Toward a Profession of Police Leadership

Policing is a constantly evolving field - new threats, technologies, crimes and communities all present new challenges and opportunities for policing. Thus, skill sets required by police leadership today differ greatly from those required 20 years ago. In this paper, the authors examine what it means to be a leader within the policing field, and advocate for reframing leadership through the adoption of "learning organizations." Within these organizations, people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire; new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured; collective aspiration is set free; and people are continually learning how to learn together.