There is perhaps nothing so important in call-taking than making the caller feel good about their contact with the dispatcher. The entire department's image is formed by the person who answers the call. The way they talk and ask questions, they way the solve the caller's problem, and the caller's perception of service virtually establish the caller's entire feeling about the department.

Corporate America discovered Customer Service many years ago. However, most public safety comm centers still do not have an organized program to establish goals and objectives for handling citizens calls, criteria for handling calls, and--most important--a method of evaluating dispatchers on how they meet the objectives.

This type of program should proceed step-by-step, ideally by a committee composed of dispatchers, comm center supervisors and managers, and other persons with a perspective on what the citizen's perceive as good customer service (Community Relations personnel, front counter officers, etc.).

We have used two books to help guide us in establishing a customer service program. Both are available at the larger, national bookstores and on-line:

• Customer Service for Dummies -- Part of a large series of "how-to" books, this provides an excellent explanation of how to establish a program. It's somewhat weak on telephone techniques, but overall is a good start. Purchase on-line at the Barnes & Noble Web site.
• Great Customer Service for Your Small Business, by Richard F. Gerson, Ph.D. -- Published by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Small Business Institute, it contains excellent ideas on handling telephone calls, establishing a customer service program and nitty-gritty tips on specific situations. Purchase on-line at the Barnes & Noble Web site.

We've prepared an excerpt of the annual report issued by the Santa Cruz (Calif.) Consolidated Emergency Communications Center about their "Standards of Excellence" program that monitors quality of service. The report explains how the program works and the survey results. [Acrobat, pdf format, 35k]

Beyond Hello: A Practical Guide for Excellent Telephone Communication and Quality Customer Service -- A tutorial that offers help to improve every telephone interaction with customers. Includes exercises, stories and examples of how attitude, telephone etiquette, communication styles and listening skills impact the bottom line. Purchase the book from Amazon.

Your comm center should have a mission statement, which serves several purposes. It defines the overall objectives of the comm center, and provides a guide for dispatchers when they handle their tasks. Once the mission statement is in place, your policies, procedures and work tasks should be measured against it to see if they meet the statement's objectives. They should be changed if they do not. [see our Mission Statement page]

The mission and philosophy of customer service should extend from the top of your agency (chief or commissioner or whatever), through all levels of management, directly to the dispatchers. Resources should be provided for training and administration, and expectations should be clearly spelled out.

Your comm center should have an on-going method of measuring your success. This might include random sampling of dispatchers' calls with citizens, mail-out or telephone surveys, or community and officer/firefighter meetings. You should take every opportunity to ask your "customers" how they perceive the level of service they are receiving. You should change your procedures or focus based on their feedback.

The Elyria (Ohio) Police Department has an on-line evaluation form that covers a "customer's" contact with the dispatcher and officers. The Santa Cruz (Calif.) Consoludated Communications Center also has an on-line customer service survey for callers. And lastly, Tempe (Ariz.) Police Communications has an on-line evaluation form that is perhaps the most sophisticated.

You should develop recognition programs. A government agency has fewer options to reward its employees. But you can still provide incentives, rewards and other motivation for dispatchers who excel at customer service.

You should always be looking for ways to improve your customer service--don't be satisfied if no one complains. There are always ways of reducing paperwork, reducing waiting time, or providing more information for customers. Seek out your dispatchers' suggestions on how to do the job better.

Provide training to your dispatchers so they're equipped to handle caller's and situations. It does no good to set standards and evaluate dispatchers, unless they've been given the necessary training. Seek out private trainers or companies in your community that set the standard for customer service, and ask them to train your dispatchers.

Problems should be perceived by the dispatcher as an opportunity to promote the department's objective of solving problems. Naturally, there are legal and procedural limits to what a dispatcher can do. However, they should be empowered to perform as many tasks and take as many actions as possible to help solve the caller's problem. If they cannot, there should be a standard method of referring the caller to another unit or a supervisor who has the authority or skill to solve the problem. Dispatchers should not believe that they are merely "call-takers," but rather problem solvers. Even personnel in positions that are technically defined as "call-takers" should be allowed to solve problems and provide information for self-solutions.

Develop interpersonal skills. Communicating by telephone is a difficult and specific task. Not everyone is good at it. But with information and training, it can be developed. Among the skills: pay attention to the caller, be flexible in your approach, ask questions, listen actively, mirror their style to gain trust, built rapport, pace and lead the conversation, and respond appropriately.

On the other hand, here are some "don'ts"--don't provide an explanation too soon, interpret the caller's situation, punish or retaliate, pretend not to understand, pass the buck, change the subject, joke or be sarcastic, be unresponsive, condescend, be busy, bored or absent-minded.

Courtesy should be paramount. You should establish standard phrases and words to use when dealing with customers, and all dispatchers should be required to adhere to their use. "Please," "thank you" and "You're welcome" should be foremost among the words that dispatchers use. You should also establish procedures for transferring calls, taking messages, and other handling telephone calls. For example, announce all transfers, never put someone on hold without asking permission, "bridge" all transfers, recheck callers on hold after each 60 seconds, hang up after the caller, always identify yourself first when calling a citizen back, use the caller's name.

We offer this outline of a Customer Service program, to help you start your own project. If you have suggestions or ideas on how to improve this material, please send us e-mail.

Objective and Goals of Customer Service

• To make the caller feel positive about their contact with the police/fire department
• To solve the caller's problem or provide them with the needed information
• To gather the necessary information to prioritize, evaluate and dispatch the necessary units to the situation

Key Phrases

• I understand.
• I'm sorry.
• Thank you.
• You're welcome.
• I can help you...
• I understand you're upset/frightened, but...(next question)
• Please don't curse. I need to know...
• My supervisor can help you.
• Can you hold for a moment?
• I don't know, but I can find out.
• Let me help you.
• I can't help you unless...
• Say, "A locksmith can help you....", or "Public Works handles rubbish...", rather than "We don't do that." Always emphasize the help that's available, not the assistance that you cannot provide.
• Say, "Let me give you their telephone number," rather than, "You have to call...".

Customer Service Evaluation Criteria

• Answered the call with a badge number and agency name
• Had a helpful, pleasant, interested and attentive tone and sufficient volume
• Responded politely to caller's, "How are you?" or other solicitation
• Actively listened to the caller
• Used "hold" for an appropriate reason
• Asked the caller, "Can you hold?" and waited for the caller's affirmative response
• Never put a caller on hold for more than 60 seconds at a time.
• Thanked caller for holding when came back on the line
• If additional hold necessary, apologized and asked the caller to hold again
• If a critical incident, used first names
• Was patient and understanding with a caller who cannot describe the situation quickly or clearly
• Recognized young, elderly, non-English speaking or callers with speech disabilities and adapts the questioning style appropriately
• If incident was in-progress, entered the incident into CAD quickly (or dispatched quickly)
• If incident was in-progress, kept the caller on the line to gather more information
• Let the caller know that help was on the way, even as questioning continued
• Properly called back a 911 hang-up call to determine the situation
• If the caller was in peril, gave the caller safety instructions and an assurance of help
• Provided a badge number or name if requested by the caller
• Promptly referred the caller to a supervisor if requested the by caller
• Announced a call transfer before performing it
• Provided the requested information to the caller without interrogation
• Used the caller's name and/or title appropriately
• Gave accurate information about laws, policies and procedures
• Asked appropriate questions to efficiently gather necessary information
• Allowed the caller to answer questions with interruption
• Allowed the frustrated caller to vent
• Accurately determined the incident location and jurisdiction
• Expressed empathy for the caller's situation
• Accurately entered all pertinent information into the CAD incident
• Actively worked to solve the caller's problem
• Apologized for any inability to handle the caller's problem
• Gave an explanation for why the department could not handle/solve the caller's problem
• Offered alternate courses of action for non-police/fire incidents or situations
• Gave correct names and telephone numbers for alternate agencies who might assist the caller
• If the incident was accepted for service, told the caller of the department's intended action (dispatch officer or fire unit, will call back, etc.), and an estimated wait for service
• Followed-up on any promised actions (call-backs, messages given, etc.)
• Performed a non-mandatory task in order to solve the caller's problem
• Told the caller to ask for him/her on call back, to save time re-explaining the situation
• Said, "You're welcome" and "Goodbye" appropriately
• Hung up after the caller
• The caller said, "Thank you"

During a presentation to attendees of the 2000 annual conference of the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) in Salt Lake City, trainer Kevin Willett of Public Safety Training Consultants outlined the elements of "High Quality Service".

The goals of the class were:

• to show the importance of High Quality Service
• remind the student why they became caregivers
• provide tools that every 911 professional can use: attitude, voice inflection, desire to provide High Quality Service
• teach techniques and phrases that are appreciated
• learn how to calm or de-escalate a hostile or upset caller
• show how providing great service ultimately saves time
• demonstrate how High Quality Service can lessen stress and aggravation
• remind class how they appreciate receiving Quality Service
• explain the format of their one-day service class

Willett then set out some fundamentals:

• acknowledge that your community depends on you
• understand these techniques are useful during all calls -- they may be applied differently during routine vs. "hot" calls
• how we are perceived by the public can hurt or benefit us in many ways
• High Quality Service is a combination of attitude, technique and dedication
• don't judge the techniques until you have given them a fair "test drive"
• understand that many ideas may go against the way you were originally taught

He listed a few things about our customer to keep in mind:

• they have a varied level of intelligence
• they have a variety of cultural beliefs
• they have moral values that may be unlike yours
• their age and life experience may be vast or sheltered
• they may be mentally unstable
• they may be intoxicated or under the influence of drugs
• they may have witnessed something traumatic

Willett noted that customer service may be procedural--what we do according to our prescribed rules and regulations--or personal. He listed several companies and asked the audience of dispatchers what they mean: Disney, Nordstrom's, Marriott, Hilton, Home Depot, PSTC.

He noted some things to avoid:

• being too authoritative
• preaching
• yelling or losing your temper
• prejudging
• Law School 101

He then suggested some things to improve High Quality Service skills:

• listening skills
• empathy
• feedback
• The Golden Rule

Willett listed the goals that the NENA seminar students should keep in mind:

• a positive "can do" attitude
• put a smile on your voice and enjoy
• aggressive tactics don't always work; use phrases that convey respect to the caller
• you never have a second chance to make a good first impression
• treat the caller like the most important person in your life
• positive voice inflection
• empathy
• honesty
• flexibility
• accuracy
• objectivity

Willett also listed some "do's" and "don'ts":

• I don't know vs. I'll find out
• That's not my job vs. Here's who can help you best
• Calm down vs. Okay, I'm sorry...let me try to help you
• I can't help you now vs. I am very busy, can I call you back
• ...Hold vs. I need to put you on hold

Willett emphasized not to pre-judge the caller and to have compassion. He advised that swearing or sexual references by callers is usually due to their stressful condition, and is not spoken personally. Threats, however, should be evaluated for seriousness. He reminded the attendees that we are only human, and that mistakes do occur. A simple apology will go a long way in calming a potentially upset co-worker or citizen.

Managers and supervisors should clearly set out customer service expectations, Willett said. Policies, measurement methods, your mission statement , quality assurance program and other customer service programs and procedures should be thoroughly reviewed and explained.

PSTC's one-day class includes case studies of great customer service, scenario-based training, skills building for call-takers and radio dispatchers, and sharing lessons learned from other agencies around the country...check their Web site for more information.

 Also check:

• our customer service evaluation form (pdf)
• our citizen satisfaction letter and survey form (pdf)
• service questionaire, Elyria (Ohio) PD
• police communications survey, Tempe (Ariz.)
• customer survey, Fayette County (Geo.) DPS
• customer service survey, Reno (Nev.)
• customer survey, Valley Emergency Communications Center (Utah)