01-16-2001 - Police Department Team Building WorkshopTO: Daniel G.. Hobbs, City Manager
and City Council
FROM: Frank J. Wills, Chief of Police
• City -of West Covina
Memorandum
AGENDA
ITEM NO. C-6h
DATE JANUARY 16, 2001
®PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
SUBJECT: POLICE DEPARTMENT TEAM BUILDING WORKSHOP
SUMMARY: In light of the recent re -organization and numerous staff promotions, the
police department is requesting City Council support to participate in a
teambuilding workshop sanctioned and paid for by the Commission on
Peace Officer Standards and Training.
BACKGROUND:
The California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) supports
the concept of team building among California law enforcement agencies to the degree
that it funds over 40 professionally facilitated team building workshops throughout the
state each year. To further demonstrate P.O.S.T.'s support, they authorize departments to
participate in team building workshops as often as once every 2 years. The West Covina
Police Department has not participated in such a workshop in over 5 years. With the
recent re -organization and re -structuring, Department personnel would greatly benefit.
from this teambuilding workshop. The Department anticipates that twenty staff
members will attend. This includes all staff members at the rank of Sergeant and above,
except those needed to provide oversight for on -duty personnel
DISCUSSION:
Many tenured staff members have recently retired and management and supervisory
positions have been filled by promotion. The police department is in a position to focus
on common goals, pro -active crime reduction strategies, expanding Community Policing,
and improving customer service. Oftentimes, these workshops are designed to correct a
problem, fix a pre-existing .malady or to rework tired policies and attitudes. None of
these apply to the West Covina Police Department. We intend to focus on building a
leadership team within the Police Department. This will allow it to move forward with a
unified purpose and an enhanced ability to meet, the needs of the community.
P.O.S.T. provides an approved list of professional facilitators to conduct these workshops
and puts forth specific guidelines and reporting criteria for follow-up. A specific work
plan is generated at the conclusion of the workshop detailing.what action items are to be
accomplished.
The Police Department is sensitive to the fact that these types of workshops can
sometimes perceived as costly bureaucratic junkets or a waste of public funds. However,
the reality is that all costs associated with this workshop are fully paid for by P.O.S.T and
absolutely no general fund money or city dollars will be used.. . The Commission on
Peace Officer Standards and Training fully funds these teambuilding workshops because
of their proven effectiveness in improving and strengthening, California Police
Departments.
P.O.S.T. recognizes that workshops conducted at or near the workplace itself can often be
diminished in quality by interruptions, participants being called out for work related
duties and interference from routine demands on their attention. .It also makes evening
workgroups and meetings less practical. P.O.S.T. encourages these workshops to be held
off -site, generally in a hotel setting where distractions are minimal. Departments are
required to hold their workshops within 100 miles of the job site and we are considering
several sites in Orange County.
To 'insure professional management oversight, we will be keeping tenured managers and
supervisors' in West Covina to be in charge of day-to-day operations. Executive staff will
be available for consultation by pager, phone and radio and all personnel will remain
within a one -hour response window from the City.
The requested activity is not a retreat or a convention. It is a professionally managed
team -building workshop that requires effort from all participants and results in a written
work plan produced by a P.O.S.T. approved consultant.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fee for the consultant ($3,935) and the costs for hotel rooms and meals (about
$2,500) will be fully reimbursed by P.O.S.T. No costs to''the City of West Covina will be
incurred.'