|
By Captain Eugene Smith
It has been a long, cold evening, and as lieutenant for the shift, you have monitored the efforts of officers throughout the city. The temperature has remained well below freezing, and snow has fallen steadily during the swing shift. Not the heavy, thick snow that drives people indoors to warm fires and warm drinks, but rather a soft, light snow, drawing people out, only to discover the streets had become ice rinks and every intersection an adventure. Calls for service have been steady throughout the evening, with officers responding to a multitude of collisions, particularly in the icy intersections. It is almost time for the night shift to report, and you know officers will appreciate the assistance and the chance for a break.
You are reviewing the events of the shift with pride in your officer's efforts when your phone rings. You recognize the number as one of the night shift sergeants, a young, up and coming leader in the department who takes his job and responsibilities seriously. He excitedly informs you that he just checked on a group of swing shift officers who were taking a lunch break. He recognizes they have worked hard all evening, but numerous calls are still holding, and these officers have extended their lunch break from 30 minutes to 45 minutes, which is clearly outside policy. He has ordered them to clear from lunch, but is calling to let you know they were not pleased. He is seeking assurance that his actions were correct. The answer you provide to this sergeant will have impact far beyond the officers on break, and will certainly identify the leadership philosophy of yourself and the organization you represent.
Police departments, like other organizations, seek strong leadership, clear direction, and an understanding of the department's mission and vision. This provides the basis for a strong commitment to organizational excellence, but is this excellence based on shared core values and vision (transformational or intrinsic), adherence to strict policies and procedures (transactional or enforcement based), or some balance of both? Ultimately, good organizational leaders seek to develop a workplace which is constantly moving the vision and mission of the organization forward while not neglecting the requirements of procedure and policies. The real concern is not that the sergeant brought forward a dilemma, but rather the concern whether the lieutenant will appropriately address the issue based on organizational leadership philosophies. His response will represent the organizational leader's intent if the philosophy is clearly understood. The response should address the employee error while congratulating the good work.
Enforcement-focused leadership often follows a transactional style that meets the daily operational needs of the department, through strict interpretation of policies and regulations. Intrinsic-focused leadership depicts a transformational leadership style based on core values, an identifiable mission, and an attainable but challenging vision. Both leadership styles are needed and coexist in successful organizations. However, too much emphasis on either style damages the operational culture and hinders progressive thinking. Organizations with too much emphasis on transactional leadership will see workforces unwilling to provide five-star service or think outside the norm for fear of repercussion. Too much emphasis on transformational leadership creates organizations that follow many different paths and always seek the latest fad as a new direction as there is not a clear commitment to a vision, and the values and mission drift with the times.
The situation brought forward from the sergeant is common in organizations, as individuals do a very good job, but stop just short of doing a great job. In this case, they congratulated themselves for a productive shift by taking an extended lunch. The lieutenant's response becomes very important, as it not only identifies the organization's leadership philosophy to the sergeant and involved officers, it sets a clear direction through action for all members. The lieutenant demonstrates understanding of the department philosophy when his reply addresses the core mission and values of the organization. In our example, the officers have fulfilled their mission to the citizens on this evening, which should be recognized by the sergeant. However, the values of the organization also include the mission to support other officers and the needs of the department. An explanation of this principle to the sergeant generates a clearer understanding of the organization's values, and as the sergeant addresses the policy violation with the officers, the values are enforced again. The officers are still accountable for their actions and adherence to policy, but they learn why the policy exists, and how it benefits themselves and their peers as well as the citizens.
Leadership based on values, vision, and a strong commitment to the core mission results in empowered individuals striving toward the same end, and accomplishing great tasks for the betterment of the organization. Empowered individuals need fewer policies or procedures, because they see organizational success as their own success, and expect excellence from themselves and their peers, regardless of policies or procedures. Organizational leaders determine organizational culture through their example, their clear delineation of adherence to mission and values, and by communicating a challenging vision. This process is enforced through interaction and relationships, which are built on clearly identified expectations and operational outcomes. Organizational leaders can accurately predict the lieutenant's response to the new sergeant when they have correctly passed on the values, mission, and vision to the lieutenant, who has adopted them as his own.
Many organizations struggle with intrinsic-based leadership as it requires time and energy to fully explain and develop the organization's mission, values, and vision throughout all levels of the organization. It is simply faster to focus on additional policies and procedures, but which, while they are necessary, continue the legacy of enforcement-based leadership. Transactional leadership is vital to an organization's health, but if it overshadows transformational leadership, the department will not function at full strength.
Organizational leadership is an often-used term in the workplace which usually generates as many questions as it answers. What is it? How do you recognize it? Can it be taught to others? How will you respond to similar situations in your organization in ways that will create both high adherence to standards and high performance toward shared mission and vision?
H. E. Smith considers the knowledge gained while earning an M.S. in Leadership, Disaster Preparedness, and Crisis Management perfectly complements the experience and skills gained from over twenty years in law enforcement. Now serving as a command-level officer in the Boise Police Department in Boise, ID, he remains an avid student of organizational leadership and multi-agency emergency responses.
|
