action-packed adventure game. Often when I was done working an especially tense situation, the room would come back into focus little by little and I would find myself no longer in the center of the action, but sitting in my seat in the radio room. It’s a strange feeling but one that has very few twins. When you first take this seat, especially the first time on your own after your trainer has cut the cord, it’s exhilarating and terrifying. There are so many things to remember and it seems a million things that can go wrong. Like a rookie officer going on his own, there are some simple steps to moving smoothly into the world of 9-1-1/Dispatch. Here are five rookie mistakes to avoid.

Each situation is different and most do not replicate anything they described in training. During my 9-1-1 training, we spent an equal amount of time in the classroom and in on-the-job training on each shift. We listened to tapes of calls and also experienced our trainers working live calls. When I cross-trained, it was two weeks of classroom and then off to the floor to work with a trainer slowly weaning myself until I was alone in that seat. Even with all the calls and situations described and worked in training, it seemed each call I took or incident I worked in dispatch would reach the point of similarity and then veer off onto some strange path. At first, I was so locked into doing things exactly the way I was trained (Ask these questions in this order, Say these things at this time, Get this response back) that I didn’t allow myself the flexibility it requires to do a good job. Eventually, with the prodding of my trainer, I learned to start each call/situation as a blank slate with a guiding set of principles but no hard, fast rules. As I grew, I saw I was able to follow policy and procedure while at the same time handle each situation’s nuances without rigidity.

Never lose sight of the fact your job is to help people. Most cross-trained dispatchers love dispatching and tolerate (on the milder side of the emotional ruler) 9-1-1. It’s easy to feel like your real customers are the officers and that citizens are just an annoyance that needs to be tolerated. This is a slippery slope of thinking that will eventually make you miserable half the time. Staying focused on the customer service aspect of my job and recognizing that I was responsible for helping both my internal and external customers allowed me to lose the frustrated feeling I would get when I read the schedule and saw where I was for the next 10 hours and also helped me to enjoy my time in 9-1-1. Each call was a chance for me to help someone. I also believe that when a community member gets good service from the 9-1-1 operator, the officer has an easier time on the call. So it’s a win-win.

Listen to and respect those who have been in your seat longer. In most departments, there is decades of experience sitting all around you and training doesn’t stop just because you were handed a certificate with your name on it. Find those veteran operators that you admire, that you feel do a great job and that you want to emulate. When you identify them, ask questions and listen—really listen to what they have to say. These questions don’t have to just be about procedures. These people have seen thousands of changes throughout their careers and they have weathered the job. Find out what they do to keep healthy, physically and mentally. Then, follow their suggestions.

Don’t rush things too quickly during a call or incident. It’s easy to have a head full of training and a body full of adrenaline raring to go. You think you know what is going on and what is going to happen and you lose sight of the here and now. It’s a good thing to have an idea of how you are going to react when and if something occurs, but it’s imperative to stay in the moment. This means listening and hearing what the citizen or the officer is saying. If you are already one step ahead of them in your head, you might miss something critical.

Don’t neglect your family and/or your outside interests. This is one of those pieces of advice that you will most likely hear from your identified veteran mentor. It was one of the things mentioned over and over again during my training and it was the single most important aspect I saw in the lives of those who were truly happy in this field. I’ll admit, this work is fascinating and exciting and it is easy to get wrapped up in it wanting to maintain that level of adrenaline all the time. But, it’s not meant to be sustainable. Having interests outside of the department, taking classes, going on adventures, working out, spending time with friends and family not talking about work are all essential. Being a public safety telecommunications operator is a HUGE part of what you do and who you are but it is not everything. Make sure you don’t neglect the other parts or you will find your work will suffer amongst other things.

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As I’ve said many times, being a public safety telecommunications operator is one of the most exciting and fulfilling jobs on the planet. You can go home each night (or morning or afternoon) knowing that you did your best and that you made a difference. If out of the chute, you can avoid some common mistakes, you’ll be that much closer to a satisfying, healthy and happy career.

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