Culture issues within Brown County’s 911 dispatch center are rooted in a lack of trust and effective communication, according to newly-released reports.
In April, after months of dispatchers publicly sharing concerns about the center, Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach announced a commission would review conditions there. That commission met for the first and only time June 18, approving five recommendations to be sent to Streckenbach.
The commission’s recommendations focus on guidance and training for both staff and leadership, creating a process for employee feedback and instituting ” a zero-tolerance policy regarding employees engaging in shame-training and/or bullying behavior.”
To come to its recommendations, the commission reviewed two reports: a 30-page assessment of organizational culture by Public Administration Associates, LLC, a Wisconsin-based local government consulting firm; and a 42-page memorandum from Attolles Law, a Milwaukee-based law firm, which reviewed three formal complaints related to the center and provided legal recommendations.
The Green Bay Press-Gazette received redacted copies of both reports.
The culture assessment concluded that problems at the center can’t be attributed solely to either staff or leadership. Instead, the issues are the product of several factors, including “prolonged staffing shortages, organizational exhaustion, insufficient employee engagement in major decisions, communication systems that have failed to maintain credibility, and the rapid implementation of change before sufficient trust and organizational buy-in had been established,” the report said.
Those factors have reinforced themselves over time, which created a cycle “in which even reasonable management initiatives are often met with skepticism and resistance,” the report said.
The good news, according to the report, is that “none of these challenges appears insurmountable.”
One of the most important, and likely most difficult, steps to improving the center will be rebuilding trust between employees and leadership, the report said.
“Rebuilding trust is likely to be considerably more difficult today than it would have been earlier in the change process,” the report said. “Some employees have become disengaged. Others have lost confidence that their concerns will result in meaningful action.”
“As a result, future improvement efforts will require patience, consistency, transparency, and a willingness to demonstrate through actions – not merely words – that employee input is valued and that organizational concerns are being addressed.”
Staffing shortages, excessive overtime were most common employee concerns
To conduct its assessment, Public Administration Associates confidentially interviewed 46 current employees of the center and reviewed exit interview materials from 12 former employees. The consultants didn’t independently verify every concern raised.
The report focuses on the themes, concerns and perceptions that emerged from the interviews.
The most common concern employees shared was a perception that the center is “chronically understaffed,” the report said. Employees repeatedly said the center was operating “significantly below” necessary staffing levels.
Staffing shortages are not unique to Brown County’s dispatch center, the report noted, with the average vacancy rate in dispatch centers across the country approaching 25% between 2019 and 2022. A compounding issue the consultants found in Brown County was that there is a “significant disconnect” between management and dispatchers when it comes to what constitutes safe and sustainable staffing long-term.
Employees frequently referenced historical staffing levels of 65 dispatchers and were skeptical that the current staffing model of 50 dispatchers can support operational demands “without continued excessive overtime and burnout,” the report said. On the other hand, management felt the center could effectively operate at that level and felt frustrated by what it perceived as resistance to adaptation.
The disconnect, the report said, is negatively impacting the center by contributing to declining morale and distrust. To bridge the gap, the center needs clearer communication on staffing objectives, operational expectations and the long-term vision for the center.
Employees also raised concerns regarding overtime practices. The report noted that while forced overtime is a common practice in public safety professions, the concerns reported by Brown County dispatchers “appear extraordinary.”
Employees described two forms of mandatory overtime, the report said. The first referred to scheduled overtime, where employees knew in advance they would be working on days they would otherwise have off.
The more significant source of dissatisfaction came from something called “day-off-forced-in” shifts.
The report describes “day-off-forced-ins” as instances where dispatchers are required to report to work on a scheduled day off, often with little advance notice. Employees said the uncertainty associated with day-off-forced-ins is “often more detrimental than the overtime itself.”
Former dispatcher Sheila Pieschek, who worked at the Brown County center for 24 years before resigning in February, told the Press-Gazette in a May interview that staff were constantly forced to work on scheduled days off.
“Whether you’re forced in or not, it still puts you on edge,” Pieschek said. “You need that time for your nervous system to reset, not just for yourself, but for the people that we serve, for the responders, for the community, it’s important.”
Lack of trust, inadequate communication, rapid change causing employee dissatisfaction
The report distilled the causes of employee’s dissatisfaction down to several factors, including lack of trust between new management and staff, changes introduced faster than the center was ready for, and lack of explanation of why changes were necessary.
Director Chancy Huntzinger and Assistant Director Tom Oliphant arrived at the center as external hires in 2023, the report said, bringing along “a significant change in management philosophy.”
Huntzinger and Oliphant adopted a “more structured and directive management style” than their predecessors, which employees described as having a “relatively hands-off or laissez-faire management approach,” the report said.
While the previous leadership was characterized by “greater employee autonomy, less direct oversight, and fewer formal performance expectations,” the report said, current leadership has an “increased emphasis on accountability, standardization, operational consistency, and supervisory involvement.”
The report does not opine on which style is better, but notes that the transition between them is a significant cultural change.
In 2025, after the center received recommendations from Florida and Illinois-based consulting firm Resource Management Associates, Inc., for improving operations, leadership moved forward with several significant initiatives including schedule changes, revised training processes, new technology and attempts to address cultural issues, the report said.
The problem, according to the report, was that the initiatives were introduced before Huntzinger and Oliphant had build the necessary credibility to implement them without significant pushback.
“As a result, resistance frequently became directed not only at individual initiatives, but at the broader change process itself,” the report said.
Employees reported there were limited opportunities to understand the rationale behind major decisions, no regular town halls for information sharing and feedback, reduced or limited employee committees and participatory forums, and a heavy reliance on email and indirect communication channels, according to the report.
On the other hand, the report said, “From management’s perspective, communicating too early risks creating expectations that cannot be fulfilled and may ultimately lead to greater employee disappointment,” the report said.
While that approach is understandable, the report said, employees are interpreting the lack of information differently, frequently assuming no action is being taken and concerns are being ignored.
“Neither perspective is inherently unreasonable,” the report said. “However, the difference in expectations has contributed to misunderstanding and frustration.”
What did the report recommend?
Public Administration Associates made seven recommendations. Among them:
Legal review found little risk of legal claims, but ‘persistent’ culture issues
The legal memorandum by Attolles Law, at the county’s request, reviewed three formal complaints in relation to the dispatch center. The memo has been redacted as to not identify any of the involved parties.
The first complaint was made by a dispatcher alleging a hostile and toxic work environment by other dispatchers. The dispatcher expressed their concerns to managers, who later brought the complaint to human resources. Human resources began but did not complete an investigation into the complaint before Attolles Law was brought in.
The legal report said that human resources “reported a disconcerting level of negativity in the center,” but that the investigation didn’t identify any actions that would support suspension or termination.
The review found that opening the investigation was appropriate and found that written reprimands, additional training and coaching would have been appropriate. Most of the dispatchers implicated in the complaint had resigned from the center by the time of the review, the report said.
The second complaint the firm reviewed was from a dispatcher alleging that they had been retaliated against for speaking out at public meetings. The dispatcher has since resigned. The report said the firm found no evidence supporting a conclusion of retaliation.
The third complaint reviewed by the firm was from a different dispatcher, also alleging retaliation for speaking out at public meetings. The dispatcher alleged they became ineligible for an overtime incentive bonus based on policy violations that were filed against them days after they spoke at a public meeting. The firm found “no evidence to indicate any discipline was associated with” the dispatcher’s public comments.
Overall, the legal review found that the county “does not appear to be in immediate jeopardy of a legal claim,” but that “persistent” culture issues “present ongoing threats of liability.” The report recommended the center focus on addressing policy violations, establish a process for supporting employee feedback, and review the current “day-off-forced-in” practice.
Vivian Barrett is the public safety reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach her at vmbarrett@usatodayco.com or (920) 431-8314.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Report details culture issues at Brown County 911 dispatch center
Reporting by Vivian Barrett, Green Bay Press-Gazette / Green Bay Press-Gazette
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Vivian Barrett, Green Bay Press-Gazette | USA TODAY Network
