911 Dispatcher

City of Edina•Police 4801 W. 50th Street Edina, MN

19h•Onsite

About The Position

This position involves receiving and responding to emergency and non-emergency telephone calls, determining the nature and urgency of calls, collecting required information, and dispatching appropriate emergency personnel and vehicles. The role requires providing pre-arrival instructions, tracking unit status, arranging for assistance from external providers, and operating specialized communication equipment. Additionally, the dispatcher will monitor multiple radio channels, respond to information requests from units, patch radio frequencies, maintain awareness of mutual aid channels, and notify other agencies as needed. The position also includes monitoring the National Weather Service channel and relaying vital weather information, as well as listening to mutual aid frequencies to advise officers of potential threats. A significant part of the role involves creating and maintaining electronic or manual records, inputting vital information into the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, updating CAD records, and monitoring for incident trends. The dispatcher will also use various computer systems for monitoring, accessing, and entering information, and perform duties related to building and prisoner security, including monitoring entrances, exits, prisoners, and panic buttons. The role requires tracking police personnel for availability and safety, maintaining emergency contact lists, managing the dispatch schedule, and maintaining contact information for volunteer resources. Responsibilities also include arranging for equipment maintenance, creating service calls for alarms or breakages, performing minor repairs if directed, notifying affected personnel, and maintaining inventory of equipment and supplies. The position may also involve assisting with routine equipment maintenance and performing other assigned duties.

Requirements

High school diploma or equivalent
Two years of related customer service experience and/or two years of higher education
Ability to work shift work of days, afternoons, and overnights, weekends, holidays and on short notice
Ability to think clearly and act quickly and correctly in emergency situations
Ability to exercise a high degree of good judgment and independence while evaluating emergency and non-emergency situations
Ability to make split-second decisions
Ability to multi-task, gather and disseminate information clearly, accurately and rapidly in urgent situations
Ability to calm irate or hysterical persons
Ability to enter data accurately into a variety of databases
Ability to maintain confidentiality
Ability to relate and work effectively with people from diverse cultural, economic and ethnic backgrounds

Nice To Haves

Prior experience as a 911 Police/Fire Dispatcher
Prior experience in a fast-paced working environment where it was necessary to make accurate and quick decisions
Ability to work independently without immediate supervision

Responsibilities

Receives and appropriately responds to all incoming telephone calls by providing excellent customer service.
Answers both emergency and non-emergency incoming telephone calls; Determines nature and urgency of calls and collects required information; Evaluates information received and prioritizes calls.
Dispatches patrol officers, firefighters, paramedics, ambulances, ACO/CSO, and other emergency vehicles in response to calls.
Provides pre-arrival instructions for callers.
Tracks the location and status of all emergency and non-emergency units, including those out of service.
Arranges for assistance from contract and non-contract providers such as towing, spill clean-up, medical examiner, reserves, etc.
Operates hearing-impaired emergency communication equipment where needed.
Monitors multiple radio channels.
Responds to requests for information from police and fire units through multiple public, private and government databases.
Patches radio frequencies.
Maintains awareness of availability of mutual aid radio channels and suggests most appropriate channel.
Notifies other agencies to respond to police/fire/medical emergency calls as appropriate and coordinate their response by providing information and directions via phone or radio.
Monitors the National Weather Service channel and passes vital weather information as appropriate.
Listens to mutual aid frequencies and surrounding agencies and advises Edina and Richfield officers of in-progress crimes near the borders that affect those cities.
Creates and maintains electronic or manual records and logs of activity as required.
Inputs vital information into the CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) system for every call.
Updates CAD location records to reflect vital information on residences or businesses.
Monitors and makes other police or fire personnel aware of trends in location, type, or times of incidents that may indicate a link or show an ongoing problem.
Verifies that electronic and paper information files carry the same information.
Monitors and purges Department/Division files/records in a secure fashion and in accordance with applicable legal regulations and local retention schedule.
Uses various computer systems to monitor calls, access information and enter information as required.
Performs duties related to building and prisoner security.
Monitors entrances and exits to the Police Department and notifies officers in case of illegal entry into secure areas.
Monitors prisoners and officers in the booking area.
Monitors panic buttons around Police Department and City offices and sends appropriate response.
Monitors vital building systems and notifies maintenance personnel of disruptions in service or alarms indicating system failure.
Controls opening and closing of restricted areas during severe weather warnings and monitors movement of personnel into safe zones.
Tracks police personnel in order to identify their availability and to protect them in the event that they are out of contact and need backup to check on their safety.
Keeps track of personnel on duty during each shift.
Keeps updated emergency contact lists for active personnel and provides numbers as needed.
Maintains dispatch schedule.
Maintains contact information for volunteer resources.
Arranges for equipment maintenance.
Creates a call for service for equipment alarms or breakages.
If directed, attempts minor repairs of equipment or contacts an appropriate repair contractor.
Notifies police/fire/medical personnel who are affected by the repair.
Maintains inventory of equipment and supplies, and orders replacements when necessary.
Assists with routine equipment maintenance and keeps associated records.
Performs other duties and activities as assigned.