Imagine your city council or county commissioners taking a 9-1-1 call....not listening to a recording, but truly interacting with an AI-driven caller under pressure. How might that shape decisions around staffing, compensation, wellness, and even national reclassification?

Now imagine community members, high-school students, or job candidates sitting in the same chair, experiencing the emotional weight and real-time decision-making that defines this profession.

Thanks to modern AI simulations, this is no longer hypothetical. What began as a breakthrough for training new hires has quickly become a powerful tool for public awareness, recruiting, leadership education, and cross-discipline understanding.

Below are four impactful ways ECCs are using simulations far beyond training.

Recruiting with Realism at Job & Career Fairs

Hiring is competitive and applicants need more than brochures. They need to feel the job.

Agencies like Santa Cruz Regional 9-1-1 are bringing AI simulations to job fairs, letting visitors step under the headset. The results: stronger engagement, more qualified applicants, and a better understanding that 9-1-1 is far more than “I like helping people.”

Why it works:

• It draws crowds naturally.
• Candidates self-assess fit.
• Recruiters spot potential early.
• It modernizes the image of the profession.

Example scenarios: missing child, multi-car crash with radio traffic, suspicious person, or simplified calls for younger audiences.

Strengthening Community Engagement and Public Understanding

The public rarely sees the chaos behind a 9-1-1 call. AI simulations change that instantly.

Salt Lake Valley ECC demonstrated this during a family-and-friends event, where the call-taking simulator became the highlight of the day because it didn’t just entertain people, it educated them.

Community benefits:

• Increased transparency and trust
• Clearer understanding of why dispatchers ask certain questions
• G-rated simulations that teach children how to call 9-1-1
• Demonstrations of why location matters and what dispatchers really hear

With just a laptop and a headset, centers can make 9-1-1 more accessible and more human.

Helping Elected Leaders Truly Understand the Work

Most leaders who make decisions about 9-1-1 have never taken a call. AI simulations let them experience the job firsthand.

Directors are now bringing simulations to budget workshops, policy meetings, onboarding sessions, and advocacy briefings. A two-minute simulated domestic or high-stress call changes perspectives in a way no slide deck ever can.

Impact on policy:

• Staffing requests gain stronger support
• Funding discussions become grounded in reality
• Modern tools and fair compensation make more sense
• Reclassification arguments hit home
• Command staff develop deeper empathy for their teams

Improving Police, Fire, and EMS Academy Training

New responders often enter the field without understanding what dispatchers hear or manage during emergencies. Simulations bridge that gap instantly.

Responders gain empathy, learn why radio discipline matters, and experience how fast a caller’s story can change. This builds respect and strengthens communication from day one.

Scenario ideas:
high-emotion domestics, officer-needs-help, pediatric calls with radio overlap, chaotic MVCs, or medical calls requiring multi-tasking.

Bringing It All Together

AI-powered simulations are no longer just training tools. They’re strategic assets for:

• Recruiting
• Community education
• Leadership advocacy
• Responder onboarding

And all you need is a laptop and a headset.

CommsCoach Simulations: Built for Every Audience

CommsCoach includes a library of community-friendly, age-appropriate, and professional simulations that agencies can use as-is or fully customize from G-rated versions for children to high-stress scenarios for academies or city council briefings.

Agencies can:

• Modify simulations for job fairs, schools, workshops, or responder training
• Adjust stress levels and radio traffic
• Build scenarios from scratch or from real events
• Automatically score interactions with configurable criteria

Whether you're recruiting, educating the public, or advocating for your team, CommsCoach Simulations deliver the realism and interactivity today’s environment demands.

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