Police Departments don’t have enough to worry about with dealing with COVID-19 and all of that implications. The latest riots and looting and protests have put additional strain, not on the day to day activities of police departments, but their overall approach. Political pressure from groups that have protested the deaths of various individuals have resulted in the defunding of many police departments. The downside is just now starting to present itself. Minneapolis, after they’d defunded the police department, saw a huge increase in violent crime. They then wondered where the police were when they were needed. This is likely to be a trend that happens across the country.
In most cases, governing bodies of a community will simply decide to cut a budget by X percent. Then they let the police sort out how they are going to absorb the cuts. The reality is that most politicians don’t understand the impact of what police departments actually do. They don’t understand that an X percentage decrease in funding translates to an X increase in how long it takes for police to respond to emergencies. If your husband is having a heart attack or your child is at the bottom of the pool, an extra minute of response time can make a difference in the outcome. Police typically arrive at an emergency 2-6 minutes before an ambulance. Wholesale cuts are likely to impact areas like this more than they are racial interactions.
Take Control
Police need to take control of the conversation before change is imposed upon them. Some communities police departments may be underfunded as it is. There may also be opportunities to do things different. Policing is all about doing things better. Depending on the size of the community and the services available, maybe there are some compromises to be made. But the important thing is for the police to be decision makers in their own fate. You aren’t going to do more with less. You are going to do less with less. Police departments are not like other organizations that may simply be able to step up and do more. There are only so many emergency calls you can get to. And there are only so many people you can protect if you don’t have enough police officers.
Whether your department has been hit with a budget cut or not, the current climate is looking for a new direction in policing for many departments. At a minimum, communities want a good understanding of what their police department is going to be doing for the foreseeable future. We have created a rapid strategic planning process for police departments that focus on best practices. Whether your existing plan is out the window, or you need to come up with because you don’t have a plan, we can get you setup with a new direction by your next quarter.
At a high level our plan includes the following:
- Department overview
- Department Metrics
- Mission, Vision, and Goals
- SWOT analysis
- Department Goals and Objectives and action plans for each
When completed, your strategic plan will be between 60-80 pages and give you a detailed plan for policing for the next 3-5 years. The whole process can take 6-12 weeks depending on the size of the department. We are looking to help departments establish their own direction wherever possible, or respond quickly to outside pressures for change. Let us know if we can help your department.
