Section I
Management, Supervision and
Leadership: An Overview
Chapter 2
The Organization and Structure
of American Policing
© 2012 Delmar, Cengage Learning
The Traditional Law Enforcement
Organization
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A pyramid-shaped hierarchy.
Police must be stable, efficient and organized militarily.
Police must be under governmental control.
The test of police effectiveness is the absence of crime and
disorder.
• Bureaucracy is the most important feature of modern society.
• Eliminating wasted time enhances productivity.
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The Formal Organization
• A clear statement of mission, goals, objectives and
values
• A division of labor among specialists
• A rational organization or design
• A hierarchy of authority and responsibility
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Typical Divisions in Law Enforcement
Agencies
• Field Services
– Use line personnel
– Directly help accomplish departmental goals
• Administrative Services
– Use staff personnel
– Support the line organization
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Chain of Command
• Establishes definite lines of authority and channels of
communication
• Chain of command = the order of authority
• Channels of communication = official paths through which
orders flow from management to personnel who carry out the
orders
• Unity of command = every individual has only one supervisor
• Span of control = the number of people supervised by one
manager
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The Informal Organization
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Operates without official sanctions
Influences the agency’s performance
May help or harm the agency’s goals
May support the organization or cause dissention
Exists within any law enforcement agency
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The Emerging Law Enforcement
Organization
• Flattened organization
– Fewer lieutenants and captains
– Fewer staff departments and assistants
– More sergeants and patrol officers
• Decentralized
– Puts decision making at the level of the patrol officer
• Employees are empowered.
© 2012 Delmar, Cengage Learning
Post–9/11 Policing
• Transactional change
– Intervenes in structure, management practices and
motivations
– Unlikely to affect the organization’s mission and culture
• Transformational change
– Intervenes in an organization’s mission, culture and
leadership style
© 2012 Delmar, Cengage Learning
Organizational Approaches in
Contemporary Policing
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Community policing
Problem-solving policing
CompStat policing
Intelligence-led policing
Evidence-based policing
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Community Policing
• Supports the use of partnership and problemsolving techniques to proactively address
conditions that cause public safety issues
• Partnerships and problem solving
• Police are not alone in accomplishing core
functions.
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Problem-Solving Policing
• Focus on determining the underlying causes of crime, fear of
crime and disorder and identifying solutions
• Identify, analyze and respond to underlying circumstances
that create incidents
• Emphasis on strategy distinguishes POP from COP
• Requires police to group incidents as a way to identify
causes of problems in the community
• Reliance on the expertise and creativity of line officers
• Closer involvement with the public
© 2012 Delmar, Cengage Learning
CompStat Policing
• A method of management accountability and a philosophy of
crime control
• Four principles of CompStat:
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Accurate and timely intelligence: know what is happening.
Effective tactics: have a plan.
Rapid deployment: do it quickly.
Relentless follow-up and assessment: if it works do more, if not, do something
else.
• You can’t manage what they don’t measure.
• Helps draw sharp attention to problem areas
• Puts facts in place of impressions
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Intelligence-Led Policing
• Methodical approach to preventing, detecting and
disrupting crime, including terrorist activities
• Business model and managerial philosophy
• Fusion centers collect, integrate, evaluate, analyze
and disseminate information.
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Evidence-Based Policing
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Monitoring and evaluating program outcomes
Analyzing whether it makes a difference
Making adjustments to improve outcomes
Includes training, innovation, efficiency, fiscal
responsibility and ongoing communication
– Partnering with colleges or universities
– Reporting failure
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The Impact of Contemporary Policing Approaches
on the New Supervisor or Manager
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Supervisors and subordinates share power.
Supervisors must accept constructive criticism and failure.
Supervisors must serve as mentor, motivator, and facilitator.
Supervisors need solid set of technological, analytical and
time management skills.
• First-line supervisors must be more engaged in day-to-day
officer performance.
© 2012 Delmar, Cengage Learning