The problem with a phone tree is that nobody knows where it stopped. Active Response sends to everyone at once and reports back who received it, who responded, and who is available.
Active Response is CallTech's emergency call-out system. It uses SMS and voice calls to send messages that need a fast response and a confirmed receipt, which makes it a working part of an emergency plan rather than a notification tool.
Because the notification carries the incident detail up front, staff arrive already briefed instead of ringing back for context. It is easy to install, monitor and activate: one operator has access to the groups who need to be notified and coordinated.
Why SMS and a voice call
The usual question is why not email, or an app notification. Because both depend on a data connection, a signal, an app being installed and running, and a server in between - any of which can delay a message or lose it without telling anyone.
SMS and voice calls are the most basic things a mobile does. They are the least likely to be delayed or dropped, they work on a handset with no data and no app, and they reach someone who is not looking at their phone. When the message has to arrive in the next two minutes, that matters more than a richer notification.
Assembling a team
The system was built for Perth Airport in 2003 as the Perth Airport Response System. It took team assembly from about 30 minutes under the previous method to under three. Perth Airport and CallTech have refined it since, and it now covers any emergency type: fires, bomb threats, accidents or a security incident.
After the event
Active Response records the whole activation: the time it was triggered, the message, the recipients, who responded and how they responded. That record is used for compliance, and to review and improve how the team responds next time.