Top of Mind Leadership

You Can Judge A Leader Through Priorities

For almost a decade I have been asking the attendees of the Courageous Leadership Seminar to rate the leadership at their agency. While it’s not scientific, after a few thousand ratings and hundreds of ensuing conversations, it’s easy to understand that law enforcement has a problem within their own ranks.

With attendees representing every state in the country and all ranks, leadership is pulling around 75% below average with leadership considered good in the single digits.

While those numbers should cause an alarm within every professional organization dedicated to the profession, not much has been said and while there may not be a singular solution to correct it, there are a few that would get us very close.

Do They Care?

I recently interviewed Sergeant (ret.) John Kelly for an episode of the Courageous Leadership Podcast and he said something to me that radically changed how I talk about leadership. As we discussed law enforcement leadership and how we can turn the tide from weakness to courage, he simply said that “leadership is about caring.”

While my dissertation and the supporting research and data supported the concept of caring in leadership, it wasn’t until John uttered those words that I really figured it out. Whether it was too simple for me to catch or it was John’s slick hair, those words did more for me than any fancy training or book ever did.

We Just Need To Care

The Seattle Police Department has found out the hard way how important caring is. With just 424 police officers working patrol, with staffing levels not seen since 1957 when the population was almost half of what it is today, they are well on their way to being the first major city law enforcement agency to literally disappear.

READ: DO THEY CARE

A recent article detailing the exit interviews from Seattle officers detailed exactly what happens when leaders don’t care for employees.

Betsy Smith, a 29-year police veteran and spokesperson for the National Police Association, said that “the number one concern for officers used to be about safety, regarding themselves or the community,” but “now the number one concern for officers is, ‘Will I be indicted for doing my job?’

'Pierce County Sheriff Ed Troyer described Seattle’s environment for police as a place “not allowed to do police work” and a place where there is “no support from administration or city…”

The foundational issue with a lack of caring is the unwillingness for a leader to practice selfless sacrifice and part of that sacrifice involves leaders changing their priorities.

I personally watched leaders cater to just about everyone but the officers.

• If an activist made a demand, they jumped.

• If the media questioned something, the officers were blamed.

• If a citizen complained, the officers were guilty until proven otherwise.

This cowardice has become so prevalent, we routinely see a leader apologizing for displaying a thin blue line flag or staying silent if not endorsing the arrest of a police officer for doing everything within the law and policy.

Selfless Sacrifice

Leaders must shift their priorities away from the customer or citizen and lean in on the most important asset within an organization…the police officers.

In describing self sacrifice, My friend and fellow trainer Tom Rizzo may have said it best when. he said that the top priority of a leader is not the customer but rather “it’s those that serve the customers.”

Just like what is happening in Seattle at this very moment, the top leaders cannot jump over their employees to serve citizens because they aren’t the ones serving the citizens. Police officers serve the community and their leaders should be serving the police officers.

The most common citizen complaint in this profession is rudeness and while that is a subjective complaint, my first question upon receiving them through the years (before body cameras) wasn’t how the officer treated the citizen but how the officer is being treated by his or her supervisors and managers. What I often found with the “repeat offenders” was that they were simply emulating to the citizens how they were being treated within the organization.

Indeed, if our leaders would focus their time and energy on those around them with a self sacrificial approach, they may just find that they were the problem all along.

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Dr. Travis Yates retired as a commander with a large municipal police department after 30 years of service. He is the author of “The Courageous Police Leader: A Survival Guide for Combating Cowards, Chaos & Lies.” His risk management and leadership seminars have been taught to thousands of professionals across the world. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy with a Doctorate Degree in Strategic Leadership and the CEO of the Courageous Police Leadership Alliance.