iWatch Monitoring Center Dispatcher

A Day in the Life of a Monitoring Center Dispatcher

When you hear the voice on the other end of the line — “Thank you for calling First Response, how can I help you?”— it can be easy to forget that not only does the person who answered the phone field all incoming calls, they also provide true life safety and security to our wonderful clients and community. The operators and dispatchers in our UL listed monitoring center, iWatch, answered a whopping 2,875 number of calls just last week, and are the people behind-the-scenes who answer alarm calls, perform hourly welfare checks on officers, dispatch officers, contact emergency services and more.

To shed a little light on the tasks and duties of an operator and dispatcher, we’ve captured a snapshot of a typical shift at our in-house monitoring center in the Beaverton/Portland area.

22:50 – Receive pass-down information from previous dispatcher to prepare for upcoming shift change.

23:05 – Conduct a welfare check on all patrol officers.

23:10 – Review on-site check-in sheet to be sure all on-site officers have checked in for the start of their shift.

23:25 – Receive an alarm call from monitoring company and dispatch an officer to respond.

23:40 – Officer arrives to alarm call. Check on his status every 10 minutes until he is clear.

00:10 – Receive a noise complaint of a loud party. Dispatch an officer to speak to offending apartment.

00:35 – Receive a parking complaint from an apartment complex. Dispatch an officer to ticket/possibly tow vehicle.

00:40 – Officer investigates an open door at one of her routine patrols. Start checking her status every 5 minutes until she clears.

00:50 – Officer with open door found no one on site but cannot secure the door. Called the account’s Emergency Contacts and left messages. Finally reached an Emergency Contact that will come down and secure the door. Officer will stand by until his arrival.

02:40 – Receive call from the Police Department. They need assistance from an officer to gain entry to a school where a broken window has been found. Dispatched an officer to assist PD.

03:12 – Receive a “Blue Phone” emergency call from a college campus of a woman is locked behind the gate and needs to be let off campus. Dispatched an officer to assist her.

03:32 – Receive a call from a client wanting extra patrols due to their burglary system being down. Transferred them to the Watch Commander.

04:20 – Receive a call of multiple alarms at a school. Dispatched two officers to check on alarms.

04:35 – Officers arrive to previous school call and witness through a window 2 juveniles in the hallway. Dispatched the Police Department to assist in apprehending the juveniles. Continue to check on officer’s status every 5 minutes until PD arrives.

05:35 – Receive a call of a fire alarm at a business. Dispatched Officer to give Fire Department access to building.

06:10 – Did not receive a check-in from an on-site. No answer for site phone or personal cell. Notified the Watch Commander and he had me send a patrol to check for officer on site.

06:40 – Starting sanitizing work station and organizing any paperwork.

06:50 – Give pass-down to relief of all current calls being handled by officers.

07:00 – End of shift.

To learn more about the services First Response offer, contact us today!

About First Response

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Beaverton, First Response Security is one of the largest privately owned security companies in Oregon. Our commitment to “A Higher Standard” enables us to deliver the client service we believe you deserve.

PR Team