The World of Computer Software/World_Of_Computer_Software-02-387-Vol-3of3.iso/f/fbi92-11.zip/1SERVICE.P01

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November 1992


                    SERVICE QUALITY IN POLICING

                                 By

                      Robert Galloway, M.P.A.
                                Chief
               Brighton, Colorado, Police Department
                                 and
                    Laurie A. Fitzgerald, Ph.D.
                         Senior Consultant
             International Organizational Design Firm
                         Denver, Colorado


     A litany of reasons exists as to why government agencies do
not enjoy a positive reputation for providing products and
services.  The lack of profit motive, which takes away the
incentive to do any more than is necessary, is one reason given.
Others include the absence of competition, which would inspire
service quality and the efficient use of resources, or the
belief that government agencies deal only with citizens, not
real customers.

     Indeed, until recently, government did enjoy the special
status of being a monopoly and operated as the only game in
town.  Because of this, such concepts as profit, competition,
customers, quality, or even the thought of going out of business
did not seem to apply.  Then came the quality revolution.

     Since the early 1980s, a fervor for creating superior
quality in both products and services has been spreading across
the United States.  Every form of organization, from multi-
national conglomerates to mom-and-pop shops, feels pressure to
respond to the demands of a more articulate, knowledgeable, and
increasingly unforgiving consumer.

     Even the public sector, which thought itself to be
invulnerable, faces the realities of a new and demanding
marketplace.  More and more, government agencies recognize that
their constituents wield enormous power.  Today, government
suffers from a loss of respect and credibility, lack of
financial support, and intolerance for error.

THE MOVE TOWARD SERVICE QUALITY

     In 1987, a Presidential mandate directed every agency in
the Federal Government to look for ways to improve the quality
of products and services.  Since then, several Federal agencies,
including the Air Force Logistics Command and the Internal
Revenue Service, have made enormous strides toward improving
their operations.

     State agencies, as well as those in large and small
municipalities, (1) also contributed to the momentum for a
startling transformation in how government conducts its
business.  Slowly but surely, government joined its peers in
private industry in the quality service movement.

     As numerous local, State, and Federal organizations moved
toward quality service, law enforcement was conspicuous by its
absence.  To date, few, if any, examples of innovative approaches
to the improvement of the quality of police services are known,
and those that have taken place haven't received wide exposure.
Yet, there are certain steps that police agencies can take to
start the process of quality improvement in police work.

THE POLICE AND SERVICE QUALITY

     There is little doubt that citizens' expectations of law
enforcement services have changed.  The public is no longer
satisfied with what had been quite acceptable in the past--a
modicum of protection from the criminal element in society.

     Traditionally, the standard police motto "To serve and to
protect" placed emphasis on the latter duty.  Today, citizens
expect far more of police agencies than simply the delivery of
protective services.

     Although protection is clearly a "must have" for most
law-abiding citizens, there are a considerable number of items
on the "nice to have" list, such as professional police
behavior, respectful treatment, maintenance of human dignity,
responsiveness, and value added to life.  In addition, not only
do the increasingly sophisticated taxpayers want to be treated
well, but they also insist on maximum effectiveness and
efficiency in the use of police resources.

AN APPROACH TO SERVICE QUALITY

     Most police administrators are aware of these higher-order
expectations.  They also recognize that if these expectations
are to be met, police agencies must shift their frame of
reference from social regulation and enforcing the law to the
more subtle aspects of social facilitation.  But what is lacking
is an effective, expedient, and practical way to bring about
this shift.  One vehicle that can be used to reach this desired
destination is total service quality (TSQ).

     TSQ represents a fundamental change in how business is done
and how resources are deployed.  Once implemented, its only
expense is the cost of routine operations.

     But TSQ is also a "profit" generator.  If implemented
correctly, TSQ can identify cost-saving measures early.

TSQ: A STRATEGIC TOOL

     TSQ is neither tactical nor programmatic.  Rather, it is a
strategic tool for establishing a new harmony between the
intentions and operations of the police and the expectations and
requirements of the public.  In short, TSQ represents a new way
of doing police work.

     For TSQ to work, the values, roles, motivations, rewards,
and intricate network of relationships that comprise law
enforcement must be systematically and strategically
transformed.  TSQ represents a philosophy and a common set of
beliefs and values designed to improve the success of a police
department in satisfying the needs and expectations of the
community.  Furthermore, it is a system-wide determination to do
everything administratively, technically, and interpersonally
right the first time.

     To understand total service quality, it is necessary to
examine what each word represents to the overall strategy.
"Total" means that each and every one of the department's
members, regardless of rank, tenure, or status, is an active and
willing participant in the delivery of superior quality
services.  It also signifies a full commitment to customer
satisfaction, which should be the top priority of the
department.

     The meaning of "service" in  this context is
customer-driven performance rather than the more common
connotation of servitude.  Karl Albrecht and Ron Zemke, experts
in the art of science and service management, suggest that there
are several "special realities" of service to consider in order
to serve customers correctly. (2) Some of the more pertinent
realities are found in Table 1.

     "Quality" is recognized as the antithesis of waste and
errors, which places the greatest drain on police resources.
Statisticians estimate that in the public sector, 30-45% of
every budget dollar is virtually thrown away. (3) However, when
a department enlists everyone in the war on waste, when everyone
commits 100% of their efforts to error-free performance, monies
otherwise expended on operational inefficiencies, internal
investigations, and grievances and complaints, to name just a
few examples, are freed up for use elsewhere.  This equates to
profit.  Although public service agencies do not traditionally
think in terms of profit, TSQ is a sound economic practice.

SERVICE QUALITY QUOTIENT

     There are two critical factors in the quality quotient
(TSQ = Qf x Qp). (4) Qf (quality in fact) is the degree to which
a service is determined to be both efficient and effective.
This determination is normally made by the supplier of the
service.  Qp (quality in perception) is the degree to which the
customer experiences satisfaction with the service provided.
Because satisfaction depends on the customer's personal
experience, only the customer is qualified to judge whether this
aspect of quality exists.

     If the customer does not experience satisfaction, then the
service cannot be judged as having quality, regardless of the
supplier's opinion.  Even though customers may be incorrect
about the facts, and they often are, only they can judge their
level of satisfaction with the service.  Therefore, when
customers claim dissatisfaction, their reports must be accepted
as the truth.  For example, when a citizen registers an
"attitude complaint" (an objection not to receiving a ticket but
to the treatment received from the issuing officer), saying "I
just didn't like the way the officer spoke to me," this
customer's dissatisfaction with the service rendered is
completely valid.

     The relationship between the supplier's objective
assessment of the quality and the customer's highly subjective
appraisal of the degree of satisfaction experienced from the
service are inseparable.  Unless both are present, the service
cannot be considered to have true quality.  As intricately
related as the two are, in the final analysis, the weight of
judgment rests on the latter.

     In police work, a particular task can be carried out with
utmost precision and still fail to satisfy the recipient.  As a
consequence, the recipient forms a negative perception not only
of the attending officer but also of the entire department, and
perhaps even the profession.  In such instances, total service
quality has not been achieved.  The objective of TSQ is to
manage the customer's experience by efficiently and effectively
satisfying real needs in order to develop a shared perception in
the community that police officers are high-quality,
value-adding service providers.

MAKING SERSVICE QUALITY A WAY OF LIFE

     If TSQ is to become a way of life in a police department,
three essential sources of support--technology, leadership, and
design--must be ensured during implementation.  An effective way
to visualize these three essential sources of support for TSQ is
to imagine an old-fashioned milking stool which, if properly
constructed, can hold an amount of weight many times its own,
although it has only three legs.  However, if any one of these
legs is weak or improperly placed, the stool collapses.

     If TSQ is to have a chance of becoming "the way we do
things around here" in a law enforcement agency, the three
"legs" of technology, leadership, and design must be in place,
and be equally strong.  Technology, the first "leg" of TSQ, is
the complete set of tools, techniques, skills, knowledge, and
methods that together make it possible for service of the
highest quality to be delivered to the customer.  The importance
of technology cannot be underestimated.  Fortunately, it exists
in abundance as a product of scientific advancements made during
the last decade.

     The second "leg" of support is leadership.  Unless people
with power within the agency are willing to be evangelists
directing the way toward police service quality, any attempt to
eliminate "enforcement" attitudes and replace them with
"service" commitments will fail.  In other words, unless the
people who control the resources and make the decisions within
departments are totally committed to make TSQ a reality, it will
never happen.

     Leaders in successful TSQ transitions consistently display
an almost religious zeal when it comes to quality and excellent
service.  They recognize that change will be difficult and that
not everyone in their command will embrace it with enthusiasm.
This is simply because many will need to learn how to see the
job and themselves in a new and unfamiliar way.  Therefore,
strong and courageous leadership that is compassionate but firm
in the commitment to TSQ is required.

     The last, and perhaps the least appreciated, of the three
"legs" in the realization of TSQ is design.  The design of the
organizational infrastructure--the network of people,
facilities, systems, and information--that supports great
service is paramount.  A basic premise of design is that all
organizations are perfectly designed to produce results.  When
the results are less than satisfactory, nothing less than an
improvement in the design will produce more acceptable results.
Attempts to change the results without addressing the underlying
structures that generate them will be futile.

     For example, the issue of steady depersonalization of the
relationship between the police and the community continues to
plague many metropolitan departments.  The classic "answer" to
the problem of alienation has been the adoption of public
relations strategies.  Unfortunately, this solution focuses more
on eliminating the symptoms than on redesigning the underlying
structure that gives rise to them.  If the underlying structure
is examined and treated, the problem could be eliminated.

TSQ AND THE BRIGHTON POLICE DEPARTMENT

     When the transformation of the Brighton Police Department
began in late 1985, TSQ was an unknown entity.  Today, it is the
way this police agency conducts its business.

     By the mid-1980s, the police department had fallen out of
favor with the town's citizens.  Complaints were up, and officer
morale was down.  A lack of confidence in the police department
resulted in strained police-community relations and a poor
public image.

     After a systematic assessment that involved gathering a
mass of data through interviews and direct observation of street
officers and supervisors as they conducted their routine
activities, three primary causal issues became apparent.  These
issues were: 1) The department's flawed "world view" about
people and police work that its officers felt compelled to
adopt, 2) insufficient interpersonal communication skills, and
3) pervasive low self-esteem among officers that was exacerbated
by the low regard in which they were held by the community.

     After a thorough analysis of the findings and lengthy
discussions of available alternatives, department administrators
agreed that treating the symptoms while ignoring the problem
would be futile.  Therefore, they adopted a plan of action that
targeted the following objectives:

     1) To create a service mission that would pervade the
     department's culture

     2) To develop and strengthen interpersonal communication
     skills of all personnel, and

     3) To build the self-esteem and self-confidence of patrol
     officers to improve behavioral flexibility and tolerance in
     dealing with others.  Such changes in the culture maximized
     the gains made.

ADJUSTING THE POLICE "WORLD VIEW"

     The creation of a service mission called for a profound
change in the existing world view.  Policies were established
that, although not popular at first, required the staff to look
at their jobs differently.  For example, if the service mission
was to become a reality, the staff had to become experts in
customer service.

     To this end, the police agency initiated an ongoing
training effort that systematically built up each officer's
capacity to influence and relate to people encountered on the
job in a positive manner.  Thereafter, in all person-to-person
contacts, the agency required officers to demonstrate service to
the customer and to provide a mutually satisfying conclusion to
each and every customer contact.

     In addition, the department called for a "moratorium" on
attitude complaints.  Traditionally, when a complaint was
registered with the department, it met with either a formal,
internal investigation or an apathetic, "I'll look into it and
get back to you" response from the supervisor on duty.  The
majority of investigations into attitude complaints were found
to be inconclusive or management ruled in favor of the employee.
This practice satisfied no one.  Customers were informed that
they and their perceptions were wrong, and the opportunity for
the officer to learn new behavior was lost.

     The moratorium mandated that attitude complaints be
directed to the officer for correction.  If not corrected
satisfactorily, additional action was taken, up to and including
dismissal from the department.  And, even though attitude
complaints were no longer investigated, they were carefully
documented with a view toward early discovery of negative
individual patterns of behavior so that managers could take
preventative and remedial actions.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

     The language "sub-system" that reinforced the prevailing
world view was also scrutinized.  Terms and phrases, such as
"response call" and "victim" were replaced with "service call"
and "customer."  Derogatory terms, such as "dirt bag," were
discouraged after it became clear how such a label could be
applied too easily to any customer being served.  Also, citizens
could perceive the label, even if it was unspoken, just by the
officer's attitude toward them.

     Even the department's motto "To serve and to protect" was
replaced with "We are here to serve you."  This motto is
displayed on all department vehicles and adorns departmental
business cards and stationery.  Although service is regarded as
a primary part of the police officer's job, this viewpoint had
to be strongly championed in order to instill a sense of the
service mission in each officer.

OFFICER ESTEEMM

     While progress was being made on addressing a faulty world
view and interpersonal skills deficiencies through a balanced
combination of training and officer development, the final
objective, building self-esteem, was somewhat more challenging.
Many in the department had developed an overbearing style that
they presented as a way to convince others, and especially
themselves, that they held themselves in high regard.  The
difficulty was that over time, this facade became habitual.

     Because this image interfered with the customer's
perception of excellent service, the management team faced the
possibility that some of the current staff could not be
"rehabilitated."  Recruitment and selection systems were needed
that would infuse the department with service-oriented rather
than enforcement-oriented personnel.

     Therefore, over the past 6 years, the police department's
commitment to total service quality can best be exemplified by
the development of a "model cop" concept--the individual who
best fits the expectations of the community for superior
service.  The model cop concept calls for the right combination
of temperament, maturity, values, social skills, world view, and
tolerance for human contact.

     The fundamental belief underlying this notion is that a
candidate with excellent interpersonal skills and an orientation
to service can be trained to be a police officer.  However, a
recruit lacking the requisite skills and orientation cannot be
trained to deliver good service, no matter how skilled they are
in enforcing the law.  Recognizing this, the police department
initiated the process of engineering police officer jobs to work
toward advocating customer needs.

DOES TSQ WORK IN POLICING?

     Admittedly, TSQ was an "experiment" conducted within the
Brighton Police Department over the past 6 years.  Yet, as with
any valid experimental research, the real proof of success could
be measured only through statistical findings verifying that the
officers were, in fact, customer service-oriented.  The
department's management agreed at the outset that sufficient and
accurate data were required throughout the process so that
success could be measured.

     One element of data reviewed was the number of officer
misconduct complaints.  This review showed that internal
investigations of complaints of officer misconduct dropped from
15 in 1985 to only 2 in 1990.  In addition, attitude complaints
were eliminated altogether.

     Another statistic of particular significance dealt with
employee turnover, which fell from 45% in 1985 to 0% in 1990.
And, there were only two separations from service in the
preceding 2 years, both due to termination.

     One telling productivity measure is the average amount of
free patrol time.  Although the crime rate in Brighton has been
flat or in a gradual decline since 1987, this measure dropped
from 66% in 1984 to only 37% in 1990.  This is a clear
indication of increased community confidence in the police as a
service provider rather than as an enforcement agency.

     These measures can be accepted as proof that TSQ can and
will work to restore fully the confidence of the community in
police agencies throughout the country.  However, the road to
success is not without obstacles.

MAJOR BARRIERS TO TSQ

     Three major barriers to success in the transition to TSQ
became evident in the Brighton Police Department, although many
more may come to light in other police agencies.  (See Table 2.)
First, the sheer inertia that resides in the police culture as a
whole had to be overcome.  This required a dismantling of the
prevailing world view of police work.  The deeply entrenched
"old view" in Brighton was supplanted over time with a vision
that focused on the customer and was driven by a commitment to
customer satisfaction.

     A second formidable obstacle was the seductiveness of
short-term solutions.  The Brighton management team realized
that TSQ could not be institutionalized through training or
policymaking alone.  The real issues underlying the legendary
ineffectiveness of police agencies in providing superior service
to their customers would take time and persistence to resolve.

     Finally, there was the question of the larger system of
which the police department was a part.  It became clear early
in the process that the city organization influenced the
transformation of the police department from an enforcement
agency to a quality service provider.  Depending on the values
and vision of city management, the realization of TSQ in any
department could either be impeded or supported.  Brighton's
police chief found himself spending more time than anticipated
trying to convert the initial resistance to this new way of
thinking.

CONCLUSION

     Significant progress has been made to move the Brighton
Police Department along the right path in the never-ending
journey to excellence in police work.  By embracing the goal of
total service quality, the police department changed the way it
does business in pursuit of unconditional customer and officer
satisfaction.


ENDNOTES

     (1)  This includes the municipalities of Baltimore,
Maryland; Phoenix, Arizona; Fort Collins, Colorado; Bellevue,
Washington; and Asheville, North Carolina.

     (2)  Karl Albrecht and Ron Zemke, Service America! Doing
Business In The New Economy (Homewood, Illinois: Dow-Jones
Irwin, 1985).

     (3)  A.C. Rosander, The Quest for Quality in Services
(Milwaukee, Wisconsin: ASQC Quality Press, 1989).

     (4)  Patrick L. Townsend, Commit To Quality (New York: John
Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1986).

                              * * * * *


                               TABLE 1

                      Realities of Service Work

.  A service is produced and consumed at the moment of delivery.
   It can't be manufactured in advance.

.  Service is delivered through the medium of human interaction;
   therefore, the customer is a co-producer.

.  Service is produced wherever the customer is and delivered by
   people who are beyond the immediate control and influence of
   management.

.  Providing service is emotional labor, not physical.
   Emotional "strength" is ever-more important than brawn.

.  The quality and value of service are internal to the
   customer's personal experience.  The customer, not the
   supplier, is the final judge of both.

.  If the service is not performed properly, it cannot be
   "recalled."  Reparations or apologies are the only means of
   recovery.


                              TABLE 2

                     Major Obstacles in Total
                  Service Quality in Police Work

1.   Perceiving customers as "problems"

2.   Believing police are in a position of authority

3.   Focusing on events rather than processes

4.   Relying on protocol and political expediency

5.   Failing to recognize dependence on the goodwill of the
     community

6.   Preoccupation with short-term results

7.   Inability to listen to the customer

8.   Lack of "customer friendly" language

9.   Staffed by "wrong" people

10.  Inability to see police work as a business

11.  Lack of leadership