Swenson says LA-RICS providing FirstNet with valuable lessons about outreach, infrastructure sharing
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Swenson says LA-RICS providing FirstNet with valuable lessons about outreach, infrastructure sharing
Another “lesson learned” from the LA-RICS situation is the importance of providing outreach about public-safety broadband plans—outreach that needs to include public-safety end users and the community, Swenson said. A repeated concern voiced about LA-RICS is that public-safety users and local residents were not aware of the plan to construct a first-responder LTE network until towers began being erected.
“This is what outreach is all about, Swenson said. “You can’t just talk to one level of an organization. That’s why we’ve been so adamant about the multiple ways we’re doing outreach. I think this just puts a fine point on how important that is.
“I think it just emphasizes the complexity of our outreach and the breadth of our constituency. You can’t make some assumptions that, just because a management level of an organization is in agreement, that all of the people [in the organization agree]. The unions represent the guys on the street, and you’ve got to pay attention to that.”
One unexpected benefit associated with the LA-RICS challenges is that officials for FirstNet, NTIA and the U.S. Department of Commerce have gained experience working together when things do not proceed as planned—something that inevitably occurs with any large project, Swenson said. The collaboration between these officials—and coordination with state and local officials associated with LA-RICS—has been “really good” recently, she said.
“I think it’s just a matter of learning how to [work together],” Swenson said. “I don’t think it’s a matter that they didn’t want to [before]; I think it’s a matter of determining, ‘How do we most effectively work together?’ People know each other now, and when things like this happen, we set up a process where we’re all engaged at the same time.
“Like with any new team, you’ve got to figure out how to work together. We’re going to continue to have challenges, and—if we all work together with the same vision—then we have a chance of being successful.”
Mallon is scheduled to present an alternative plan to the LA-RICS tomorrow. If the plan is approved, it will be submitted to NTIA, which must approve it—with FirstNet—before the suspension on LTE construction can be lifted.
Outreach is the first thing
Outreach is the first thing you do when developing a regional system. It’s also the second, third, fourth, and etc. Actually, it’s a continuous requirement all the way through the process. Surprised that the FirstNet project team was not aware of this!!!!