Strategic Planning and Performance Evaluation for Operational Policing

LIKE MANY PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANISATIONS, POLICE SERVICES HAVE HAD to pay increasing attention to strategic planning in recent years. This has been precipitated by community and government calls for improved accountability, and the accelerating pace of reform within police services. In responding to this need, police services are experiencing many of the problems familiar to large organisations which have grappled with planning. Obstacles such as poor training, inappropriate planning methods, inadequate communication, lack of information, and resistance to change are limiting the ability of police to develop and implement effective plans. This paper reviews modern approaches to planning and evaluation, and summarises the key elements of planning in large organisations similar to police services. These elements include the top-down communication of corporate vision, goals and core values, and the involvement of operational staff in planning and evaluation at the business unit level. Operational staff have a particularly important role because they are well positioned to assess the needs of customers, and their expected reactions to new corporate directions. They are also well placed to evaluate the impact of altered services or products. A simple model to help operational police with their planning responsibilities is proposed in this paper. The model utilises the existing skills of operational police in observing, interviewing, and collecting and interpreting information. It guides police through all stages of the planning cycle, and suggests how to build commitment for strategic plans with local communities and the police service itself.