PS M2A1

Developing Quality Management for the Ocala, Florida, Police Department

Jack Suess

Abstract The purpose of this project is to provide an alternative view of traditional police management. This is accomplished by examining a move to Quality Management by the Ocala Police Department. In addition, it is hoped that this project will serve as a guideline for other agencies implementing quality principles.

SECTION ONE: QUALITY MANAGEMENT What are the principles of quality management and how do they differ from traditional

management concepts? Principles of Quality Management

The principles of Quality Management are generally titled "Total Quality Management," more commonly referred to as "TQM." The man given the bulk of credit for developing this management philosophy is Dr. W. Edwards Deming. Although Dr. Deming never actually titled his philosophy "Total Quality Management," it has evolved that he and the title are viewed as one. In actuality, Dr. Deming authored a management philosophy that he simply refers to as "The Fourteen Points." The majority of the literature available on this subject is directed at the manufacturing industry. If the law enforcement profession wishes to consider these principles it must first accept the need for profession specific interpretation.

Deming's Fourteen Points:

1. Create constancy of purpose for improvement of product and service. Dr. Deming suggests a radical new definition of a company's role. Rather than making money, it is to stay in business and provide jobs through innovation, research, constant improvement, and maintenance.

2. Adopt a new philosophy. Americans are too tolerant of poor workmanship and sullen service. We need a new religion in which mistakes and negativism are unacceptable.

3. Cease dependence on mass inspection. American firms typically inspect a product as it comes off the line or at major stages. Defective products are either thrown our or reworked; both are unnecessarily expensive. In effect, a company is paying workers to make defects and then correct them. Quality comes not from inspection but from improvement of the process. With instruction, workers can be enlisted in the process.

4. End the practice of awarding business on price tag alone. Purchasing departments customarily operate on orders to seek the lowest-priced vendor. Frequently, this leads to supplies of low quality. Instead, they should seek the best quality and work to achieve it with a single supplier for any one item in a long-term relationship.

5. Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service. Improvement is not a one-time effort. Management is obligated to continually look for ways to reduce waste and improve quality.

6. Institute training. Too often, workers learned their job from another worker who was never trained properly. They are forced to follow unintelligible instructions. They can't do their jobs because no one tells them how.

7. Institute leadership. The job of a supervisor is not to tell people what to do or to punish them but to lead. Leading consists of helping people do a better job and of learning by objective methods who is in need of individual help.

8. Drive out fear. Many employees are afraid to ask questions or to take a position, even when they do not understand what the job is or what is right or wrong. People will continue to do things the wrong way, or not do them at all. The economic loss from fear is appalling. It is necessary for better quality and production that people feel secure.

9. Break down barriers between staff areas. Often staff areas -- departments, units, whatever -- are competing with each other or have goals that conflict. They do not work as a team so they can solve or foresee problems. Worse, one department's goals may cause trouble for another.

10. Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force. These never helped anybody do a good job. Let people put up their own slogans.

11. Eliminate numerical quotas. Quotas take account only of numbers, not quality or methods. They are usually a guarantee of inefficiency and high cost. A person, to hold a job, meets quota at any cost, without regard to damage to the company.

12. Remove barriers to pride of workmanship. People are eager to do a good job and distressed when they can't. Too often, misguided supervisors, faulty equipment, and defective materials stand in the way. These barriers must be removed.

13. Institute a vigorous program of education and retraining. Both management and the work force will have to be educated in the new methods, including teamwork and statistical techniques.

14. Take action to accomplish the transformation. It will take a special top management team with a plan of action to carry out the quality mission. Workers can't do it on their own, nor can managers. A critical mass of people in the company must understand the Fourteen Points, the Seven Deadly Diseases the Obstacles (Walton, 1986, pp. 34-36).

As previously mentioned, these principles are directed at the manufacturing industry; a certain degree of interpretation is required for application in law enforcement. There may be a tendency to immediately dismiss some of these principles, thinking they

are written for manufacturing and therefore have no value to government. That tendency should be brought into check until each principle has been given careful consideration.

Traditional Management versus Total Quality Management Probably the most effective means of seeing differences between traditional

management and Total Quality Management is by looking at the two concepts side by side (shown below).

Traditional Management Total Quality Management

Needs of users of products and services defined by specialists

Customer focus, where users of products and service define what they want

Errors and waste tolerated if they do not exceed standards

No tolerance for errors, waste, and work that does not add value to products and services

Products and services inspected for problems then “fixed” Prevention of problems

Many decisions governed by assumptions and gut feelings

Fact-based decisions using hard data and scientific procedures

Short term planning based around budget cycle

Long-term planning based on improving mission performance

Product or service designed sequentially by isolated departments

Simultaneous design of total product or service life cycle by teams from many functions

Control and improvement by individual managers and specialists

Teamwork among managers, specialists, employees, vendors, customers and partner agencies

Improvement focused on one-time breakthroughs such as computers and automation

Continuous improvement of every aspect of how work is done

Vertical structure and centralization based on control

Horizontal and decentralized structure based on maximizing value added to products and services

Short-term contracts awarded based on price

Vendor partnership of long-term buyer/seller obligations, based on quality and continuous improvement

Source: Carr, D. K., & Littman, I. D. (1990). Excellence in Government, p. 4.

The amount of information available on Total Quality Management and its spin-off theories is immeasurable. One organization may favor Dr. Deming's principles while another leans more toward the principles of Dr. Juran or any number of other authors on the subject. The focal issue must remain as to what is best for each particular organization. The bottom line should be an attitude of constant improvement that utilizes every member of the organization to their fullest capabilities.

SECTION TWO: QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN LAW ENFORCEMENT What is the culture of a traditional police department and why is there a need to

change? Traditional Police Management

Police organizations throughout this country, and to some extent the world, are viewed as paramilitary. This military design probably has influenced the law enforcement culture itself. Such a culture includes: top down decision making without lower level input, after the fact inspections, provider driven/program based service, and budget cycle planning. The military design has served well and can continue to do so, however the culture within these agencies may need to be addressed. The United States Marine Corps serves as an example of an organization that has begun working toward Quality Management with its Total Quality Leadership Process (Brownlowe, 1991). The Marine Corps has taken some liberties with the principles of Dr. Deming which only reinforces the attitude of doing that which is best for each particular organization.

The military design provides a solid foundation for a fighting organization which is the job of the military. A good argument could be made for viewing law enforcement as a fighting force as well, a force engaging an enemy of crime, and there was a time when that was appropriate. However, expectations placed on police agencies today are not limited to enforcing the law. Devoting energy to designing a more appropriate structure for the law enforcement profession may be a worthwhile venture, but the surest advice comes from following the principle of "concept before design." The culture within the organization is the single most important factor. To change the culture is to change the organization; structural modifications alone will do little to improve organizational quality.

The Need To Change Law enforcement agencies have in the past successfully recruited its work force

from the military. Whether law enforcement sought military personnel or whether military personnel were drawn to law enforcement is not of major importance; there was a mutual benefit. The attraction can probably be credited to the organizational culture similarities.

Baby boomers seek and expect more control over their work environment than non-baby-boomer employees. They're interested in participating in decisions that previously were the sole discretion of upper management (Chanick, 1992, p. 43).

There is a need to modify the traditional paramilitary style of management if we accept the theory that control is a major concern of a large portion of today's work force.

While there is much discussion, there is no consensus on the causes of this country's failing economy. Even more importantly, there is no solution anywhere in sight. If and when a solution is discovered, it will take several years to feel any great effect on society as a whole.

A survey of 620 cities and towns found 54% have negative balance sheets,

up from 52% in 1992. Some solutions: cities are using fewer people to pick up trash less frequently, closing library branches, eliminating fire and police positions, and increasing parking fines (Davis, 1992).

"Fight smarter, not bigger" is a slogan that gained popularity during the Persian Gulf War. It's a principle that will have to become a practice. The law enforcement efforts seem futile in the face of the growing crime rates, even though police everywhere wage gallant assaults, they seem to be losing the war.

Despite law enforcement's best efforts, agencies have not stunted the increase of criminal behavior. For example, during 1987, Florida had the highest crime rate in the United States; more then 1 million serious crimes were reported. In 1988, 1 in 12 Floridians were crime victims. In Florida, a crime is committed every 32 seconds (Staly, 1992, p. 49).

Each tactic, procedure, and process utilized by law enforcement agencies must be evaluated for its effectiveness. This evaluation is best conducted by the experts, the officers that are on the street, doing the job, each and every day.

SECTION THREE: The Past, The Present, The Future The Past

The Ocala Police Department was a traditional police agency. However one aspect of the agency, contrary to many others in the state, is a Chief that has been leading the department for eighteen years. In addition to "The Fourteen Points," Dr. Deming wrote "The Seven Deadly Diseases" which addresses issues that can create problems for Quality Management. Disease #4 addresses the need for a long term commitment to change organizational culture and reflects the affirmative situation in Ocala:

“There’s a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore like an idiot.” -Steven Wright

4) Mobility of management. Job-hopping managers never understand the companies that they work for and are never there long enough to follow through on long-term changes that are necessary for quality and productivity (Walton, 1986, p. 36).

Ocala began its change to Quality Management in 1990 with the realization that a long term commitment was necessary. Traditional management worked in Ocala's past, but times have changed and the challenge for better management has been accepted by the members of the organization.

I am frequently asked, "What are your expectations?" Right now we all should be moving towards gaining the skills and trying to practice the principles; any reasonable progress is acceptable, but behavior that indicates unwillingness or "blocking" is not. Our employees should see a difference. You should:

• Be a "champion" for Quality Leadership, take ownership of the quality leadership philosophy and style.

• Be developing and nurturing to your employees; coach, teach and enable them to be quality leaders or employees.

• Be a role-model, a visible, active, energetic and positive leader by word and example, to practice what we are preaching.

• Be able to begin to demonstrate to your leader, and your employees, with data, your success in meeting the above "expectations." You should be able to effectively answer your leaders question, "How will I know when you are a quality leader?"

Source: Couper & Lobitz. (1991). The Quality Leadership Workbook, Madison, Wisconsin P.D., p.6.

The Present: Laying the groundwork In April, 1990 the Ocala Police Department was restructured from a traditional

organization to one of decentralized district command. The restructuring abolished the Patrol Division and created two operations districts. The goals of the restructuring were: • To improve accountability by bringing specialized units under one geographic

command. • To decentralize authority, thereby lowering the levels of decision making. • To provide an organization that allows for further growth (McGehee, 1992).

Ocala's change to Quality Management began with the Chief supplying the Executive Staff with copies of a Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) Discussion Paper titled "Quality Policing, The Madison Experience." The paper provides a history of the experiences of the Madison, Wisconsin, Police Department as it worked toward Quality Management. To a great degree Ocala has used Madison as a model for its processes.

The next step in the process was to send a member of the Executive Staff for an on-site visit to the Madison Police Department. There are numerous organizations and individuals that "talk" one thing but in actuality do something else. The Madison Police Department is an organization that does what they say they are doing. They are the first to admit they still have a way to go but obvious positive differences exist.

In addition to the Madison Police Department, the Ocala Police Department has received valuable assistance through the Quality Management processes of the Xerox

Quality Forum; Joyserv Company, Ltd., Kaizen; and the Pinellas County Quality Improvement Program.

Instituting Education The information obtained from the on-site visit to Madison was presented first to

the Chief and then to his Executive Staff. The Staff had an opportunity to assess and discuss the concepts of Quality Management and then assist in formulating an implementation plan.

Departmental supervisors were the next group to receive a briefing. The supervisors were not given a copy of the PERF discussion paper but they were provided with an overview. Copies of the paper were then given to those that requested one.

The final step in the initial education process was completed with a departmental wide briefing for nonsupervisory employees. Supervisory personnel answered calls for service which allowed their employees to attend the session. This meeting served two purposes, in addition to the Quality Management briefing, an election was held for the Chief's Advisory Team.

The educational process is a continuous process that must include every employee. Because of the Chief's high regard for continuing education, there has never been a lack training at OPD. The first full week of each year is dedicated to leadership training; all departmental supervisors attend the sessions. This training is in addition to the normal in-service training provided through the Training Management & Assessment Program (TMAP). The 1992 and 1993 Leadership Seminars were both dedicated to Quality Management.

The Processes As was previously mentioned, the department-wide meeting included an election

to determine which members would serve as the Chief's Advisory Team. It can not be overemphasized how important it is that all employees be included in the quality process. There is a tendency in law enforcement to focus on the patrol officers; that attitude is not acceptable. The election provided a team that appropriately represented all sections of the department and has gender and racial balance.

The team named itself the Members Advisory Team (MAT). It is to provide a means of communication between the Chief and nonsupervisory employees. Prior to MAT, the employees were frustrated when their concerns failed to reach the Chief through the chain of command.

Before MAT began working on any suggestions for improvements it participated in leadership training conducted by the Chief. MAT also attended a team building exercise facilitated by the University of Florida titled "Ropes". Ropes utilizes a series of physical obstacles that require the team to rely on its strength as a whole in order to complete the course.

MAT completed its training and developed a process for accepting and addressing the concerns of the employees. Since its formation, MAT has reviewed in excess of forty proposals that examine some process at the department. The examples that follow were selected to illustrate certain points of Quality Management. Some of the issues addressed by MAT may not seem too important, but the team is a firm believer in the

Japanese concept of Kaizen.

Kaizen: continual small improvements; reform;

betterment

The parking lot. The idea seemed innocent enough but this was not a good place to start; the line between traditional management and Quality Management does not erase easily. The Chief, the Executive Staff, and the Investigators all had reserved parking on the back lot of the police department. Citizens (customers) would come into the department to speak to a patrol officer. As they waited, the officer was riding around the block looking for a place to park. Almost without exception there were empty spots on the back lot, but since they were reserved, the officer couldn't park there. The proposal was to eliminate the reserved parking, and the battle lines were drawn. Since this was the first proposal, everything up to this point had been Quality Management theory. Now things began to heat up. After much debate the proposal was passed and when the predicted chaos failed to materialize, the proposal became a policy.

Lesson learned: there is no harm in trying something that can be easily reversed, it just might work.

Light-weight jackets. The officers were issued winter jackets that were heavier than what is normally needed in Florida. The proposal was to allow the officers to purchase their own light-weight jacket with the realization that there needed to be standardization. The proposal was accepted and implemented.

Lesson learned: involve the people that do the job everyday in the decision making process as it relates to equipment purchases.

Handicapped parking warning cards. Community Service officers found that a large percentage of the citations issued for handicapped parking violations were dismissed. The violators had a permit, but simply forgot to hang it on the rear view mirror. The Community Service officers proposed and designed a warning card that could be used instead of a citation when appropriate.

Lesson learned: focus on the customer, continually look for ways to improve quality.

Not long after MAT was formed it became apparent that a vital group of employees had been excluded from the decision making process. The nonsupervisory employees were represented by MAT, and the Executive Staff personally meets with the Chief on a regular basis, but the supervisors (sergeants and civilian) were not in the process. By

way of an election, this group sent three members to the Executive Staff which was renamed the Management Team.

Another process being utilized is that of Self-Directed Teams (SDT) among the motorcycle officers. Prior to the 1990 restructuring, they were supervised by a sergeant. The restructuring sent half of the motorcycle officers to one district and the other half to another district. Instead of creating another sergeant position to fill the void, the self- directed concept was adopted. Again there were incorrect predictions of failure and chaos. These officers have received specialized training and they are aware of the responsibility associated with the team. The team is involved in every aspect of the job, everything from budgets and scheduling to selecting and training new members for the team. Its success can best be described through the following situation: One of the officers was being questioned about his status as a member of a self-directed team. The question was asked "What is so different about your job now that you are self- directed?" The officer responded, "The biggest difference is that now I enjoy coming to work everyday."

The Future A basic tenet of Quality Management is focusing on customers, whether they are

internal or external. The Ocala Police Department believes that if the needs of the internal customers (employees) are met, they will naturally focus on the external customers (citizens). In other words, it is management's responsibility to enable and empower the employees to get their jobs done and to remove the barriers to quality work. That belief does not, however, remove the responsibility of external customer satisfaction from management.

“A leader is best When people barely know he exists Not so good When people proclaim and obey him Worse when they despise him But of a good leader Who talks little When work is done His aim fulfilled They will say ‘We did it ourselves!’”

Lao Tsu, c.565 B.C.

Source: Couper, D., & Lobitz, S. (1991). The Quality Leadership Workbook. Wisconsin, p. 3.

Historically, law enforcement agency performance has been measured by crime rates, number of traffic citations issued, and number of cases cleared. Although these

statistics do provide valuable data, they do not provide the whole picture. A customer survey was developed as a way of measuring performance. The customer survey is sent out every month and provides a measure of overall quality of service.

The survey was designed with input from the employees of the department as well as citizens. Implementation of the survey, along with the other aspects of Quality Management, were factors in Ocala's decision not to seek reaccreditation.

The first area addressed is "How well were you kept informed on the progress of your case?" This clearly was one area that needed some improvement. Using a databased problem solving approach, a possible solution to the problem was put into practice. At the time of this writing the success or failure of the solution has yet to be determined. If the desired results are not achieved, other methods will be employed until success comes.

The most effective manner of communicating the need and desire for Quality Management is through the Vision Statement written by the men and women of the department.

The process of writing the statement took approximately four months. There are certainly faster ways to accomplish the writing of a vision statement, but few would be as effective. Every member of the department had a chance for input, and while some input was through representation, it portrays a department-wide effort. Earlier it was noted that the leader of the organization is responsible for charting the course. In the case of the Vision Statement, Chief McGehee wrote his own version of the statement but kept it to himself until the final stages of the process. The differences between the final statement and the Chief's personal version amount to nothing more than semantics; the themes were the same.

Jack Suess serves as the Executive Officer at the Ocala Police Department. His 15 years of law enforcement experience include service at both the Marion County Sheriff's Office and the Ocala Police Department. In addition to graduating as a Charter Member of the FCJEI Senior Leadership Program, he holds a degree in Criminal Justice. Jack and his wife Darby have two sons, John and Adam.

References Brownlowe, J. F. (1991, December). What's so new about total quality

leadership? Marine Corps Gazette, pp. 19-21.

Carr, D. K., & Littman, I. D. (1990). Excellence in government. Arlington, Virginia: Coopers & Lybrand.

Chanick, R. (1992, January). Career growth for baby boomers. Personnel Journal, p. 43.

Couper, D., & Lobitz, S. (1991). The quality leadership workbook. Madison, Wisconsin: Madison Police Department.

Davis, R. (1992, July 9). 54% of U.S. towns, cities broke. USA Today.

McGehee, L. (1992). Policing tomorrow: One city's vision. FDLE Bulletin, 4,

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Staly, R. (1992, January). American law enforcement. The Florida Police Chief.

Walton, M. (1986). The Deming management method. New York:Perigee Books.