Short description:

Understanding Police Operational Performance provides a roadmap for police agencies to implement performance-improvement strategies that work.

Long description:

Understanding Police Operational Performance provides a roadmap for police agencies to implement performance-improvement strategies that work. This book provides an easy-to-read, comprehensive overview of the key indicators of successful internal operations of police agencies in the United States, and equips readers with the tools needed to bring police organizations to top performance.  

Ideal for law enforcement professionals, as well as city or county administrators and policymakers, this book offers practical advice for planning and conducting an evaluation of the various components of a police organization. It is also appropriate for use in law enforcement, criminal justice, and political science courses.

?Understanding Police Operational Performance provides a clear understanding of the history of policing coupled with key organizational areas worth examining to ensure best practices. This book is a must read at a pivotal time in American policing for local leaders, police executives, and community members. Critical topics such as police staffing, operations, organizational culture and management practices your local police should be continually examining are clearly described with citations for further exploration. As a police consultant who has conducted organizational assessments throughout the United States, Understanding Police Operational Performance succinctly identifies the key areas communities and police executives need to have ongoing dialogue on what public safety looks and feels like in their community.?

Jackie Gomez-Whiteley, Police Chief (Ret.), Principal & Founder of Meliora Public Safety Consulting, LLC

"...practitioners, administrators and students who read these pages will benefit from the authors' vast experience and bring new and thoughtful ideas and practices to policing resulting in better outcomes ..."

Thomas Belfiore, Former Police Commissioner, Westchester County Department of Public Safety - Division of County Police; Former Chief Security Officer, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

?The team of James McCabe, Paul O?Connell, Carol Rasor-Cordero and Demosthenes Long is the gold standard in the analysis of police operations. They offer practical and realistic analysis of resource allocation, the 'right sizing' of law enforcement agencies, best practices, policies and procedures, department budgets, internal and external surveys, community engagement and partnership, crime reduction, ethics, communication and cultural issues. A must read for policing professionals." 

Edmund Hartnett, NYPD Deputy Chief (retired), Former Police Commissioner Yonkers NY

"This book is of great value for agencies considering self-evaluation and consultant management studies. The topics are relevant, well researched and well written by four pracademics with substantial experience in the field and as police agency evaluators. With hundreds of police management studies under their belts, I highly recommend Understanding Police Operational Performance."

Stephen A. Morreale, D.P.A., Worcester State University, DEA (retired)

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1. Why Assess? The Value-Added of Conducting Periodic Assessments

Chapter 2. Patrol Allocation and Deployment

Chapter 3. Assessing Patrol Operations

Chapter 4. Investigative Operational Performance

Chapter 5. Professional Standards ? The Integrity Function

Chapter 6. Administration and Support

Chapter 7. Critical Policy Assessment

Chapter 8. Assessing Recruitment and Retention Capabilities

Chapter 9. The Assessment of Police Training Systems

Chapter 10. Community Engagement

Chapter 11. Assessing, Understanding and Managing Organizational Culture

Chapter 12. Strategic Management and Planning

Chapter 13. Future Considerations and Alternative Service Delivery Models