What’s missing in American policing is the development of leaders — not managers — men and women who understand the difference between the “self-givingness” of a leader versus the “all about me” of a manager/supervisor.
Leaders care for other people and not only for those with whom they work, but also those whom they serve — those who receive the “services” they and their employees deliver.
That’s what makes a police leader unique — it means serving those within and outside the organization. Robert Greenleaf called it “Servant Leadership.” And it works!
Leaders deeply listen to others, are committed to their growth, and creatively help them adjust to future challenges to their organization. A leader looks out for those whom they are privileged to lead.
I served over 20 years as the chief of police in Madison (WI), four years as chief of the Burnsville (MN) Police Department, and before that as a police officer in Edina (MN) and the City of Minneapolis. I hold graduate degrees from the University of Minnesota and Edgewood College in Madison. I have written many articles over my years as a police leader calling for police improvement (for example, How To Rate Your Local Police, and with my wife, Sabine, Quality Policing: The Madison Experience). After retiring from the police department, I answered a call to ministry, attended seminary, and was ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church. At the present time, I serve a small church in North Lake (WI), east of Madison. Sabine and I have nine adult children, eleven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. She is also a retired police officer and we both continue active lives.
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Improving Police: A Necessary Conversation 