For our season finale, Max Keenan (Founder, Aurelian) and Scott MacDonald (CEO, GovWorx) join the show to take apart what 911 is, what it's becoming, and what has to stay human.

Two founders. Opposite entry points into public safety. One shared North Star: the person in the chair.

We cover staffing, burnout, AI in non-emergency, NG911, the myth of the "big bang," and what winning actually looks like ten years from now.

They came at 911 from opposite directions.

Scott joined the Air Force at 22 because he needed a job, became a firefighter, got assigned to the alarm room on the 1 AM shift, and realized he got more out of taking the call than riding the engine. He built his first CAD system inside Microsoft Access.

Max was 22, automating phone calls for hair salons, when a salon owner called a non-emergency line about a blocked parking spot, waited 30 minutes, hung up, and dialed 911. He was lying on a friend's apartment floor because he couldn't afford a hotel room. He didn't know the industry existed he thought police officers answered the phone.

Two entry points. Same North Star.

A few moments that stayed with me:

→ "You train your team as Navy SEALs and you use them as mall cops." A 30% staffing shortage sitting on top of 70% non-emergency call volume. Max called it the greatest misallocation of labor he'd ever seen.

→ On why 911 companies fail. Not competition. "It's going to be suicide" — launching things that don't work, selling what doesn't exist. Max told the story of a vendor tapping him on the shoulder at a conference bar after he'd told a prospect "no, it doesn't do that": You should have just said yes.

→ On automation math nobody runs. If you automate 30% of your non-emergency calls, you may have just made the other 70% worse. Be a solution, not a hurdle.

→ On mental health as an existential threat. Maybe 2% of the population can actually do this job. Eleven known telecommunicator suicides this year alone. You can't stop the call from the mother who found her baby in the pool. You can stop the twelve hours of mandatory overtime every three days.

→ On what QA actually costs. One hour and seventeen minutes for a human to review a seven-minute call — covering 2% of calls. Scott's team has evaluated over 12 million.

→ On rigidity. One agency has 550 call types in their CAD. A call taker told Max she picks "physical altercation" over "fight" because she knows it gets a faster response. She knows the outcome. The system doesn't.

→ On the human in the middle. Scott wrote a blog post about being the person seated between two dinner guests who have nothing in common. That's the telecommunicator — translating panic into something real and durable. Machine can talk to machine. Human still needs a human.

→ On what winning looks like. Scott: "If all that's said in ten years is that there's more AI in 911, that's not a win." The win is a stronger profession — better retention, real reclassification, elevated recognition.

And the line I keep coming back to, for every dispatcher listening:

"The future is happening. Not around you, not without you — but with you."

This one runs long and earns it.

#911 #PublicSafety #EmergencyCommunications #NG911 #Dispatch #Telecommunicators #AI #GovTech #BeyondTheLaunch

What if your proposal problem is not really a writing problem?

In Episode 20 of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with Sophie Kather, Managing Partner of Civic North Consulting, to explore why winning government contracts requires much more than writing a strong RFP response.

Sophie brings nearly two decades of experience across Revenue Operations, government contracting, proposals, sales enablement, cooperative purchasing, and public sector strategy. Her message is simple: proposals are an operations problem.

Ivan and Sophie discuss how GovTech companies can build repeatable systems around RFPs, improve go/no-go decisions, strengthen capture strategy, use data more effectively, and turn cooperative contracts into actual revenue.

They also explore the role of AI in proposal management, why organizations should stop chasing every opportunity, how sales enablement supports government contracting, and why data integrity is foundational to a strong RevOps strategy.

If you work in GovTech, public safety technology, government contracting, RevOps, sales, customer success, business development, or procurement, this episode is for you.

00:45 Welcome and introduction to Sophie Kather
02:53 Recognizing the broken pattern in government proposals
04:49 Navigating public sector procurement
06:58 How RevOps shaped Sophie's approach
08:45 What Revenue Operations actually does
09:27 The chaos before an RFP deadline
10:57 How to differentiate your proposal
12:42 Building a strong go/no-go process
14:22 When companies should walk away from an RFP
15:07 The top proposal improvement GovTech founders should make
16:36 Building a customized go/no-go scorecard
17:54 Grant strategy for nonprofits
19:33 How AI should be used in proposal management
21:17 AI writing versus authentic human connection
22:14 Why Sophie built Civic North Consulting
23:29 Turning NASPO, GSA, and cooperative contracts into revenue
25:59 Sales enablement in GovTech and public safety
27:36 What a strong RevOps team looks like
29:09 Why data integrity matters
31:16 Managing long public sector sales cycles
32:36 What GovTech founders need to know before writing
33:23 How to connect with Sophie
33:59 Closing thoughts

Sophie Kather is the Managing Partner of Civic North Consulting, helping GovTech companies, nonprofits, and public sector suppliers simplify grants, RFPs, contracts, and cooperative purchasing.

Learn more at CivicNorthConsulting.com.

Beyond the Launch, Ivan Whitaker, Sophie Kather, Civic North Consulting, RevOps, Revenue Operations, GovTech, government contracting, government procurement, RFP strategy, RFP response, proposal management, proposal strategy, capture strategy, go no go process, public sector sales, cooperative purchasing, NASPO, GSA Schedule, sales enablement, GovCon, public safety technology, customer success, AI proposals, artificial intelligence, business development, CRM data, procurement strategy

#BeyondTheLaunch #GovTech #RevOps #RevenueOperations #GovernmentContracting #GovCon #RFP #Procurement #SalesEnablement #PublicSector #PublicSafety #CustomerSuccess #AI #NASPO

What happens when a 911 center invests in the latest technology but forgets about the people expected to use it?

In Episode 19 of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with Adam Timm, President and Founder of The Healthy Dispatcher, for a powerful conversation about why successful transformation in emergency communications starts with people, culture, trust, and leadership, not technology alone.

Adam brings a perspective forged from more than two decades in public safety. After beginning his career as a dispatcher with the Los Angeles Police Department, experiencing burnout firsthand, and ultimately transforming his own approach to the profession, he dedicated his career to helping 911 professionals and communication centers become healthier, stronger, and more resilient.

Adam explains why successful technology implementation begins long before go-live, why employees need to be involved early in the process, and how poor communication can create resistance before a new system ever reaches the floor.

They also explore the difference between simply deploying technology and achieving real adoption. Login numbers and system uptime may tell part of the story, but the real measure of success is whether dispatchers and supervisors trust the technology, understand its purpose, and believe it makes their work better.

03:08: Adam’s journey from LAPD dispatcher to creating a larger impact in 911

05:41: How “The Healthy Dispatcher” was born and why organizational health matters

08:13: What people-driven leadership looks like during major change

10:09: Why leaders must communicate early, often, and transparently

12:49: Why communication professionals can struggle to communicate with each other

13:11: How working the console shapes communication habits on and off duty

17:16: The biggest leadership mistake during a 911 technology go-live

17:36: Why employees must be involved before technology is selected

19:24: Creating a better blueprint for technology implementation and change management

21:09: Rethinking customer success in public safety technology

21:26: Adoption vs. utilization: Are people actually using and trusting the technology?

24:28: Why dispatcher satisfaction should become a measurable implementation metric

25:17: How better questions produce better employee feedback

25:47: Three signs that a 911 center’s culture survived a major technology change

29:16: Agency vs. vendor accountability when implementations struggle

30:19: Why the human side of change should be built into the project plan

32:46: The one leadership principle Adam wants every 911 director to embrace

34:18: Why genuinely knowing and caring about your people changes culture

36:02: The Healthy Dispatcher: training, consulting, culture assessments, and leadership development

38:08: Closing thoughts with Adam Timm

🎧 Listen, watch, subscribe, and share this episode with a 911 leader, dispatcher, supervisor, or public safety professional who believes the future of emergency communications starts with its people.

Featured Guest: Adam Timm
President & Founder: The Healthy Dispatcher
Host: Ivan Whitaker
Podcast: Beyond the Launch

Episode 18: Building Partnerships That Stick: How Data, Trust, and No-Cost Models Change the Game in Public Safety Technology | Beyond the Launch

Most people hear “CARFAX” and think about buying a used car. But behind the familiar consumer brand is a powerful set of tools supporting law enforcement, emergency communications centers, and vehicle-related investigations across the country.

In Episode 18 of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with John Fisher, Senior Partner Development Manager for CARFAX for Police.

John brings decades of public-safety leadership to his role. His career includes serving as Chief of Police in Bedford, Massachusetts; Chief of Police and Emergency Management Director in Carlisle; and 22 years with the Nashua Police Department, where he rose from patrolman to bureau captain. He also spent more than 30 years coaching high school basketball, an experience that continues to shape his leadership and partnership-building approach.

Together, Ivan and John explore how CARFAX for Police developed a no-cost data-sharing model used by more than 6,500 law enforcement agencies, why a CARFAX investigative tool is run every 15 seconds, and how Driver Exchange 911 helps agencies manage property-damage-only collisions while keeping dispatchers and officers available for higher-priority emergencies.

They also discuss what technology companies often misunderstand about public safety, why successful partnerships begin with listening, and what it takes to introduce new technology in an environment where trust, accuracy, and reliability are nonnegotiable.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 – Welcome to Beyond the Launch
02:22 – Meet John Fisher of CARFAX for Police
03:55 – The public-safety side of CARFAX
05:55 – Why agencies use a CARFAX tool every 15 seconds
06:52 – How the no-cost data-sharing model works
08:45 – Protecting personal information: vehicles versus drivers
09:23 – Driver Exchange 911 and how it works
12:27 – Reducing low-priority calls in the dispatch queue
13:54 – How officers can use the tool at the scene
15:09 – Making technology easier for dispatchers to adopt
16:40 – Earning trust inside a police department
19:37 – Integrating with CAD, RMS, and real-time crime centers
22:05 – Building partnerships at the speed of government
24:55 – What AI-powered startups get wrong about public safety
27:51 – Lessons from NENA, APCO, and industry conferences
30:02 – What technology founders underestimate about the market
31:12 – Behind the curtain: What’s next for CARFAX for Police
32:59 – Closing thoughts

Whether you work in law enforcement, 911 operations, emergency management, GovTech, product development, or partnership strategy, this conversation offers practical lessons about earning trust and building technology that works in the real world.

Subscribe to Beyond the Launch for more candid conversations about the work that begins after a product goes live.

#BeyondTheLaunch #CARFAXforPolice #PublicSafety #LawEnforcement #911Dispatch #EmergencyCommunications #GovTech #DriverExchange911 #Podcast

On this episode of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan sits down with Tipi Brookens, Chief of Public Safety Engagement at Govworx, for a candid conversation about 911 leadership, technology adoption, and quality assurance in emergency communications.

Tipi spent 24 years inside emergency communications, starting as a 911 call taker and rising to Chief of Professional Standards and Development and Chief of Staff at Washington DC's Office of Unified Communications, one of the most publicly scrutinized 911 centers in the country. In this episode, she shares what it was like leading through intense media attention and political pressure, why she left a government agency career to join a public safety technology vendor, and how her firsthand dispatch experience shapes her approach to 911 technology implementation today.

Chapters

0:00 Welcome to Beyond the Launch

1:55 Episode intro: From the Headset to the Boardroom

2:34 Life in the headset: her first version of herself in 911

6:49 Leading inside DC's most scrutinized 911 center

11:36 The practitioner turned vendor question

16:39 Why she made the leap to Govworx

21:19 The case for 100% quality assurance

25:13 How Comms Coach changes the evaluation process

28:27 What goes wrong in the first 90 days of implementation

33:16 Shifting a 911 center's culture around QA

38:12 Level Up with Tipi: why Govworx invests beyond the product

40:19 Advice for new directors and what's next with PROMOTE

44:07 Closing thoughts

Tipi and Ivan dig into the real reasons technology rollouts fail in dispatch centers, why 100% quality assurance matters more than agencies realize, and how AI powered tools like CommsCoach are shifting 911 quality assurance from a punitive process to a coaching and protection model. They also discuss the trust gap between 911 agencies and vendors, the supervisor "trust shock" that derails new technology in the first 90 days, and how to build a healthier evaluation culture for telecommunicators. The conversation closes with a look at Govworx's new PROMOTE assessment for 911 supervisors and leaders.

This episode is a must listen for 911 directors, communications center leadership, telecommunicators, public safety technology vendors, and anyone interested in emergency communications, dispatcher wellness, or public safety innovation.

Topics covered: 911 leadership, emergency dispatch, public safety technology, quality assurance in 911, AI in emergency communications, dispatcher wellness, technology implementation, change management, Comms Coach, Govworx, DC Office of Unified Communications, telecommunicator training and coaching.

Guest: Tipi Brookens, Chief of Public Safety Engagement, Govworx Host: Ivan, Beyond the Launch Produced by: Utah Podcast Studio

Keywords: 911 podcast, emergency dispatch podcast, public safety technology, 911 quality assurance, AI in 911, dispatcher wellness, 911 leadership, emergency communications training, Govworx Comms Coach, public safety innovation

Episode 16: Building World-Class Communications from the Ground Up in Qatar

When Qatar hosted the 2022 FIFA World Cup, over 1.4 million visitors poured into 8 stadiums, and behind the scenes, one man was responsible for making sure emergency communications didn't fail. In this episode of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with Dr. Andre Jones, PhD, Assistant Executive Director of Communications and Control Centers at Hamad Medical Corporation in Doha, Qatar, to unpack what it actually takes to build a world-class emergency communications system from scratch, in a foreign country, under a hard deadline, with zero room for error.

Dr. Jones shares the real story behind recruiting 57 multilingual telecommunicators from Jordan, India, and beyond (53 of whom still serve today), deploying mobile dispatch units at fan zones, and the moment, just one month before kickoff, when a directive came down to replace the entire CAD system. With no time to procure a new platform, Dr. Jones and his team built a Microsoft Teams and SharePoint workaround that ended up outperforming expectations, connecting hospitals, FIFA delegates, and the Medical Command Center in real time.

This conversation goes beyond the World Cup highlight reel into the harder questions every public safety and technology leader faces. How do you drive adoption when frontline staff don't trust leadership enough to speak up? How do you turn a "job" into a profession people build a career around? And what should a 911 director really ask before signing with an AI or CAD vendor?

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How Dr. Jones professionalized emergency dispatch in Qatar, changing government policy to classify telecommunicators alongside nurses, paramedics, and EMTs
• Why frontline buy-in, not executive mandate, is the real predictor of successful technology implementation
• The behind-the-scenes story of the Microsoft Teams and SharePoint workaround that saved the 2022 World Cup's emergency response system
• Three things every public safety leader should do before signing a vendor contract
• Lessons on psychological safety, mentorship, and building organizational culture in high-stress, high-stakes environments

Whether you work in emergency management, public safety technology, vendor implementation, or organizational leadership, this episode offers a rare inside look at what separates technology that works on paper from technology that works when lives are on the line.

Guest: Dr. Andre Jones, PhD, MPA, ENP, CPE, CSSGB. Assistant Executive Director, Communications and Control Centers, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar

Keywords: emergency communications, 911 dispatch, CAD system implementation, Qatar World Cup 2022, emergency management, public safety technology, dispatcher retention, organizational psychology, customer success, AI vendor evaluation

Beyond the Launch | Episode 15

Building the Future of Public Safety with Carbyne (Axon)

How do you modernize one of the world's most mission-critical systems?

In Episode 15 of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with Amir Elichai, Founder of Carbyne and SVP of Global Strategy following Carbyne's acquisition by Axon, for an in-depth conversation about the future of emergency communications.

After experiencing firsthand the limitations of emergency response during a personal emergency, Amir set out to build a platform that would fundamentally change how 911 operates. That vision became Carbyne, an AI-native, cloud-based emergency communications platform now serving more than 250 million people worldwide.

Together, Ivan and Amir explore what it truly takes to modernize public safety, including cloud-native 911, AI, customer success, technology adoption, and the importance of creating seamless workflows for emergency telecommunicators.

The conversation also examines the strategic combination of Carbyne, Prepared, and Axon, and how an end-to-end public safety ecosystem has the potential to reshape emergency response from the first 911 call through dispatch, responder operations, real-time intelligence, evidence management, and beyond.

In this episode you'll learn:
• How Carbyne was born from a real-life emergency
• Why cloud-native emergency communications are transforming 911
• The biggest challenges agencies face during technology implementations
• Why customer success is critical after go-live
• How AI is changing emergency communications without replacing dispatch professionals
• Why leaders should focus on outcomes instead of technology
• The future vision for Axon, Carbyne, and Prepared as one integrated public safety platform

If you're a 911 leader, PSAP director, emergency communications professional, public safety executive, technology innovator, or government leader looking to understand where the industry is headed, this episode delivers practical insights and strategic perspectives from one of the industry's leading innovators.

Subscribe to Beyond the Launch for conversations with the leaders building the future of public safety technology, customer success, and emergency communications.

#911 #PublicSafety #Carbyne #Axon #Prepared #NG911 #EmergencyCommunications #ArtificialIntelligence #CustomerSuccess #CloudTechnology #EmergencyManagement #PublicSafetyTechnology

Episode 14: Turning 911 Innovation into Real-World Impact at Scale

What does it actually take to modernize 911, the system most Americans assume is already cutting-edge, but isn't? In this episode of Beyond the Launch, host Ivan Whitaker sits down with Michael Chime, co-founder and CEO of Prepared by Axon, to unpack how a college side project sparked by a childhood brush with an active shooter event grew into AI-powered technology now supporting over 1,000 public safety agencies across 49 states and on track to touch more than 50 million 911 calls in 2026.

Michael shares the raw, personal story behind Prepared's founding: leaving Yale as a Thiel Fellow, the awkward conversation with his mom about dropping out, and the moment he first walked into a 911 center expecting cutting-edge technology and found the opposite. From there, the conversation goes deep into the real work of driving 911 innovation, why public safety technology lags behind other industries, what separates agencies that successfully adopt new tools from those that stall out, and how AI can fill capability gaps (like real-time language translation and call quality assurance) without replacing the humans doing the hardest job in the room.

Listeners will also hear Michael's perspective on the 2025 Axon acquisition of Prepared, what it means for the future of emergency communications, how Prepared's integration with Carbyne is shaping a more modern, cloud-based infrastructure for dispatch centers, and his direct advice for a brand-new 911 director trying to figure out where to even start with new technology.

Whether you're a 911 director, dispatcher, emergency manager, public safety technology vendor, or startup founder building in a mission-critical space, this episode offers a candid look at what it takes to scale innovation responsibly in one of the most high-stakes environments in the country.

In this episode:

• Michael Chime's personal journey from Thiel Fellow to CEO of Prepared by Axon
• Why 911 technology has historically lagged behind other industries
• How Prepared's AI synthesizes call audio, video, text, and real-time translation
• Inside the 2025 Axon–Prepared acquisition and what it means for public safety tech
• How AI can fill gaps and reduce burden for 911 dispatchers without replacing them
• Framework for evaluating and implementing new 911 technology, center by center
• The future of 911 infrastructure: cloud migration, Carbyne integration, and the Axon ecosystem
• Practical advice for new 911 directors navigating a crowded technology landscape

Keywords: 911 innovation, emergency communications technology, Prepared by Axon, Michael Chime, AI in 911 dispatch, public safety technology, 911 dispatch center technology, emergency management technology, Axon acquisition, Carbyne, 911 director advice, public safety AI, dispatch center innovation, Beyond the Launch podcast