Seeking to more effectively staff community events, the city of Wausau consulted InterEGR 303: Applied Leadership Competencies in Engineering with the goal of developing an applicable system to determine emergency staffing needs. The city of Wausau hosts events including parades, festivals, and concerts, all of which require unique staffing because of their distinctive attendance, location, and inherent risk factor. After analysis of Wausau’s current staffing process and research of national emergency staffing guidelines, our team determined that a staffing matrix would be the most efficient and effective solution for the city of Wausau.
The staffing matrix considers Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidelines, risk factors, attendance, and event settings to determine a safe number of emergency staff for a given event. For new events Wausau takes on, the matrix allows for specific input to determine the number of emergency staff needed to run a safe event. Similarly, as Wausau’s events grow in size, the matrix can recommend new staffing levels to match increased attendance. The matrix will promote the safety of Wausau by recommending staffing levels in line with FEMA guidelines.
UniverCity Contact Info: UniverCityAlliance@wisc.edu