Recently, I switched jobs.  For 19 years, I was with the City of Hampton, first as a Program Director for the regional Foster Grandparent Program and then as Information Manager for the city’s 311 Call Center. 

I loved working at the 311 Call Center because no day was the same.  There were always challenges and new things to do or work on and that was fun to me.  Plus, it lead me to organizations like AGCCE and ICMA.

But when I heard that the City of Newport News, a neighboring city, was going to start a 311 Contact Center, I found myself dreaming of what it would be like in today’s environment to start a centralized contact center.  Today, there are more resources, with technology catching up to the phenomenon of a local government contact center and groups like AGCCE there to help jurisdictions get started.  Not to mention the wealth of resources that ICMA now has available, thanks to Cory Fleming, Senior Project Manager.

There are also less resources, thanks to the economic climate we have today.  Who would start a 311 Contact Center today when services are being cut and jobs lost?  Why would a locality decide to start a new initiative in the face of these challenges?

I was intrigued and excited, even if some thought it was a risky move on my part.  All of my past jobs have felt like I had taken flight off of a cliff, to hopefully soar with the clouds and not crash to the ground.  So far, I have not crashed, although I can’t say I haven’t suffered a few bruises now and again.

It is now May of 2012 and Newport News has hired me as their first employee of the new 311 Contact Center.  Follow me on my journey as I document the daunting process of starting a 311 Contact Center, where eventually all non emergency city services will be processed and where a huge city-wide knowledge base will be developed. 

It promises to be an exciting ride.

New, Reduced Membership Dues

A new, reduced dues rate is available for CAOs/ACAOs, along with additional discounts for those in smaller communities, has been implemented. Learn more and be sure to join or renew today!

LEARN MORE