Chief Fortier Role

The internal roles exhibited by Chief Fortier and Chief Davis differed dramatically. After reviewing the case studies, I feel Chief Fortier’s possessed the internal role of a manager. Upon assuming the position of chief in the Riverside Police Department, Chief Fortier’s primary objectives were to revamp the administration, install modern police systems, and establish a community-policing program (Cordner, 2016). I believe Chief Fortier exclusively exhibited traits as manager because he updated organizational goals, and implemented new policies and procedures, but he failed to elicit adequate support within the Riverside Police Department. The internal role of leading requires a police administrator to lead by example, and show employees

how their efforts contribute to valuable outputs (Cordner, 2016). In the cases study a deputy chief states that Chief Fortier’s lacked vision and only possessed an agenda for change, which I believe reinforces Chief Fortier’s internal role as a manager (Cordner, 2016, p. 491).

Now that we have discussed Chief Fortier internal role as a manager, let us examine Chief Davis’ internal roles as a manager and a leader. Chief Davis made it priority to develop a strategic plan for the Lowell Police Department, and he generated a variety of internal operational and administrative changes (Cordner, 2016). Chief Davis utilized his talented and dedicated staff to carry out his vision for the city of Lowell, which displays traits of a manager. Additionally, Chief Davis desired to facilitate open dialogue between the community and police department, which he accomplished by hosting a community between his command staff and community members (Cordner, 2016). I believe this directly demonstrates the internal role of a leader because Chief Davis set a vision and lead by example. After discussing the internal roles of each Chief it is now important to analyze the external roles of both Chief Davis and Chief Fortier. Chief Davis’ external roles included politics, utilizing other government agencies, and partnering with the community (Cordner, 2016). Chief Davis actually enlisted the help of a local senator to establish the Lowell Police Department’s mission statement, and he worked closely with the city’s government

(Cordner, 2016). Also, Chief Davis fostered a relationship with the department of schools and the local university (Cordner, 2016). Due to the community partnership that Chief Davis established, a local businessman generating two hundred thousand dollars through a fundraiser that allowed the police department to purchase a mobile precinct (Cordner, 2016). I believe these examples effectively illustrate Chief Davis’ external roles in politics, other government agencies, and the community. Chief Fortier external roles were restrictive, and his primary external roles were dealing with police unions and the media. Chief Fortier attempted to formalize the labor agreement, and he distributed booklets of the new agreement to all employees generating unpopularity throughout the department (Corder, 2016). Also, Chief Fortier used the local newspaper to report specific crimes, which shows an attempt to incorporate the media (Cordner, 2016). In conclusion, these chiefs displayed varying internal and external roles during their tenure’s as police administrators.

References

Cordner, G. W. (2016). Police Administration, 9th Edition. Waltham, MA: Routledge Publishing.