ANALYSIS OF THE ROLE OF THE POLICE CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Problem. National Commissions over the last fifty years have cited deficiencies in local police agencies, and have recommended that local police chief executives provide leadership for improvement. Despite many governmental and academic studies, little empirical evidence exists concerning how police chief executives utilize their time to develop and implement policy, assess need for change, and provide leadership for improvement within environments which inhibit change. Methods. Henry Mintzberg's structured observation technique was used to assess time utilization of three police chief executives. James Q. Wilson's findings in Varieties of Police Behavior provided the basis for analysis of departmental records, policies and practices of the three agencies. Data were collected and analyzed, then compared with Mintzberg's and Wilson's studies. Literature concerning the police chief executive, written since 1900, and current change-management literature were reviewed. Results. The literature indicates that recommended standards of performance for the position of police chief executive frequently are not met. Appointments of qualified personnel are inhibited by lack of understanding of difficult position requirements and by local political considerations. For this and other reasons, quality change-management is rare in police agencies. The work profiles of the police chief executives under study were similar to those of executives studied by Mintzberg, with some exceptions. Police chief executives spent more time managing improvements, devoted more time to short-range issues, and handled many more documents. Much activity was external to their agency. Stated agency policies indicated that all three police chief executives subscribed to Wilson's service orientation. Some arrest data, however, indicated that Wilson's legalistic orientation was emphasized in practice. Coherent philosophy was lacking in all three agencies studied, which contributed to conflicts between policies and practices, and inhibited improvements. Conclusions. Mintzberg's roles were appropriate to the work of police chief executives. Hectic pace was observed, but time utilization was spent on short-range issues more than long range planning. Lack of a comprehensive philosophy and resultant policy conflicts inhibited planned change. Large-scale replication of this exploratory study is needed.