Florida Division of Emergency Management Deploys New Cloud Contact Center to Provide Essential Services for Residents Impacted by Hurricane Ian

NWN Carousel Provides DEM Services for Citizens Affected by Hurricane Ian; Deployed in 10 hours, Staffed with 100 Live Agents Answered 5000+ Calls in First 24 Hours

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NWN Carousel, the leading Cloud Communications Service Provider, has successfully deployed a fully-operational Cloud Contact Center for Florida’s Division of Emergency Management (DEM) that is continuing to provide essential services for citizens in need during and after Hurricane Ian https://www.floridadisaster.org/. Within 72 hours of deployment, DEM emergency contact center scaled to 100 agents, supporting thousands of calls with a <5 minute average wait-time.

“Within fifteen minutes of our new contact center being launched, we received over 50 calls from the public needing help,” said DEM Director, Kevin Guthrie. “Our citizens who called were trapped in their homes, stuck in flooded vehicles, and needed rescuing. With the new system, we were able to quickly identify their location and deploy local law enforcement resources for a wellness check or rescue operation. I want to thank the entire DEM team and NWN Carousel for their efforts before, during, and after Hurricane Ian.”

On Wednesday, September 28 Governor Ron DeSantis requested President Biden grant a Major Disaster Declaration for all of Florida’s 67 counties, for all categories, and all types of assistance ahead of Hurricane Ian. The granted declaration provided FEMA Category A and B funding that enabled DMS to transition its volunteer-based answering services to NWN Carousel’s integrated services through their SUNCOM contract vehicle including Cloud Contact Center, Unified Communications and The Experience Management Platform.

NWN Carousel’s contact center has transformed Florida residents’ interactions with DEM, during Hurricane Ian and throughout the ongoing recovery efforts – providing essential information about insurance and other services made available under the DeSantis administration. With the new Cloud Contact Center platform, the Governor’s office is receiving real-time analytics about DEM call volumes and resolutions leveraging NWN’s Experience Management Platform reporting.

“We’re humbled to play a role in helping DEM respond to the needs of Florida’s citizens during and after Hurricane Ian,” said Jim Sullivan, President, and CEO of NWN Carousel. “With many customers and employees in the state, our primary objective was to help DEM move as quickly as possible to provide a cloud-based contact center to provide vital services as the storm increased in severity. In the aftermath, we now understand just how catastrophic Ian is for the community and will continue to support the Governor and DEM team throughout the recovery efforts.”

The DEM Cloud Contact Center program for Hurricane Ian response and recovery is NWN Carousel’s latest project focused on modernizing contact centers amid increased demand for public and private services. In August 2020, NWN Carousel was awarded a SUNCOM contract by the State of Florida. SUNCOM connects innovative, superior telecommunications services to state and local governments, educational institutions, libraries, and non-profit organizations by achieving economies of scale with enterprise planning and procurement. NWN is the first new unified communications partner to be awarded the SUNCOM contract in nearly a decade.

About NWN Carousel
NWN Carousel is the leading Cloud Communications Service Provider (CCSP) focused on transforming the customer and workspace experience for commercial, enterprise and public sector organizations. We deliver hybrid work experiences for millions of users across North America’s 7,000 leading organizations. Our integrated devices, communications apps, AI-enabled contact centers, networking, security, and analytics allows our customers to learn, discover, work, and connect from anywhere - all delivered as a cloud service that’s simple to use and manage. To learn more about our solutions please visit www.nwncarousel.com