The Ultimate Guide to Running a Security Dispatch Center

This guide is the first in a four-part series on how to successfully launch and run a security dispatch center. It covers when it makes sense to launch a dispatch or call center rather than having supervisors in the field take calls directly, and how to decide between outsourcing and building your own.

You can think of receiving calls as the front line of customer service. As your security company grows, you will want people who are trained and skilled in customer service answering those calls. Let’s look at how to assess your current need, what a dispatch center actually does and how to measure whether it is working.

What Is a Security Dispatch Center?

A security dispatch center is the central point where a security company receives calls, alarms and requests, then assigns the right officer to respond. Dispatchers answer client and resident calls, send officers to incidents, handle call-offs and last-minute coverage gaps, escalate emergencies and keep a record of every request from start to finish. In larger operations, the dispatch center often grows into a command center that also monitors alarms and video.

The dispatcher’s job has changed a lot as technology has advanced. Read more about the changing role of a modern-day security dispatcher.

Assessing Need

If you want to make an informed decision about whether you need a security dispatch center, you have to have the right data. That means tracking the number of calls you receive from customers or residents each night, the amount of time supervisors spend on the phone and how reliably the requests from those calls are passed on to the right person and resolved.

Make sure your current process is already optimized. If you do not have a defined process, write one out as soon as possible. Launching a dispatch center can be costly, so sometimes it is easier to increase efficiency by adjusting your current process or using new tools. TrackTik security dispatch software assigns the nearest available officer, tracks response times against your SLAs and keeps every request in one real-time interface, so nothing gets lost in the shuffle.

Sometimes, though, the volume of calls simply becomes too much, especially for supervisors whose training is not focused on handling customer phone calls. Consider a single 500-unit apartment complex: even a small share of residents calling each month adds up to a significant volume of calls.

An overworked supervisor trying to handle all of these calls can lead to miscommunication on the phone, mistakes when dispatching officers and an unprofessional image in front of the customer.

Signs Your Security Company Is Ready for a Dispatch Center

• Supervisors spend a large part of every shift on the phone instead of supporting officers in the field.
• Calls go to voicemail, get missed after hours or have to be returned later.
• Requests are passed along by text or memory, and clients have to follow up to get answers.
• Call-offs and no-shows regularly leave posts uncovered while someone scrambles to find a replacement.
• You are adding clients with SLAs, alarm response or mobile patrol routes that require consistent, documented dispatch.

Can You Get the Right Quality With Outsourcing?

Customer service is extremely important. It is one of the key differentiators for security companies and plays a big role in how effective you are at winning new contracts and retaining existing customers. If you are going to outsource your customer service to a call center, you need to know it can deliver a high standard of service.

On one hand, call center employees are trained to talk to customers on the phone, and they work in an environment with the right resources and equipment to communicate effectively. That can be a big advantage over officers or supervisors who might be taking calls in a car, with noise all around and no way to access crucial information.

On the other hand, your own employees understand the business and your customers’ needs. You have to be sure call center employees understand your operation and can address caller needs. To figure that out, ask:

• Can they use your software for scheduling and reporting?
• Will they be responsible for managing officers?
• Will they handle incidents reported by officers and act as the liaison to the customer?
• Can they handle call-offs, no-shows and emergency scheduling?
• Can they communicate with officers in the field, and do they need to be bilingual?
• Do they have video surveillance accounts they can monitor?

Costs of Outsourcing vs. In-House

The other option is to build your own in-house call center, with dedicated employees answering phones. Comparing the cost of outsourcing with going in-house can be difficult, because many call centers quote prices on a per-call basis.

The best way to evaluate costs is to convert everything to an hourly price. That means knowing how many calls you will take on average, as well as the costs of hiring new employees, training them and dealing with turnover.

As Johnny put it when we discussed this on our podcast, “Most of the time it’s going to be cheaper to outsource it, but… there’s a number of advantages to having it in house because we can boost their job description and requirements, which will help take some stuff off of your plate.”

Outsourced vs. In-House Dispatch at a Glance

Factor	Outsourced call center	In-house dispatch center
Typical pricing	Per call or per month	Hourly wages, benefits and overhead
Upfront investment	Low	Higher: hiring, training, space and equipment
Knowledge of your clients	Limited, must be trained	Deep and built over time
Control over quality	Managed through the contract	Direct and day to day
Scope of responsibilities	Usually call handling	Can include scheduling, call-offs and client liaison
Scalability	Fast to scale up or down	Requires hiring as volume grows
Best fit	Smaller or growing firms	Firms with high volume or complex clients

Core Responsibilities of a Security Dispatch Center

Whether you outsource or build in-house, be clear about what your dispatch center owns. Most security dispatch centers handle some or all of the following:

• Call intake: Answering client, resident and tenant calls professionally and logging every request.
• Officer dispatch: Sending the closest available officer and tracking arrival and completion times.
• Coverage gaps: Handling call-offs and no-call, no-show situations before a post goes uncovered.
• Incident escalation: Following clear procedures for emergencies, including when to contact police, fire or the client.
• Alarm and video monitoring: Responding to alarms and camera events, often together with mobile patrol officers.
• Client communication: Keeping clients informed during and after an incident and making sure reports reach the right people.

Dispatch Center Metrics to Track

Once your dispatch center is running, measure it the same way you would any other part of your service. These metrics tell you whether it is improving service or simply moving work around:

1. Call volume by hour and site to plan staffing and spot problem locations.
2. Time to answer and the share of calls that go unanswered or to voicemail.
3. Time to dispatch from the moment a call is received to the moment an officer is assigned.
4. Response time against SLA for every dispatched call.
5. Time to fill a call-off and the number of uncovered hours each week.
6. Incident closure time and how quickly reports reach the client.

Real-time data makes these numbers far easier to capture. Learn more about how to boost guard efficiency with real-time dispatch.

How TrackTik Powers a Modern Security Dispatch Center

A dispatch center is only as good as the information in front of it. TrackTik, the security workforce management platform from Trackforce, gives dispatchers one connected view of officers, sites, incidents and clients.

• Unified operations: TrackTik Command Center consolidates alarm monitoring, video surveillance access and guard dispatch into a single workspace with standardized response procedures.
• Mobile response: TrackTik mobile patrol optimizes patrol routes and shows the real-time progress of every run, so dispatchers know who can respond fastest.
• Complete documentation: TrackTik incident reporting captures every call and response with time-stamped photo, video and GPS evidence.
• Performance visibility: TrackTik business intelligence turns dispatch data into dashboards for response times, SLAs and call volume that you can share with clients.

Continue the Dispatch Center Series

There is a lot that goes into running a dispatch center. Continue with the rest of the series:

• The Pros and Cons of Outsourcing a Security Dispatch Center
• How to Outsource Your Security Dispatch Center
• How to Launch an In-House Security Dispatch Center

Want to see how TrackTik can support your dispatch operation, whether it is two people or a full command center? Book a TrackTik demo.