21st Century Knowledge & Skills
The acquisition of contemporary law enforcement and public safety knowledge is imperative for present-day leaders and managers in police agencies. I address the expertise of budgetary and financial practices, leadership and management theory, and effective recruiting techniques in this module. The University of San Diego Master’s program in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership studies these issues and empowers the student with insight and potential solutions. A manager of public agency must be versatile and adept in keeping pace with the constant change in modern-day law enforcement.
The first paper presented in this module is the Budget Legislative Review. The class focused on an examination of my current agency’s expenditures and a project that entailed preparing a proposed budget. The second paper is a case study in Situational Leadership Theory. In this paper, I examine the 2015 Baltimore riots and Police Commissioner Anthony Batts’ leadership response. I discuss in the third presentation the dilemma of recruiting qualified applicants for the police service.
In the Budget Legislative Review report, I prepared a hypothetical budgetary analysis for the Redondo Beach City Council. The report details the objectives in the upcoming fiscal year and focuses on the service objectives of the department, crime statistics, police staffing levels, and equipment needs. I additionally explore the potential for efficiency gains to maximize public safety dollars and address the community’s expectations for the upcoming year. The report was a valuable exercise in the intricacies of the budgeting process and how a budget is implemented with the concurrence of the city manager, mayor, the city council, and the community.
In the second paper, Case Study in Leadership Theory, I apply the Hershey-Blanchard Situational Leadership model to Commissioner Anthony Batts’ controversial handling of the 2015 riots in Baltimore. I contrast Batts’ actions with the leadership model and delineate the positive and negative effects of his management of the department. The Hershey-Blanchard model advocates varying a leadership approach according to the factors at hand and to the subordinate’s maturity level and commitment. Unfortunately, Batts faced political pressure from city hall to contain the riot in a manner that was not amenable to his officers in the field. Batts was undeniably faced with extraordinary pressures, and this leadership dilemma is a compelling case study in the difficulties that may be encountered by police chiefs in times of crisis.
The third assignment in this module considers the police recruitment paradigm and the difficulty of police agencies in recruitment currently. Many factors are affecting the available pool of qualified candidates for police departments today. Furthermore, young people now have numerous job opportunities available to them in a robust economy. I also address the issue of attrition after recruits are hired and how they sometimes become disillusioned with the career. The presentation gives managers solutions to the recruitment dilemma and offers insight into educating potential police officers as to the realities of the law enforcement career.
I have found that exploring these issues in-depth was invaluable in acquiring skills that I can implement in my profession. Moreover, I can share this knowledge with my peers and supervisors.The real-world problems of budgeting and finance, effective leadership techniques,and the ever-present dilemma of police recruiting are not easily solved. Consequently, the University of San Diego Master’s program offers practical insight into professional, administrative, and leadership components of law enforcement.
The acquisition of contemporary law enforcement and public safety knowledge is imperative for present-day leaders and managers in police agencies. I address the expertise of budgetary and financial practices, leadership and management theory, and effective recruiting techniques in this module. The University of San Diego Master’s program in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership studies these issues and empowers the student with insight and potential solutions. A manager of public agency must be versatile and adept in keeping pace with the constant change in modern-day law enforcement.
The first paper presented in this module is the Budget Legislative Review. The class focused on an examination of my current agency’s expenditures and a project that entailed preparing a proposed budget. The second paper is a case study in Situational Leadership Theory. In this paper, I examine the 2015 Baltimore riots and Police Commissioner Anthony Batts’ leadership response. I discuss in the third presentation the dilemma of recruiting qualified applicants for the police service.
In the Budget Legislative Review report, I prepared a hypothetical budgetary analysis for the Redondo Beach City Council. The report details the objectives in the upcoming fiscal year and focuses on the service objectives of the department, crime statistics, police staffing levels, and equipment needs. I additionally explore the potential for efficiency gains to maximize public safety dollars and address the community’s expectations for the upcoming year. The report was a valuable exercise in the intricacies of the budgeting process and how a budget is implemented with the concurrence of the city manager, mayor, the city council, and the community.
In the second paper, Case Study in Leadership Theory, I apply the Hershey-Blanchard Situational Leadership model to Commissioner Anthony Batts’ controversial handling of the 2015 riots in Baltimore. I contrast Batts’ actions with the leadership model and delineate the positive and negative effects of his management of the department. The Hershey-Blanchard model advocates varying a leadership approach according to the factors at hand and to the subordinate’s maturity level and commitment. Unfortunately, Batts faced political pressure from city hall to contain the riot in a manner that was not amenable to his officers in the field. Batts was undeniably faced with extraordinary pressures, and this leadership dilemma is a compelling case study in the difficulties that may be encountered by police chiefs in times of crisis.
The third assignment in this module considers the police recruitment paradigm and the difficulty of police agencies in recruitment currently. Many factors are affecting the available pool of qualified candidates for police departments today. Furthermore, young people now have numerous job opportunities available to them in a robust economy. I also address the issue of attrition after recruits are hired and how they sometimes become disillusioned with the career. The presentation gives managers solutions to the recruitment dilemma and offers insight into educating potential police officers as to the realities of the law enforcement career.
I have found that exploring these issues in-depth was invaluable in acquiring skills that I can implement in my profession. Moreover, I can share this knowledge with my peers and supervisors.The real-world problems of budgeting and finance, effective leadership techniques,and the ever-present dilemma of police recruiting are not easily solved. Consequently, the University of San Diego Master’s program offers practical insight into professional, administrative, and leadership components of law enforcement.