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| Mastering the command cycle |
| By Jerry Harper, Chief Probation Officer |
| Published: 07/16/2007 |
Editor’s note: Chief Probation Officer, Jerry Harper, shares some of the tactics he uses to help facility leaders better manage risk by maintaining a consistent approach to planning and training for incidents.Recently, I gave several four-hour classes to supervisors stressing the importance of leadership and risk management. Frequently we call upon our education, training and common sense to handle incidents that happen unexpectedly when dealing with minors. What we sometimes lack is a structured and consistent approach for planning and training ourselves and our staff. I have found the “Command Cycle” a most useful tool for creating understanding among students; it brings home the inseparable bond between leadership and risk management. All supervisors are “leaders” and they are also “risk managers.” We operate as professionals in a high risk environment. The need to use force presents risk of injury to staff and minors as well as lawsuits. Failure to prevent a suicide can traumatize officers and nurses trying to save a life. Escapees can hurt innocent people in neighborhoods into which they escape. Any of these critical incidents can bring praise or discredit to the agency or individual officers. But we can use the “Command Cycle” to examine our policies, training, supervision, and inspections prior to a risky incident. Then we can evaluate the event to determine whether or not we need to change these factors and even change our methods. For maximum efficacy, the cycle is repeated over and over and over. Supervisors have a responsibility not only to leaders/managers above them, but also to the officers, nurses, cooks and those they lead. Outstanding leaders anticipate crisis and avoid them when possible, thereby not exposing their staff or the department to danger. Outstanding supervisors can not always prevent a crisis any more than Tiger Woods can avoid losing an occasional golf match; but properly utilizing the Command Cycle, and other supervisory tools, can vastly increase the chances that the response to the crisis will draw praise and not criticism. For instance, an officer with a penchant for walking in front of unhandcuffed minors presents an opportunity for a manager to intervene in a constructive way before an assault takes place. Construction materials left by construction workers, could prove useful for assault or escape, but could also offer another opportunity for correction and prevention. Regardless of the situation, the key to the Command Cycle’s success is utilizing these principles consistently and daily, not sporadically or once in a while. Jerry L. Harper is the Chief Probation Officer for the County of San Bernardino in California. He oversees the Probation Department’s programs and overall operations, including three juvenile detention facilities. He also directs a staff of approximately 1,200 full-time and part-time employees Prior to this appointment, Harper was Director of the California Youth Authority (CYA) for three and one-half years where he oversaw 11 institutions, 4 camps and 16 parole offices, the largest such youth corrections agency in the nation. He also has served as a private consultant and teacher on a variety of law enforcement issues he dealt with during his 37-year tenure with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department before his employment with CYA. |
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