Charting a Path to Excellence

APCO International’s Member Assistance Advisory Program (MAAP) has a wide-ranging yet simple goal: To provide public safety communications managers and their executive leadership with expert advice on the issues surrounding effective and efficient operations – every day.

Its objectives are to give our members and their agencies specialized advice on issues concerning the operations of public safety communications centers, to provide them with cost-effective suggestions and to improve overall communications center operations.

MAAP brings you closer to achieving your goals by providing a competent peer review of agency operations in any component of public safety communications. The benefits to this process are:

• You as the agency control the effort by establishing the goals and objectives of the peer review
• Your costs are those related to travel of the MAAP Review Team, report publication and administrative expenses
• You can start now to identify problems, improve operations and improve services you provide to the public

NOTE: The APCO International Member Assistance Advisory Program is a “peer-to-peer” review only. If you are interested in a more advanced level assessment, the services of a professional consultant that specializes in public safety communications should be sought. Please refer to the APCO International Buyers Guide for a listing of these types of consultants.

The Process

Upon request from an APCO International member, the Comm Center & 9-1-1 Services Department Staff will provide the agency a MAAP Review Questionnaire. This questionnaire helps set the foundation for your review by providing information regarding what components of your system you would like reviewed. Once this questionnaire is completed and returned, your agency and the Comm Center & 9-1-1 Services Department Staff will work together to refine and delineate the scope of the effort. Only those areas requested by the agency and agreed upon by the agency and the Comm Center & 9-1-1 Services Department staff will be reviewed.

Our Subject Matter Experts

Once the scope of review has been established, an on-site visit will be scheduled for our APCO International MAAP Review Team. The MAAP Review Team is composed of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) chosen for their particular areas of expertise. The MAAP Review Team will review the policies, procedures, regulations and personnel practices of the agency as they relate to the specific project, assess the agency's current status and situation, interview appropriate personnel and gather all pertinent data.

The MAAP SMEs are public safety communications professionals who have gone through an extensive application process to become a MAAP Reviewer that requires demonstration of an above average knowledge of the subject matter in their area of expertise. As fellow public safety communications professionals, the MAAP Review Team Members will keep your information confidential and will return all materials along with the Final Report.

MAAP is currently expanding its roster of volunteer Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) used to perform its MAAP Agency Reviews. Click here to view the application

The Final Report

Once the on-site work is complete, the MAAP Review Team will prepare a comprehensive report which combines the Team’s observations and recommendations.

This Final Report will include:

• An accurate overview of the operations reviewed based on the defined scope of the review;
• Supporting documentation to assist in changing or modifying operating procedures;
• A guideline and if requested a “first steps timeline”; and
• A list of Subject Matter Expert contacts and reference/resource material for further assistance

In short, the agency will be able to use the report's recommendations to improve its day-to-day operations. The Final Report will be released to the agency for distribution to such executive and legislative leadership as they desire within 60 days of the on-site visit.

Follow-up

The MAAP effort continues beyond the Final Report. The Team Leader involved in your on-site visit and report preparation will contact you again after the release of the Final Report. This follow-up allows you to get immediate responses to the questions that may have been raised by the Final Report. In addition, APCO International’s Comm Center & 9-1-1 Services Department Staff will contact you 30 days after the release of the Final Report for quality assurance and satisfaction survey purposes.

For more information on APCO International’s Member Assistance Advisory Program contact the Comm Center and 9-1-1 Services Department at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call (888) 272-6911.

From public safety communications standards and best practices to comm center staffing and employee retention, APCO International's Comm Center & 9-1-1 Services Department is serving the industry in a myriad of ways and provides a multitude of services to public safety communications at large - many of them at no charge for APCO International members.

This department is the industry-recognized resource for information on:

• Comm center standards and best practices
• Staffing and retention effective practices and research
• Peer review of local operations/management, on-site visits and customized reports (MAAP)
• The National Joint TERT Initiative
• Mission-critical equipment information (radio/telephony/CAD systems)
• Data-exchange models between CAD systems
• Operational information related to calltaking/dispatching, wireless 9-1-1, telematics, PBX, VoIP and emerging technologies
• Industry research and policy development
• Common management and operational procedures

Our staff of dedicated professionals provides an extensive amount of public safety, public service and association experience and management; which allows us to share a wealth of information and knowledge so we can continue...

"Meeting Member Needs with Professional Excellence"