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The Top 10 Questions Asked During a GUARDIAN RFID Introductory Webinar

What can one expect from GUARDIAN RFID’s monthly Introductory Webinars? Here are the top ten questions our webinar hosts receive the most often from attendees.
Alyssa Pfaff
Alyssa Pfaff
Contributors:
Kenzie Koch | Marketing Team Leader
Jeff Kovar | Strategic Account Executive
Chris Riedmueller | Director of Academy

Every month, GUARDIAN RFID welcomes Warriors from across the nation to join a live, 60-minute demonstration of how Command Cloud, the first-ever officer experience platform (OXP), is modernizing correctional officers. Featuring Mobile Command XR, Mission Command, and Operational Intelligence, attendees witness firsthand how Command Cloud can help their team optimize and drive better outcomes to strengthen compliance and accreditation objectives. 

How? 

The hosts screen-share their SPARTAN device while presenting to show exactly what they are demonstrating in real-time, allowing attendees to experience the product just as they would if using it on their own. This allows attendees to see first-hand how Command Cloud modernizes officers' day-to-day responsibilities, enables data-driven decision-making, and achieves higher compliance and more consistent outcomes. 

Every webinar host has real-world experience working within the walls of a correctional facility, each bringing an extensive depth of inmate management and jail operations knowledge. This not only makes the content more relatable for attendees but also encourages active participation. Hosts invite attendees to engage by asking questions throughout the webinar as well as during the dedicated Q&A time at the end of the demonstration. 

Our goal is that by the end of the webinars, attendees have the information they need to determine if GUARDIAN RFID’s Command Cloud technology fits their agency's needs. To provide a glimpse of the information shared in these Introductory Webinars, this blog highlights the top ten most frequently asked questions by prospective attendees and their respective answers.

1. Does GUARDIAN RFID require Wi-Fi to work?

The simple answer? No. However, we strongly recommend having Wi-Fi to avoid unnecessary restrictions. Wi-Fi enables officers and administrators alike access to real-time data across the facility, so without it, the insights and information can be delayed by hours. Because GUARDIAN RFID is a cloud-based system that needs Wi-Fi, all information must be uploaded online to keep electronic logs up to date. 

While Ethernet charging cradles can also be used, devices only sync and update when connected. So, if officers don’t frequently access the cradles, it might take hours for their devices to update inmate rosters and communicate temporary movements or supplies. This delay eliminates real-time insights. On the other hand, with Wi-Fi enabled, devices sync and share information in near real-time, ensuring that all officers have access to the latest data.

So, what happens if there’s a Wi-Fi outage?

Wi-Fi is essential for real-time tracking; however, if your facility temporarily loses Wi-FI, don’t worry. The SPARTAN handheld device has internal storage and operates as a store-and-go system. So, if you lose Wi-FI, continue to use the SPARTAN to document security checks and all other interactions that officers have with inmates, just as if Wi-Fi were working. Once your Wi-Fi is restored, all data can then connect back to your Wi-Fi and upload into Mission Command.

You may be wondering exactly how much storage is available on the SPARTAN. Simply put, it’s a lot. We have had customers lose Wi-Fi for up to six weeks at a time. They called us in a panic, and our response was, “Don’t worry, just keep scanning with the SPARTAN.” Once their Wi-Fi was restored, their SPARTAN devices connected to Wi-Fi, and all data was immediately uploaded to Mission Command.

The only disclaimer regarding losing connection is that when there is no Wi-Fi, the Mobile Compliance Monitor (MCM) on Mission Command will not reset when checks are made. This is because the data is unable to sync up until Wi-Fi is restored. Rest assured that any checks, or other documentation made during a Wi-Fi outage, will be stored locally on the device when they are made and synced once they reconnect to Wi-Fi.

2. Can you adjust when the SPARTAN notifies staff that they have a check due?

With the chaos of correctional officers' daily routines, it can be challenging to schedule when checks are due AND ensure there is a sense of unpredictability with them. However, GUARDIAN RFID technology helps with randomizing checks and maintaining compliance by notifying staff when they have a check due. As of now, the early warning alert is global. This means that whatever the facility chooses as the early warning time, it would be applied equally no matter what the maximum check frequency of a tag is. 

For example, a two-minute early warning would alert at 58 minutes between checks for a 60-minute tag, 28 minutes between checks for a 30-minute tag, or 13 minutes between checks for a 15-minute tag. With this notification tool, the device color coordinates with checks that are approaching when they need to be done (yellow), when they’re overdue (red), and when checks are currently compliant based on the max check time (green).

While we assign a default value of two minutes, this feature is customizable and can easily be adjusted based on the size of the facility or how long rounds generally take to complete. The software also allows for another critical component: required justification for late checks, which can be turned on or off, depending on the administration's preferences. 

When enabled, a staff member is met with a justification box to document why they were late on their check. Talk-to-text can be used and the justification remains cached for 90 seconds as default to help avoid unnecessary inefficiencies. So, if the justification still applies, they can just hit Save on their device and move on so long as scans are made within the (configurable) timeframe of the first late scan.

3. Can tasks entered into CentralSquare (JMS) show on Mission Command and SPARTANs?

Currently, tasks are managed exclusively through Mission Command, where you can create and assign both one-time and recurring tasks to staff members. Additionally, the SPARTAN system allows for the creation of self-assigned tasks, which can later be reassigned via Mission Command. Both SPARTAN and Mission Command will show all tasks assigned to an officer, which they can add comments to and mark as complete through either platform.

4. Can you produce new logs on Mission Command?

The short answer is: Yes. New logs can be created on Mission Command, allowing users to create website entries in all areas they can with the SPARTAN. However, it’s important to note that an officer can’t reset compliance timers with an entry via Mission Command; this was deliberately designed to ensure officers are physically getting up and walking by each cell throughout the housing area. 

While staff can log just about anything they want from their computer, they are unable to log compliance checks as that requires physical observations of any signs of life from the inmates in their custody. A physical scan using the SPARTAN is always required for compliance checks and resetting the compliance monitor, versus sitting at a desk and manually logging.

5. Does the information under the "Keep Separates" section come from the JMS?

“Keep separates” are an important aspect of ensuring the safety and security of the facility and everyone within it. If you are unaware of this term, the name is self-explanatory. Essentially, it’s a way to keep a specific inmate away from each other. For example, if there are two inmates in a facility that are associated with rival gangs, such as one inmate being a Blood member and the other being a Crip member, both of those inmates would be assigned a Keep Separate status making officers aware to never place both of the inmates in the same location at once. 

With Command Cloud, Keep Separates can be automatically received and transferred from the JMS in the interface payload. However, as of now, this function supports only keeping individuals and not groups, such as whole gangs, away from one another.

Most JMS providers can transfer Keep Separate information to Mission Command. However, if your JMS doesn’t send the Keep Separate information in the interface payload, you can still manually enter Keep Separates using Mission Command. 

6. What can be sent from the JMS/OMS to the GUARDIAN RFID system?

When interfacing a facility’s JMS or OMS system with GUARDIAN RFID, staff may wonder about the specific details being transferred. Let’s clarify the details:

  • Inmate demographics: These basic demographics include age, date of birth, weight, hair color, and eye color.

  • Inmate ID information: This includes information such as the inmate's personal identification, cell location, mugshots, and other pertinent information.

  • Keep Separates:  This is otherwise known as the important alerts that were put in place to ensure certain inmates can’t be around one another (such as rival gang members).  this, the alert can be entered through Mission Command

  • Special Status information: Special Status information includes specific inmate details such as notifying staff that an inmate is suicidal, on detox, needs more frequent checks, needs to be in a lower bunk, is on pregnancy protocol, has meal restrictions, etc.  Having these detailed Special Statuses helps staff ensure they’re checking all boxes when meeting compliance. 

Most JMS providers can send all of this information to Mission Command. However, if the JMS/OMS is unable to transfer over this information, users can manually enter the data into GUARDIAN RFID’s system. 

7. If an officer is late in one single location with multiple tags, will that count as one late check?

If an officer is late in one location with multiple tags turned on (which is typically the case for compliance purposes), each tag scanned late equates to separate late checks. This is because each tag has its own independent RFID chip and tag time, causing them to be recorded as separate late checks. 

However, with the SPARTAN, the officer can document their justification for the late check and apply it to multiple checks quickly and easily. This is where GUARDIAN RFID team members’ understanding of corrections is invaluable - we can help a facility differentiate between a missed check and a late round. Having more than one tag in a section helps determine what happened.  Agencies can require a late check justification for all late checks or make this an optional feature.

8. Which staff members would need their own SPARTAN device?

When considering which officers need SPARTAN devices, it essentially comes down to which officers conduct security checks. Any officer making security checks needs a device. If the other modules on the SPARTAN, such as Supplies or Meals, are being used (which almost all facilities do), any officer who uses these modules would also need a device. 

Supervisors may also need devices, but could potentially share devices depending on agency policy, facility size, and design. In addition, it is always recommended to have one or more spare devices available depending on facility size and unique operations.

9. Does serving a meal, passing supplies, or performing a headcount count toward your checks?

Checks incorporate more than just walking around. Often times this can include serving a meal, passing supplies, and, of course, performing a headcount. Any interaction that includes a scan from a SPARTAN is time-stamped and counts towards completing a check. Once a check is complete, the tag’s compliance timer will be reset.  

However, checks are due during the middle of an extended task, like meals or headcount.  Both meals and headcount have a list of the inmates up, and while in any of the columns; decline, offered, accepted or not present, assigned, present screen, compliance tags can be scanned without having to save or close out of meal service or headcount and risk losing your place.

10. Does Command Cloud have the ability to notify an officer to perform rounds at irregular times?

Officers must randomize their checks so that inmates do not catch on to patterns or predict officer behaviors. When inmates expect officers' movements, the window of opportunity for mischief grows. Luckily, GUARDIAN RFID’s Command Cloud helps officers to randomize their rounds. 

This is done through an add-on system called Operational Intelligence. It includes timers and notifications of when checks are due as well as leveraging past data analysis to determine if there are recognizable officer patterns. This unique view of historical data allows individualized coaching to staff members with minimal amounts of time spent poring over logs.

These ten questions only provide a glimpse into what is covered during a GUARDIAN RFID Introductory webinar. If you have burning questions that weren’t answered in this blog or you would like to learn more about GUARDIAN RFID’s Command Cloud system, we encourage you to register for our upcoming webinar. Whether you’re already familiar with GUARDIAN RFID or just beginning your research journey into inmate tracking systems, GUARDIAN RFID Introductory Webinars are structured to benefit all who join.