Although the economic environment and social relationships have changed, police officers remain the centerpiece and foundation of civil law enforcement — but without community support and trust, they will never be capable of doing their job effectively. Public trust is the cornerstone of successful policing; a positive trust currency indicates ‘profit’. One act of misconduct, perceived or otherwise, reflects wholly on the department and is one of the most substantial hurdles to overcome as an active stakeholder within the community, not an enemy of it. Strong leadership can steer the department through adverse periods of municipal distrust by fostering a culture from within that promotes openness, fairness, and high ethical standards. Creating
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Aside from the chief, executive officer, and myself, the board needed a person that could communicate on behalf of the officers and back to them regarding the challenges and perceptions these communities have regarding the department. Sgt. Robin Heiden was the first female to work on SWAT, recently selected number one for promotion to lieutenant out of 18 who tested, and is about to move to a position as night shift watch commander. Heiden 's selection to the board is strategic in many ways, but mostly because the night shift patrolman is the most under represented part of the department while doing the lion 's share of the work. They also are often the most vocal critics of the department, community, and government. They are demanding and dependent stakeholders that need to feel they have a voice at the table to be an active advocate. Only when we have the support of all internal stakeholders, can we successfully ask for and receive the external support we need to do our jobs …show more content…
The main complaint from internal stakeholders is fear that opening doors may provide vulnerabilities to operations within the department. The chief, firmly convinced the benefit far outweighs the improbability of security issues, advocates the importance of all stakeholder representation. Concerns derived from personal bias or skepticism of board efficiency drove our selection process, keeping the membership small and diverse. Other cited issues outlined by Gregory Berg (1995) in an FBI bulletin include publicity, funding, membership, and organization. The largest problems I foresee are personality conflicts among the members and how to navigate difficult conversations on race, ethnicity, police tactics, inclusion, and bias as candidly as possible without sacrifice for the sake of offending. To that end, we have invited two members with backgrounds in communicating to diverse audiences to provide guidelines for the group to follow during delicate
Aside from the chief, executive officer, and myself, the board needed a person that could communicate on behalf of the officers and back to them regarding the challenges and perceptions these communities have regarding the department. Sgt. Robin Heiden was the first female to work on SWAT, recently selected number one for promotion to lieutenant out of 18 who tested, and is about to move to a position as night shift watch commander. Heiden 's selection to the board is strategic in many ways, but mostly because the night shift patrolman is the most under represented part of the department while doing the lion 's share of the work. They also are often the most vocal critics of the department, community, and government. They are demanding and dependent stakeholders that need to feel they have a voice at the table to be an active advocate. Only when we have the support of all internal stakeholders, can we successfully ask for and receive the external support we need to do our jobs …show more content…
The main complaint from internal stakeholders is fear that opening doors may provide vulnerabilities to operations within the department. The chief, firmly convinced the benefit far outweighs the improbability of security issues, advocates the importance of all stakeholder representation. Concerns derived from personal bias or skepticism of board efficiency drove our selection process, keeping the membership small and diverse. Other cited issues outlined by Gregory Berg (1995) in an FBI bulletin include publicity, funding, membership, and organization. The largest problems I foresee are personality conflicts among the members and how to navigate difficult conversations on race, ethnicity, police tactics, inclusion, and bias as candidly as possible without sacrifice for the sake of offending. To that end, we have invited two members with backgrounds in communicating to diverse audiences to provide guidelines for the group to follow during delicate