Blogs

As 911 professionals, we often feel helpless in the pursuit of the “big” goals. The goals that seem so audacious that there is no clear path forward. We feel overwhelmed as we sit in our centers or in our offices feeling small, like we are unable to make a difference. We think, well I cannot do it all, so there is nothing I can do. But to quote Glennon Doyle, “I will not let the fact that I cannot do everything keep me from doing what I can.” It is in this spirit that I challenge you to take action. Because each of you hold the keys to lead the industry to the classification of 911 professionals as first responders! Not sure where to start?; please read on.

911 call takers and dispatchers play a crucial role in emergency response, providing critical assistance and coordinating emergency services in times of crisis. They are the first point of contact for many people in distress, and their ability to quickly assess and respond to emergencies can often mean the difference between life and death.

Seventy one percent of hackers say they can breach the perimeter of a target within 10 hours[1] according to experts attending Black Hat, Bsides, and DEFCON – some of the world’s foremost authorities on cybersecurity. This challenge is especially troubling for traditional organizations who still espouse legacy on-premise systems over modern cloud-native systems. These legacy on-premise systems suffer from Candy Bar Security, relying on a crunchy hard exterior to protect a chewy soft interior. Our heroes under the headset – 911 dispatchers – deserve better.

One of the first things parents teach their children is how to dial 911 when an emergency occurs. The simplicity of this system has saved the lives of multitudes and continues to do so despite many challenges.

Four Thousand Five Hundred Sixty-Six – that’s the estimated number of 9-1-1 calls that will have been made during the time it takes you to read this article[1]. Handling roughly a quarter-billion 9-1-1 calls annually is no small feat, and this responsibility falls on the broad shoulders of the roughly 6,000 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) spread across 3,000+ counties nationwide[2]. And while our worst days represent the everyday of the heroes under the headset, their path to our rescue is paved with innumerable challenges, some of which include:

911 dispatchers spend every day responding to emergencies. Their job is to triage a situation and provide appropriate responders to the scene. But are they prepared to face a catastrophic event like a mass shooting, a Category 5 hurricane, or even a six-foot snowfall that shuts down an entire city (think Buffalo, NY in November 2022)? Disasters happen, but within the PSAP, failure is not an option.

For many products and services, one of the best predictors of business growth is the quality of the customer experience. In turn one of the best measures of customer experience is the Net Promoter Score, or NPS. The NPS score can range from -100 (all customers are detractors of your product) to +100 (all customers are promoters of your product). According to Retently, the B2B SaaS NPS benchmark is around 40. Despite this benchmark, Carbyne enjoys an overall NPS score of 94 (out of 100). When we share this with external parties, they are often incredulous and want to know how they can achieve these lofty accomplishments. For us, it really comes down to four primary reasons:

This is a challenging year for tech companies, especially for entrepreneurs seeking funding for their next phase of growth. According to Pitchbook, VC funding was down 8% in the first six months of the year, driven by the sliding shares of mature tech companies. The NASDAQ composite index is down close to 25% through September. And yet, despite the liquidity crunch, Carbyne secured $56 million to invigorate the public safety industry with modern cloud-native technology.

While many of us realize the toll suicide and mental health take on our communities, the numbers are truly eye-opening. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), over 1 million people per year attempt suicide, over 3 million make a plan for suicide, and over 12 million seriously think about suicide. To provide a more personalized response to them, and to improve overall 9-1-1 emergency call handling capacity, starting on July 16, 2022, the 9-8-8 hotline goes live. 9-8-8 is more than just a number.  It is a framework that implements community based care by giving people in an emergency mental health crisis someone to call, someone to respond, and somewhere to go, leveraging an emergency response platform.

I first visited the Orleans Parish Communications District in October 2017. That’s when I met their fearless leader, Executive Director Tyrell Morris, MBA CPE. I knew from that first encounter he was a strong, innovative leader and I wanted to stay connected. In December 2019, I had the privilege of attending the inaugural Communications Executive Leadership Academy hosted by Director Morris at OPCD. It was during that week I had many personal and professional breakthroughs. That week I set my intentions and made a goal to have professional growth within two years. I didn’t know where I would be, but I knew I wanted to ascend. Exactly two years later, I left the 9-1-1 center I grew up in for an opportunity to join Carbyne who was busy disrupting the industry! It was serendipitous that the universe saw fit for OPCD to be my first official customer, and I got to be part of the elite team that, under Director Morris’ leadership, launched Carbyne APEX at OPCD on June 24, 2022.