Overview

Of all the services provided by local governments, police services often receive the most attention and scrutiny from the public.  Whereas most other services are completed with minimal public monitoring, community members are constantly in touch with feelings of safety or lack of safety.  Citizens generally expect to be and to feel safe, and they have very high expectations for police, from the overall performance down to the individual behaviors of each officer.  The public is a tough customer when it comes to safety.  Another challenging feature of managing police services is navigating a close-knit and distinct culture.  Managing local government services as a generalist requires challenging communication with specialists, perhaps none so challenging as those conversations with police leaders.  The culture of police is one that historically lends itself heavily to conflict with some members of the public, despite all positive intentions of the officers who risk their lives daily to maintain public safety.  City managers and other generalist employees of a local government are responsible for navigating professional relationships with police leadership in the provision of public safety as a public service.

Generalist employees are also accountable to the public regarding their feelings of safety and, importantly, their feelings of belonging and dignity as a citizen.  Tensions between police and citizens are common issues, and the truth of that frequency becomes clearer as media enables the public to become aware of these tensions faster than ever.  It’s important as public managers that we understand the interests and concerns of the public, as well as those of the police.  As generalist employees, we want to consider those two sides by asking: what is the reality of police work?  What is the perspective of the public, where did it come from, and what can we learn about improving that perspective or using it to inform changes we make to the police?