The Five Stages of GUARDIAN RFID's Implementation Process

When implementing an inmate tracking system such as GUARDIAN RFID, the time required for deployment can vary based on factors such as the size of your facility. This includes your daily count and rated bed capacity, your existing jail management system, and the readiness of your environment, including factors such as Wi-Fi and staff participation.

Some deployments can be completed in just days or weeks, while others may take as long as a year. In this blog, we’ll cover the basics of GUARDIAN RFID’s implementation process and highlight three things that drive successful deployments.

Five Stages of the Implementation Process

GUARDIAN RFID’s Command Cloud has five stages of implementation:

1.      Implementation Kick-off

2.      Software and Network

3.      Hardware Delivery

4.      Quality Assurance

5.      Training and Go-Live

Phase 1: Implementation Kick-Off

In this phase, new agencies will have executed our System Agreement, and we’ve confirmed several administrative details such as your preferred customer leader contacts, technical contacts, billing contacts, and shipping information.

We’ll need a list of your permanent housing assignments and temporary movement locations, including court locations and inmate programs. A quick shortcut: if you can export your permanent housing assignments from your jail management system (JMS) or offender management system (OMS), we can auto-import this data directly into your Command Cloud database.

You’ll also need to provide a list of anticipated system users. It’s important to note that this step isn’t required if your project calls for SSO integration with your access and identity management system, such as Microsoft Entra ID.

Your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will provide our JMS interface requirements. As you may have learned, our preferred method of integration is the REST API layer of Command Cloud, called WolfPack. (That said, Command Cloud supports many other integration methods as well.)

Additionally, your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will provide network configuration requirements and work with you to review your facility’s mapping to determine where your Hard Tags will be placed.

To wrap up Phase 1, your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will coordinate the programming and shipment of your Hard Tags to your assigned Project Leader.

Phase 2: Software & Network  

Phase 2 is quick, primarily because much of the process is automated. During this phase, your Command Cloud instance and database are automatically built and accessible. The data needed in Phase 1 is imported into your Command Cloud system. One critical task in Phase 2 that can exponentially accelerate the implementation process is ensuring your JMS or OMS interface is completed to specification.

If you or your vendor are not using WolfPack API (the REST API layer of Command Cloud), we’ll need to confirm that your JMS vendor has built an interface export exactly to specification. If not, it’ll get kicked back to your vendor for resolution, which can cause delays in completing this task.

Once the interface is confirmed to be deployed and data is flowing smoothly from your JMS into Command Cloud, we’ll provide login access to your project leader.

Phase 3: Software & Network  

In Phase 3, your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will ship all necessary hardware, including your SPARTAN devices, related accessories, Hard Tags, and inmate identification peripherals. Once you receive your hardware, especially your Hard Tags, we recommend starting the mounting process immediately. Each Hard Tag will be individually labeled to guide your team on where to mount each tag.

If your facility’s daily inmate count is greater than 1,000, your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will schedule an on-site, Pre-Training visit with our Academy Team. This visit provides an opportunity for our Academy trainers to walk through your facility, familiarize themselves with your policies and procedures, and review a list of questions that often require policy creation or modification.

Our Pre-Training meetings are designed to streamline the on-site training process by addressing potential questions and concerns proactively, ensuring a smoother, more efficient training experience for your staff.

Phase 4: Quality Assurance   

In Phase 4, your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will conduct thorough quality assurance testing to ensure the functionality of your SPARTANs. This is done by verifiying Wi-Fi connectivity, confirming the performance of your JMS interface, and logging test data in Mobile Command XR.

Once we receive your sign-off, we’ll schedule on-site training with our Academy team. If you received a Pre-Training visit, the Academy team member who coordinated that visit will lead your on-site training, ensuring continuity.

We strive to accommodate your scheduling needs, whether you run 8-hour or 12-hour shifts. Our Academy team members execute two, four-hour training sessions each day, with class sizes ranging from five to 75 participants.

Phase 5: Training & Go-Live    

In Phase 5, your GUARDIAN RFID Academy Trainer will work with you to define the training agenda and formalize class times. Training typically lasts from two days to up to 1-2 weeks for larger agencies. For larger training efforts, our Academy Team will send multiple trainers so that two or more classes can run simultaneously. In some of our larger training efforts, we’ll send an Academy training team to lead train-the-trainer sessions to nourish long-term success.

Once training is concluded, we’ll transition to Go-Live mode. Our Academy team will shadow users on-site, walking through pods and hallways with your staff, including every shift, to ensure smooth adoption. This training formula has been in place since our first deployment, and it allows users to feel relaxed, encouraging questions and offering refresher sessions for those who may need extra support. 

GUARDIAN RFID takes pride in hearing feedback from the staff attending class sessions, especially those who admit they were excited to start using Command Cloud within the first 15 minutes of training.

What Drives Implementation Success? 

If you’re aiming for a smooth, frictionless implementation, here are three key factors that drive higher success rates (in terms of speed and efficiency): 

1. Assign a Project Manager: Choose someone who is not only excited and knowledgeable but also highly driven to manage every aspect of the project efficiently.

2. Install Wi-Fi early: Don’t wait until Phase 2 to install Wi-Fi. Getting Wi-Fi in anticipation of adopting an inmate tracking system will pay big dividends for future projects.

3. Be a bulldog on your JMS interface with Command Cloud: Pay close attention to how your Jail Management System (JMS) interface is built and deployed with Command Cloud. For example, the Gaston Co. Sheriff’s Office in Gastonia, North Carolina, built their interface between Command Cloud and their JMS from Tyler Technologies in just an afternoon using our WolfPack API. Similarly, the Orange Co. Sheriff’s Office in California also built their Command Cloud interface with SOMA Global using WolfPack API in just a few hours.

If you’re not using the Command Cloud REST API, ensure your JMS or OMS vendor is building the interface to GUARDIAN RFID’s exact specifications. For example, if they’re using a flat file interface, double-check that the character count for certain fields matches exactly what we’re looking for. (Your GUARDIAN RFID Project Manager will help review this, too.) If it’s not built correctly, it’s going to get sent back for revision to your vendor.

By following these guidelines and sticking to a structured implementation process, facilities can achieve a successful and efficient deployment of their new inmate tracking system - ultimately enhancing security and operational efficiency.