Section III
Staff Management
Chapter 18
Organization and Management
Objectives
• Outline three key factors that contribute to
excellence in penal management and
leadership and identify the basics of a well-run
prison or jail
• Differentiate between management and
leadership
• Name three primary means of establishing
measurement and accountability in a
government agency.
Introduction
• Leaders of correctional institutions are
responsible for millions of dollars of buildings
and equipment, thousands of staff, and many
thousands of inmates
• Challenges to leadership and management in
institutions have never been greater
• Warden must constantly work to ensure staff
safety, staff integrity, proper stewardship of
financial resources, and a safe environment
for inmates
Decentralized Organization
• Each prison and jail system in the US operates
independently
• Federal corrections are the responsibility of the BOP
• Decentralization leads to poor communication and
little interagency cooperation
• Nearly impossible to shift resources, establish
common policies, or even share exceptional
programs between institutions among different state
and federal jurisdictions
Decentralized Organization (cont.)
• Oversight
– Some jurisdictions combine penal management
with other public service organizations
– Others operate independent agencies
– Increasing number of state systems have a chief
executive officer selected by the governor
– System of justice administration also differs among
community, city, county, state, and federal
jurisdictions
Multiple Missions
• Prisons and jails generally are expected to
accomplish several conflicting goals – punish,
incapacitate, and rehabilitate offenders while
deterring others from breaking the law
• Many believe that conditions necessary to
punish offenders conflict with those needed
to reform or rehabilitate an inmate
• Institutions are often on a continuum of
organizational structures.
Organizational Theory
• How authority is distributed within an
organization and how it is used to accomplish
the agency’s mission and goals
• Every organization is composed of people who
act individually and collectively to create a
culture
• System of management and control of
individual staff members is a key variable in
work productivity, morale, and agency
efficiency
Organizational Theory (cont.)
• Important principles of organizational
structure:
– Unity of command
– Scalar principle
– Separation among departments
– Relationship between line and staff roles
Correctional Models of Management
• Authoritarian
– Strong leader
– Very firm control of prison environment
– Harsh discipline of inmates
– Highly centralized
– Regimented workplace
– Funnels all decision making to the central power
figure
– Can create an arbitrary and capricious system that
can easily become corrupt
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Bureaucratic
– Strict hierarchical system
– Organization flows through chain of command and
formal process of communication
– Specific, written rules and regulations
– Clear set of standard operating procedures
– Processes are slow to change and do not
encourage staff to demonstrate initiative
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Participative
– More open and democratic
– Not as effective in dealing with fast-moving crisis
situations
– Allows staff input about how the organization
should be run
– Staff participate in reaching a consensus about
how to proceed in situations
– Gives staff a sense of ownership of planning and
operations
– Can be time consuming
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Authoritarian and bureaucratic organizational
structures are much more prevalent in
correctional administration
• Do not lend themselves to change
• Some agencies have adapted the bureaucratic
model to include elements of participatory
style
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Management Structure
– Prevailing structure is hierarchical, centralized,
paramilitary
– Bureaucracy is very controlling and often inflexible
– Critical and dangerous task of running prisons
requires uniformity and precision of control
– Chief executive officer is individual responsible for
crucial responsibilities
– Senior administrator establishes policy and is
responsible for personnel, property, programs,
and activities
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Management Structure
– Associate warden for custody is responsible for
security matters and supervises correctional
officers
– Operations AW is accountable for all support
services within the institution
– Programs AW heads classification, case
management, religious services, etc.
– Department heads, lower level supervisors, and
line staff are other management positions
Correctional Models of Management (cont.)
• Decentralized Management
– Process of dividing and distributing authority and
responsibility often enhances the effectiveness of
administrative operations
– Critics believe that dispersing authority in a
correctional setting lessens accountability and
does not promote consistent decisions
– Best example in correctional setting is unit
management
Leadership and Innovation
• Correctional institutions work best when
administrators stick to the basics of inmate care and
custody and practice management by walking around
• Those who innovate are often pragmatic and political
realists
• Administrators know that they operate in the context
of multiple and competing public objectives, evershifting legislative priorities, judicial interventions,
and incomplete media renderings of their work
Leadership and Innovation (cont.)
• Boundary spanning
– Administration involves working in partnership with
other entities
– Prison and jail administrators constantly interact
with courts, law enforcement, health inspectors,
consultants, and auxiliary services
– Three crucial capacities to boundary spanning
• Capacity to work productively in a bureaucratic
hierarchy and across divisions
• Capacity to establish constructive professional and
administrative ties to other public sector
organizations
• Capacity to enter into cost-effective relationships or
contracts
Leadership and Innovation (cont.)
• Steps toward boundary spanning
– Identify new missions and programs for the
organization
– Develop and nourish external constituencies
– Create internal constituencies that support the
new goals
– Enhance the organization’s technical expertise
– Motivate and provide training
– Systemically scan organizational routines and
points of internal and external pressures
Leadership and Innovation (cont.)
• Performance Management
– Main goals in corrections
• Security
• Justice
• Safety
• Conditions
• Order
• Management
• Health
• Activity
Leadership and Innovation (cont.)
• Performance Management (cont.)
– Commitment requires that officials identify and
measure results
– Most fundamentally about communication, not
measurement
– Will have meaning only to the degree to which it
shapes and improves incentives
Leadership and Innovation (cont.)
• Public Communications
– Practitioners must improve public
communications about what they actually do and
how they do it
– Seems that academics, analysts, activists, judges,
lawyers, etc. are defining the need and costs of
correctional institutions
– Wardens must actively enter the public debates
and need to share their experience and
understanding of offenders
Management vs. Leadership
• Bennis – manager focuses on systems and structure
while leader stresses the people in the business
• Managers are more heavily involved in the practical
details of organizational life while leaders are
engaged in organizational directing
• Critical for prison and jail administrators to
successfully combine the realities of management in
the trenches with the ability to lead others toward
the future.
Management vs. Leadership (cont.)
• Daily oversight is necessary – a warden’s job is
very hands-on
• Effective manager must be able to empower
and delegate to capable staff; demonstrate
sensitivity, diplomacy, and vision; and show a
willingness to take responsible risks
The Challenge for Institutional Leadership
• An effective prison or jail operation is generally
considered to be an institution that is safe, secure,
clean, and responsive to the needs of its staff,
inmates, and external constituencies
• Wardens must delineate institutional goals, train
staff to ensure that all personnel are aware of the
desired outcomes, implement programs in support
of the goals, establish a system of feedback on
progress toward the goals, and create a means of
reinforcing successful accomplishment and good
performance.
Delegation
• Leader must delegate the responsibility for
specific tasks to qualified individuals
• Must give employees responsibility for the
task, as well as the authority and resources to
do it
• Failure to delegate can result in personal
burnout, damage to development of staff,
reduced productivity, harm to morale
Delegation (cont.)
• Three primary barriers to effective delegation:
– Old habits
– Lack of faith in subordinates
– Perceived lack of adequate time to train staff
Measures of Success
• Need to establish accountability and clear
communication of expectations
• Avenues to accountability in government agencies:
– Compliance
– Performance
– Capacity-based
• Management accountability is defined as the
expectation that agency leaders will take
responsibility for the quality and timeliness of
program performance, costs, and mitigate adverse
aspects of agency operations
Measures of Success (cont.)
• If all significant decisions are made by a
limited number of executives, staff quits
caring and passes all decisions up the ladder
• Lose innovative employee behavior and risktaking when the administrative control is too
tight
Creating Accountability
• First step is to ensure that all staff clearly
comprehend the agency’s mission
• All personnel must grasp the purpose of the
organization
• Chief executive must establish the standards
of operation that will support the
organizational purpose
Creating Accountability (cont.)
• Policy
– Must have written policy and procedures
– Establish philosophy of operation for each
program area, identify outcomes expected, define
requirements of staff and inmates
– Control of facility is organized around rules
– Consistency is maintained by ensuring that staff
enforce rules
– Requires extensive staff training
Creating Accountability (cont.)
• Training
– Individuals must receive appropriate training in
the process, program, or procedure they are
expected to follow
– Inservice training is extremely important
• Compliance Audits
– Organizational leaders must assess compliance with
written policy directives
– Program audits are best means to assess staff
operations
– Staff perform an internal review of operations at
scheduled intervals
Creating Accountability (cont.)
• Benchmarking
– Compare one’s operation to another similar
program
– Easy to compare data longitudinally once entered
• Accreditation
– ACA standards for adult and juvenile facilities
– Can help jurisdictions develop local accreditation
process
Creating Accountability (cont.)
• Identification of Corruption
– Must have internal affairs office to ensure
protection of government resources
– Obligation to ensure that institution operates with
integrity and in compliance with the law
• Strategic Planning
– Warden must have well-developed and wellpublicized vision of the organization and its future
– Strategic plan should serve as guideline for
moving organization into the future
Large-Scale Management Structures
• Important to create atmosphere where staff
– Believe in what they are doing
– Have input into how work is structured
– Are permitted to exercise judgment in day-to-day
tasks
Conclusion
• More progressive prison systems have
integrated their operations in cohesive
systems that work effectively to meet the
societal goals of confining inmates and
preparing them for eventual release
• Unfortunately, most agencies operate on their
own disparate goals and are involved with
prisoners only from their isolated perspectives
Chapter 19
Leadership: Executive Excellence
Objectives
• Explain the importance of leadership in the field
of corrections
• Outline the fundamental principles of an
effective organization
• Describe the concept of forward thinking and
several of the relevant future trends
Introduction
• United States imprisons more people for longer
periods than at any other time in its history
• 2005 – 2.3 million persons under correctional
authority
• Two core purposes of correctional systems:
– Protect society
– Reduce recidivism
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals
• Heart of BOPs continuity has been its core
ideologies
• Following principles are necessary to lead an
agency and position it for future leaders:
– Leaders must enable staff to think for themselves
– Organizational processes can be learned by and
communicated to others within the agency
– Organization must adhere to a firm core ideology
while adapting to environmental changes
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Core ideologies for BOPs mission:
– Safe environment for staff and inmates
– Secure institutions to confine offenders and
protect the public
– Skills building programs for inmates
– Service and stewardship to the public
– Tradition of excellence
– Staff who are ethical, professional, well-trained,
and diverse
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Three main qualities of staff are excellence,
respect, and integrity
• Current environment requires having the most
capable, qualified, talented, hard working,
committed, professional leaders possible
• Effective leaders must have the desire to
continue growing and learning
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Integrity
– Staff integrity is key to dealing with:
• Inmates and their families
• Government and court officials
• Law enforcement
• The public
• Advocacy groups
• Oversight entities
• The media
– Integrity affects agency’s ability to secure
funding and select sites for prisons
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Five principles designed as a guide to public
service ethics
– Public office is a trust; use it only to advance public
interests
– Make decisions on the merits
– Conduct government business openly, efficiently,
equitably, and honorably
– Honor and respect democratic principles
– Safeguard public confidence by avoiding
appearances of impropriety
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Understanding the Big Picture
– Effective leadership requires a solid understanding
of the larger context within which the agency
operates
– Federal prison system has been impacted by
various legislative acts
– Shift in resources has resulted in budgetary
constraints, which resulted in displacement of
staff and changes within the BOP
A Context to Leading: Fundamentals (cont.)
• Cost reduction initiatives for the BOP
included:
– Closing four independent prison camps
– Discontinuing intensive confinement program
– Creating centralized designation, sentence
computation, and classification processes
– Implementing a medical classification system
– Consolidating two training units
Federal Prison Industries (FPI)
• One of agency’s most important correctional
work programs
• Helps occupy about 18% of work eligible
inmates
• Legislative changes limited the operation and
work of the FPI and more changes could occur
• Leaders have made proactive changes to
maximize their control over the situation
Interagency Collaboration
• Agency must ensure continuity of programs, care,
services, and support for inmates with various needs
• Many agencies share the responsibility for exoffenders
• Leaders should ensure collaboration and
communication well before release
• Emphasis on information sharing and resource
development to improve reentry success
Forward Thinking
• Leader’s responsibility to encourage innovative,
future-oriented thinking and encourage
organizational enhancements
• BOP leaders have been immersed in process of
research and analyzing trends, scanning the
environment, creating scenarios to plan for
effects of outside influences
• Forward Thinking Review Team to oversee
ongoing training of staff
Forward Thinking (cont.)
• Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Reentry
– Partnerships with communities need to focus on
reentry programs
• Inmate Work and Vocational Training Program
– Inmate work and vocational training programs
should be designed in partnership with
community business leaders
Forward Thinking (cont.)
• Resource Allocation
– Identify changes that may need to occur to
accomplish mission even if resources are cut
• Workforce Demographics
– Advancing technology points to a need for more
educated and skilled workers
Conclusion
• Many opportunities and challenges exist for
individuals seeking leadership roles in the field
of corrections.
Chapter 20
Governing: Personnel Management
Objectives
• Outline the desired characteristics of
correctional staff.
• Explain leadership selection in a healthy and
effective organization
• Explore the role of professionalism in running
a penal institution
Staff Opportunity
• Corrections work provides an excellent career
opportunity for people who are honest, hard
working, and dependable
• Corrections is a leading growth industry
• Many of the best administrators rose through
the ranks of employment in corrections
Correctional Standards and Laws
• ACA expectations for personnel management in
10 critical areas:
– Written policy and procedures
– Staffing
– Affirmative action and diversity
– Selection
– Probation
– Physical fitness
– Compensation and benefits
– Ethics
– Personnel records
– Employee counseling
Workplace Behavior and Professionalism
• Employees should expect from and provide to
each other:
– Decent, civil speech without profanity
– Common courtesy
– Respectful conduct
– Cooperation and teamwork
• Expectations of staff should be included in a
written handbook
• Everything staff do is subject to scrutiny
Workplace Behavior and Professionalism
(cont.)
• Employees should always
– Be mindful
– Be polite
– Respect procedures and follow them
– Respect honesty
– Avoid gossip
– Contribute to a healthy workplace
– Let things go
– Honor coworkers
– Understand sexual harassment
– Respect rights, feelings, and opinions of others
Leadership Development
• Institutions with effective, determined, and
inspired leaders will foster future leaders
• Should not attempt to identify future leaders
too early
• Create a rewarding and rich environment
where excellence is expected, performance is
evaluated, competition is healthy, and level of
performance of all employees is raised
Setting the Tone
• Effectiveness of institution depends on the example
the leaders set
• When excellence and professionalism are the
expectations, the momentum of the organization
increases
• When dealing with inmates, staff must be firm, fair,
and consistent
• Leaders must inform staff of agency position on
rehabilitation
• Healthy institution is filled with hope, meaningful
work, educational opportunities, self-help, and
leisure activities
Corrective and Disciplinary Action
• Training and orientation for staff should cover
the rules and regulations and their rationale,
as well as consequences for not following the
rules
• Corrective or disciplinary action should always
take place in private
• Most common method of corrective action is
a warning
• Consistency is essential for the institution
Corrective and Disciplinary
Action (cont.)
• Corrective action for successive infractions
should follow a progression:
– Verbal instruction
– Verbal warning
– Written memo of instruction
– Letter of reprimand
– Disciplinary reduction in pay
– Disciplinary suspension without pay
– Demotion
– Discharge from employment
Corrective and Disciplinary
Action (cont.)
• Corrective action is taken by the supervisor
• Disciplinary action is taken by the agency
• Events that require immediate separation:
– Conviction in a civil court for domestic violence
– Crimes of moral turpitude
– Reporting to work under the influence of alcohol or drugs
– Trafficking institutional contraband
– Sexual or inappropriate relationships with inmates
– Establishing personal relationships with families of inmates
– Bringing weapons into the institution
Conclusion
• The warden should strive to create a
correctional facility where staff are recognized
as the greatest asset, dignity and respect
prevail, employees are valued and allowed to
grow, and inmates and staff have a
wholesome place to live and work.
Chapter 21
A Day in the Life of the Warden
Objectives
• Identify the personal skills that a warden needs to be
successful on the job and explain what staff and
inmates look for in an effective warden
• Determine the four areas of institutional operation
that require the warden’s close attention
• Explain how the events at Abu Ghraib prison
contributed to the field of correctional leadership in
the United States
Necessary Skills
• Effective CEO must have a positive work ethic,
the ability to screen information to identify
problems as well as opportunities, very good
oral and written communication skills, and the
ability to interact positively with racially and
socially diverse staff and inmates
• Best warden is a leader who is proactive and is
available to staff day and night
Before the Official Work Day
• Warden should review the local newspaper
and television for any significant outside
events that could influence the institution
• Will review shift commanders’ logs of previous
day’s or weekend’s activities
• Must be satisfied that occurrences were
handled appropriately or take corrective
action
Early Morning
• Meeting with associate wardens, head of
security, and other relevant staff
• Keep lines of communication open and allow
all to hear directions given to some
• Warden reviews incoming mail and identifies
individuals to prepare responses
• Keeps important individuals informed of
noteworthy developments within institution
Midmorning
• Time set aside to meet with key staff on
budget, personnel, facilities, industries,
strategic planning
• Management by walking around – visit special
areas of the institution at least weekly
• Ensure that staff are communicating with
inmates and following agency policy
• Enables warden to establish and maintain
multiple channels of communication
Early Afternoon
• Proactive warden requires associate wardens
and department heads to attend one meal
each day
• Visible way to demonstrate care and fair
management to inmates
• Should be equally responsive to all inmates
• One senior staff member should always be
outside of security envelope
Midafternoon
• Meetings with various department heads to
monitor areas of facility operations
• Time for close-outs with agency auditors
• Meet with tour groups entering or leaving the
facility
Late Afternoon
• CEO must set aside time for staff development
• Annual refresher sessions on pertinent topics
and anticipated changes
• Meet with individual staff members who need
mentoring and career advice
• Check out with associate wardens before
leaving
• Consider working out at the end of the day
Recent Lessons from Abu Ghraib
• The effective leader of a penal facility is
informed, involved, and prevents such things
from happening
• They want a firm, fair, and consistent
administrator who creates a positive
interpersonal working environment
Conclusion
• Correctional management is complex and
demands a high level of energy, fairness, and
integrity
Chapter 22
Diversity of Correctional Officers
Objectives
• Explore the position of correctional officers
today and explain how the role of correctional
officers has evolved over time
• Describe the importance of a diverse
workforce and explain why women have
typically had a difficult time being accepted in
correctional positions in male facilities
• Discuss the performance level of female
correctional officers in varying corrections
environments
The Role of the Correctional Officer
• Correctional officers generally make up the
majority of staff of a penal facility
• Primarily responsible for supervising inmates,
maintaining order and discipline, and serving
as information counselors and mentors
• Oversee and control inmate housing, common
areas, work areas, and dining room
• Assist in transporting inmates and perimeter
security
Cultural Diversity
• Minorities and women are an integral part of
correctional workforce
• A well-run institution has open
communication with staff and inmates
• Having diverse staff helps them relate to the
inmate population
• Ideal is to have similar proportions of staff to
inmate population
Female Correctional Officers
• Women were historically associated with clerical
duties, teaching, support services, or guarding
female offenders
• Not until 1970s were they placed with male inmates
• Men dispute the ability of women to maintain order
and control in a men’s prison
• Believe women violate privacy of male offenders and
create management problems by becoming
romantically involved with inmates or other staff
Female Correctional Officers (cont.)
• Paternalism or efforts to protect women often
keep them from working all areas of the
institution, which affects promotion
considerations
• Great hostility and resistance from male staff
• Sexual harassment
Female Correctional Officers (cont.)
• Female Performance
– Perceived as being less effective in breaking up
fights and controlling large, aggressive inmates
– However, they are impressive at calming angry
inmates and inmates who are mentally or
emotionally disturbed
– Women often adopt a more service-oriented, less
confrontational style with inmates
– Ability to relate positively to inmates
Conclusion
• Equal employment opportunity and workplace
diversity are important features of American
society and institution administration
• Minorities and women have become
successful correctional officers, supervisors,
and senior administrators in all areas of the
American criminal justice system