That a man has done something a long time doesn’t necessarily equate to adeptness at doing it. Take me for example. Promoted in June 1997, I’m the most tenured uniform sergeant in a department of 800 sworn personnel. This is a sufficient period of time, some might say, to indicate stagnation a person who has failed to achieve his or her potential.
What business have I got writing a column on supervision? My signet of authentication isn’t a dazzling curriculum vitae. I possess neither multiple degrees nor a vast training file. Instead, I’m a practical lawman of 21 years experience, one who prides himself on being a quick study; much of what I assimilated over the years has come via observation of bad supervision and employing the opposite tack after I got promoted.
You supervisors and managers may claim a different combination of traits and characteristics make for good supervision. What follows are my criterion. My tenents of supervision are not presented in a particular order of importance, but I believe they are inexorably intertwined.
Command presence
Does your uniform look as if you sleep in it? Boots look like you’ve been kicking hogs in the hindquarters? Dry cleaning is cheap and tax deductible, and five minutes with a can of Kiwi and cotton balls does wonders for your leather gear. How about your physical condition? You should engage in at least rudimentary strength and anaerobic training. When a good sergeant arrives on call, he or she looks the part from their uniform to the shape they’re in. Presence is the first step on the force continuum for a reason; if you’re crude and slovenly in dress and appearance, or if you’re so unfit you couldn’t run across the street to save your own life, you lack command presence, putting you at a disadvantage every time you step out of your cruiser.
Assertiveness
Little diminishes your ability to lead like hand wringing and indecisiveness. Line officers would rather work for a crass, ill-tempered supervisor than someone rendered combat ineffective each time a critical incident unfolds, e.g. a vehicle pursuit, officer involved shooting or other use of force incident, civil unrest, etc. Years ago, a sage police manager encouraged me to “take the power” to be assertive in decision making. In doing so he argued, a supervisor could wield as much practical influence as someone a full rank above them. He was right, and I embrace that mantra to this day. You sergeants: take the power, because if you’re unwilling or unable to make decisions, the weakness will show in your work and the quality of police officers who seek assignment to your crew. (That latter point is salient, as my success sustains itself in part because I’m surrounded by successful people.) In the final analysis, if you’re a shrinking violet by nature, you’ll never be a good leader. Sorry.
Empathy
After your promotion, you may no longer be one of the guys, but that doesn’t mean you cannot remain one with them as you carry out your duties. I cringe when I watch new sergeants adopt the mission of assembly line quality control, picking away at the slightest miscue made during their officers’ shift. Your duty is to mentor, encourage and enable, not to trip your cops up or nitpick them on every bit of minutia coming across your desk. Memo: a facet of mentoring is participation in the officers’ daily activities. You have to make some radio calls with them, supervise in real time, and get your hands dirty to prevent forgetting where you came from. In short, if you’re not empathetic toward your people, you’re lost.
Courage
Courage is a cornerstone of good policing and very much for those who take on the responsibility of supervision. Courage under fire, both literally and figuratively, is a quality officers will seek to emulate if you demonstrate it. I ventured onto the killing fields of Von Maur before any of my radio-dispatched subordinates made entry, yet courage in the face of death is only half the story. A sergeant is obliged to articulately and professionally defend his officers when they are affected by draconian policy. You provide a buffer between worker and sometimes out of touch managers up the chain (e.g. the person who either forgot his or her DNA or never amounted to much of a police officer to begin with). Cowardice and leadership do not commingle, period.
PMA
Quirky policy, tight budgets, poor infrastructure, media scrutiny, and the ignorant carping of so-called community activists have a deleterious effect on officer morale. Departments are increasingly trying to do more with less and the tension among the rank and file is palpable. Positive mental attitude PMA is indispensable. We cannot allow ourselves to get mired down in negativity. Were I so inclined, I could bemoan our local working conditions every morning during my briefing with the troops, but bad morale is in most instances prophesy of a self-fulfilling nature. And despite the black eye we occasionally suffer in the arena of public opinion, policing remains an honorable endeavor and has proven to be largely recession-proof. Don’t lose sight of those realities, especially when so many citizens are getting the axe in the private sector.
The sergeant rank is absolutely vital in any agency. Your job is to influence people and effect change, so if you apply yourself, you can both curry favor with the administration and earn the respect of your officers. If, on the other hand you’re unable to make decisions, are unwilling to defend your guys, and can’t help but be a chronic complainer, frankly it might be time to consider another vocation.
