Fontana Police Department

Memorandum To: Frank Scialdone, Chief of Police From: Corporal M. Senior and Officer R. Morris Date: April 7, 2003 Subject: Mentoring Program Issue: The purpose of this memorandum is to propose the implementation of a structured mentoring program for newly hired employees of the Fontana Police Department. Background: Since March, 2001, the Fontana Police Department has hired 57 new employees of which 12 were released, for various reasons, prior to completing their probationary status. Twenty-four of these 57 employees were sworn officers with six of them being released prior to the completion of their probationary period. This represents 21% of all new hires being released and 25% of all sworn officers being released from employment prior to the end of their probation. The Department expends not only financial resources but also an inordinate amount of employee resources in the processing of all new hires to the agency. Department personnel, as well as the Human Resource Department, must devote time and resources to each applicant with both the time and money increasing as the applicant moves through the hiring process. Once an applicant is offered a position, both the City and the Department have made a significant financial investment in the professional success of the newly hired employee. Once such an investment is made it is in the best interest of the organization that the employee continues to develop and become an integral member contributing to the continued growth and well being of the organization. One method which is currently being used in the increased retention of new employees is mentoring. Successful mentoring programs have a large number of benefits, not only to the employees but also the organization. Employees are offered a smoother transition into the organization as well as a greater understanding of the organizational culture and history, enhanced work skills, and the ability to identify future career goals to name just a few of the benefits. Productivity and efficiency skills may also see improvement. In turn, the organization experiences increased employee retention, increased job satisfaction and loyalty, and the development of professional identity for employees.

The first written account of mentoring occurs in Greek mythology when Odysseus’ son, Telemacus, was mentored by a family friend. Mentoring has continued throughout history, in various forms, and is currently used by many major organizations and companies throughout the world. Included in these organizations is the United States Department of Defense that now uses mentoring programs to insure the development of the next succession in leadership within their organization. Innovative police departments are now beginning to look ahead for methods of increasing employee retention as well as developing their future line of succession for leadership positions. Many of these departments are developing mentoring programs for their organizations that help in achieving these goals. Proposal: This proposal will explore the development and implementation of a Department wide Mentoring Program which would be inclusive of both sworn and non-sworn probationary employees. With the development of a structured Mentoring Program for probationary employees, the Department could not only assist these new employees with their transition into the organization, but also begin to engrain the entire organization with the benefits achieved through mentoring. The Mentoring Program would formally consist of a Mentor Coordinator who would oversee the program, a Mentor Advisory Group who would offer support and advice to the Coordinator, mentors and protégés. It would be recommended that the Mentor Coordinator be either a Sergeant or Lieutenant position. More important than the rank would be their belief in the program and their desire to see not only the program succeed but to see all of the participants succeed within the organization. The Advisory Group would consist of several employees from throughout the Department that would represent each area where mentors would be utilized. It would be recommended that the Advisory Group be represented by sworn officers (2), records (1), dispatch (1), community service officers (1), and community policing technicians (1). The Mentor Coordinator and Advisory Group would seek non-probationary employees who express a desire to become a mentor through a memorandum procedure. The Advisory Group would then meet and discuss the attributes of mentor applicants and make a recommendation to the Mentor Coordinator. The Mentor Coordinator would then provide additional comments and forward their recommendations to staff. Mentors would then be selected by staff and receive fundamental training in the program and other areas of importance such as active listening, mentoring philosophies and leadership. This mentor training would be developed and facilitated by the Advisory Group. Mentors should include employees from all areas of the organization including both sworn and non-sworn assignments. Mentors must possess outstanding interpersonal skills, communications skills and a sincere desire to assist with the success of their protégé.

The Mentor Advisor and Advisory Group should meet when needed to discuss potential new mentor/protégé pairings. They should also discuss new mentor applicants, training issues, and any other items relevant to the program. Mentors should be allowed to attend these meeting to offer comments or concerns arising out of the program. Once mentors have been trained and are prepared to receive protégés all newly hired employees would be introduced to the program and be afforded the opportunity to participate in the program. Participation should be mandatory of all new employees in order to reduce any hesitation to participate. New employees who participate in the program would then be paired with a mentor. This pairing would be the result the Advisory Team meeting and discussing the pairing possibilities of mentors to protégés. The mentor/protégé pairing would consider many varying factors relating to both the mentor and the protégé. Those factors may include, but are not limited to, age, sex, personal interests, career goals, education, personalities, etc. This pairing could be assisted by a personal/career questionnaire form that would be completed by both the mentors and all potential protégés. The Advisory Team would make a recommendation to the Mentoring Coordinator who would be responsible for the final decision on mentor/protégé pairings. The Coordinator may, at their discretion, make adjustments or changes to the pairing either initially or during the mentoring process should the need arise. The Coordinator would then advise both the mentor and the protégé of the pairing. Once a mentor/protégé pairing has been made the mentor will make contact with the protégé for introduction. The mentor will personally meet with the protégé to discuss scheduling issues and program objectives. Mentors will also acquaint the protégé with the Department, fellow employees, etc., and insure that methods of contact between the mentor and protégé are established. Afterwards, the mentor and protégé should meet or have contact at least monthly. This could be done through “paybacks” or during their regularly scheduled shift as time allows. Protégés must realize that they are encouraged to contact their mentor more often than monthly if the need arises. To accomplish the goal of meeting monthly, mentors will at times need to have flexibility with their payback schedule so that they may adjust sometimes in order to meet with their protégé during convenient times. This scheduling adjustment would be handled through the Mentor Coordinator. Due to the fact that the protégé may at times have questions or concerns about the Field Training Program it is recommended that a mentor should not be assigned their protégé as a trainee. Although Field Training Officers may be mentors, the assignment of a protégé to their mentor as an FTO may result in less open communication and the viewing of the mentor as a supervisor and less of an open line of communication and a resource for advice. Once the protégé completes the FTO Program the mentor/protégé relationship should continue throughout the protégé’s probationary period. At the completion of the protégé’s probationary period the structured mentoring program would conclude. The protégé would be asked to complete a confidential questionnaire to assist in improving the Mentoring Program and mentors.

Issues: There are numerous stakeholders involved in the implementation of a formal Mentoring program in the Fontana Police Department. These stakeholders would include the community, the Department, department personnel, as well as both the mentors and protégés. It is believed that all of these stakeholders would benefit from the program in some way. Benefits to the program would include better new hire retention, more adaptable employees, quicker assimilation into the organization by newly hired employees, the providing of a support system for new employees, and career development for both mentors and protégés involved in the program. Long term benefits would include the assimilation of informal mentoring throughout the organization as “buy in” occurs from other employees and the benefits are noted by employees throughout the organization. One goal of this program should include the focus on selecting qualified female and minority mentors throughout the Department. This would allow the Department to further increase its attempts to retain and develop new female and minority employees. The long-term goal of this effort being that they remain with this Department and begin to move into supervisory and management positions in greater numbers and offering more diversity to the organization. Deputy Chief Julie Williams, of the Lansing (MI) Police Department originally developed and implemented a program very similar to this proposal in their department. While researching this proposal Deputy Chief Williams was contacted regarding the success of their program. She related that the program has been extremely successful to not only the department, but also all of the employees involved. She attributed a higher employee retention rate, quicker assimilation into the organization and more employee loyalty to their program. Deputy Chief Williams also authored an article in the March, 2000, issue of the “FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin” which also discusses their success with the program (see attachment). Drawbacks to the program would include scheduling problems and changes being required when needed to accommodate meetings between the mentor and protégé. It would be recommended that payback days be utilized whenever possible and when requested by the mentor to provide additional training or address other issues. Another drawback to the program may occur as the result of FTOs feeling as if the Mentoring Program is usurping their authority or function. This could easily be counter-acted by presenting the Mentoring Program to the FTOs and obtaining their “buy in” prior to the implementation of this program. The FTO should see the Mentoring Program as another “tool in their bag” and as a resource that they can utilize to further assist their trainee when needed. Informal mentoring already occurs on a limited and selective occasion during the probationary period within the Department. With the implementation of a formal and

structured program it can be ensured that every probationary employee be afforded this opportunity. With the addition of a formal mentoring program it is hoped that supervisors will also find less of a need to become personally involved in minor issues that would be better suited for the mentor/protégé relationship. Specific problems such as additional firearms training, report writing, or public relations concerns may be addressed through the mentor before escalating to a serious nature. Program Costs: Although no exact cost can be placed on the implementation of this program it is anticipated that the cost, if any, would be very minimal. No equipment is needed for the program. All meetings between the Mentor Coordinator, the Advisory Group, mentors and protégés could be conducted during normal working hours or with rescheduling or with payback dates if needed. Overtime would not be needed, with the exception of unusual needs or circumstances, and then would only be authorized by the Mentor Coordinator. Once mentors are selected a one-day training course would be recommended. Again, this course could be accommodated through reassignment or the use of a payback date to avoid any cost. Training: Once mentors are selected it would be necessary to provide training and an overview of the Mentoring Program to them. This training should consist of a one 10 hour block (in house) and could be facilitated by the Advisory Group. This training is outlined in the attachment entitled, “Overview of the Mentor Program.” Both mentors and the Advisory Group members could either be reassigned from their regularly scheduled shift or utilize a payback day to accommodate this training day. Attachments: Overview of the Mentor Program Mentor/Protégé Criteria and Guidelines FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin (March 2000) Recommendation: It is recommended that the Fontana Police Department implement the above described Mentoring Program for all newly hired employees of the Department.

The Fontana (CA) Police Department’s Mentoring Program

An Effective Strategy for Employee Development in a

Medium Sized Agency Background The City of Fontana is located approximately 50 miles east of Los Angeles and approximately 150,000 residents live in our jurisdiction. One hundred and fifty sworn officers and sixty five non-sworn support personnel provide law enforcement services to the community.

In the year 2000 the Fontana Police Department, under the direction of Chief Frank Scialdone, developed a strategic plan that was to act as a blueprint for the organization through the year 2005. Through the strategic planning process it was determined that our organization would benefit greatly from a formal mentoring program. Chief Scialdone was firmly behind this idea and made it clear that he desired to see this become a reality in our organization.

As is often the case with some of the more ambitious goals in a strategic plan, it became difficult to find the time to develop this program because of other responsibilities and issues that caused the mentoring program to become a lower priority. This actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise because eventually an officer, as part of a leadership training course, decided to take this project on. Officer Bob Morris wrote an excellent proposal to our Chief, gathered support from department staff and his co-workers, and was truly the driving force behind the development and implementation of this program.

What is a Mentor?

According to Webster’s Dictionary a mentor is “a trusted counselor or guide.” The first written account of mentoring occurs in Greek mythology when Odysseus’ son, Telemacus, was mentored by a family friend. Mentoring has continued throughout history, in various forms, and is currently used by many major organizations and companies throughout the world. Included in these organizations is the United States Department of Defense that now uses mentoring programs to insure the development of the next succession in leadership within their organizations. While still not widespread in law enforcement, this concept is beginning to take hold as innovative police departments are now beginning to look ahead for methods of increasing employee retention

as well as developing their future line of succession for leadership positions. The development of mentoring programs can help achieve these goals. In Fontana we consider mentors to be someone of a similar job description from various levels and ranks within the Department. Newly hired employees are required to be paired with a mentor and are assigned to officers or non-sworn personnel of similar jobs and ranks. This pairing occurs shortly after the acceptance of a job offer. Newly promoted personnel are voluntarily assigned to mentors of the rank they promoted to. We do not require regular meetings or contact, however they are encouraged. The mentor and protégé will get out of the program what they put into it. The feedback received so far from both mentors and protégés has been very positive. Why Develop a Formal Mentoring Program? Successful mentoring programs have a large number of benefits, not only to the employee but also to the organization. Every organization has its own identity or organizational culture. New employees coming into the organization are offered a much smoother transition and a greater understanding of the organization’s culture and history. This program also has the potential to help new employees enhance their work skills and identify future career goals. In turn, the organization should experience increased employee retention along with increased job satisfaction and loyalty. While developing his proposal, Officer Morris researched our retention rates for newly hired employees, both sworn and non-sworn. Between March 2001 and March 2003 the Fontana Police Department hired fifty seven new employees. Twenty four of these employees were sworn and thirty three were non-sworn. Of the twenty four sworn employees, six were released from employment prior to completing their probationary period. Of the thirty three non-sworn employees, six were released from employment prior to completing their probationary period. This represents 21% of all new hires being released and 25% of all newly hired officers being released from employment prior to the end of their probation. Considering the amount of time and money any organization spends on hiring new employees, particularly new officers, we found these to be unacceptable numbers and strongly believed that we could improve sworn and non-sworn retention rates by implementing a department-wide mentoring program. To add to our concerns regarding retention rates and the development of our future leaders, most agencies in California, including Fontana PD, have recently adopted the “3% at 50” retirement system, which encourages retirement at age fifty. As a result of this very favorable retirement system, many agencies are losing senior people at an alarming rate. In Fontana, where we have not been hit nearly as hard as some other agencies in California, we are beginning to experience this rapid turn over at all levels of our organization. During the period of January through August, 2004 we will see a new chief, two of our three captains will be newly promoted, and four of our seven lieutenants will also be promoted during this time period. Nearly half of our sergeants and corporals will also turn over and dozens of new officers will be hired to back fill all of these promotions. This does not include the expansion in the number of our officers that will be needed to keep up with the approximately 5,000 per year population increase our city is projected to experience over the next fifteen years while our community is building out. The combination of all of these factors caused us to believe that a mentoring program had the potential to greatly ease some of the turmoil our agency will be experiencing for the next several years.

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Development and Implementation In our case, we had the good fortune of having a motivated and ambitious line level officer take ownership of this project from the beginning. There really is no better way to sell a program such as this to the troops than for them to know that one of their own was deeply involved in the development and implementation phases of the program. Officer Bob Morris wrote an outstanding proposal and brought in Corporal Mike Senior to assist him with selling the proposal to both staff and line personnel. Corporal Senior also assisted with putting the program together after it was approved. After reviewing the proposal, Chief Scialdone gave it his blessing. We quickly put together a Mentoring Committee to move the process along. The committee consists of a captain, lieutenant (program coordinator), sergeant, corporal, officer, and two non-sworn members of the Department.

The Mentoring Committee met several times to discuss how best to develop and implement the program. We put out information to members of the Department explaining the program and accepted memos of interest from those employees who desired to be mentors. The committee developed brochures, overtime guidelines, pairing questionnaires, and program evaluation materials. Once this process was completed we moved into the most critical aspect of development and implementation – selection of mentors.

The Fontana Police Department currently has 40 mentors including both sworn and non-sworn personnel or slightly less than 20% of our Department has mentor status. Selection was merit based and not all applicants were accepted into the program. Once mentors were selected we had them fill out a pairing questionnaire that asked for information such as hobbies and interests, marital status, career goals, prior work and law enforcement experience, educational levels, etc. We have protégés fill out the same questionnaires and use these to match protégés with the mentor who seems to have the most in common with them. After the pairing takes place, the mentor is notified and directed to make an initial contact with his new protégé and explain the program and what the mentor’s function is to the protégé.

This seems to have had the most impact on our new hires who are attending the academy. During this intensive six month period, the recruits rarely interact with Fontana PD employees because they are training off-site at the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Academy. Our mentors have been visiting the recruits at the academy and the feedback from both the recruits and mentors has been very favorable regarding these contacts. It gives the recruits a sense of belonging to the organization that they did not previously have and connects them directly to an officer who can assist them in many ways during the academy training period and beyond. These contacts also make a very good impression on pre-service recruits who may not yet be hired by a police department and are looking for a good organization to go to.

While protégés are in the field training program, we ensure that their mentor is not assigned as their FTO for obvious reasons. The mentor is designed to be a friend, helper, advisor and confidant – not an evaluator or critic. We also make a point of instructing our mentors not to become involved in the training of his or her protégé unless there is a specific request by a field training officer or field training supervisor. Training conflicts would certainly dampen the enthusiasm of personnel for the program.

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Conclusion There really is no “down-side” to this type of a program. The workload is minimal for committee members and it costs next to nothing to organize and run the program. The workload is even less for the mentors who are merely required to make the initial contact and are encouraged to check in regularly with their protégé from that point on. We are assigning a new employee or offering a newly promoted employee a friend, in essence, to help him or her through that early, awkward phase of being the “newbie” and hopefully making that employee loyal, happy, and more productive in the future. If for some reason our program evaluation shows that we did not improve our retention rates we will still continue to keep the program in place for a very simple reason – it just makes good sense to offer assistance to newly hired personnel and make them feel welcome and part of the team from day one.

About the Author

Lieutenant Alan Hostetter is currently assigned as the Mentor Program Coordinator for the Fontana Police Department. He has been in law enforcement for 17 years and is currently assigned as the Investigations Unit Commander. Lt. Hostetter holds a bachelor’s degree in Workforce Education and Development from Southern Illinois University and a Masters degree in Public Administration from California State University at San Bernardino. He is a graduate of the 212th session of the FBI National Academy. He can be reached by e-mail at ahostetter@fontana.org. Officer Bob Morris was recently promoted to corporal and will be promoted to sergeant this summer.

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Pacifica Police Department

August 2009

Sgt. Joe Spanheimer Sgt. Duane Wachtelborn

Sgt. Dan Steidle

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Behind every successful person, there is one elementary truth: somewhere,

somehow, someone cared about their growth and development. This person was

their mentor.

-Dr Beverley Kaye

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BLOCK #1 (1 hour) Introduction Instructors/Facilitators Course Outline Welcome and comments from the Chief “Man vs. Mission” –Group Activities Course Philosophies Summary of the Mentoring Program BLOCK #2 (2 hour) What is a Mentor?- Group Activities Responsibilities of the Mentor BLOCK #3 (2 hours) Listening and Communication Skills Potential Mentoring Tasks BLOCK #4 (3 hours) Mentoring Scenarios-Group Activities Comments and Suggestions

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(Block 1)

Introduction Instructors/Facilitators: Sgt. Joe Spanheimer Sgt. Dan Steidle Sgt. Duane Wachtelborn Mentors: Each mentor will introduce themselves to the class. They should include their law enforcement experience, and leadership, teaching or coaching experience in and out of law enforcement. Course Outline Welcome and comments from the Chief Questions to the class: What is a police officer? (vs.) What does a police officer do? Answering these questions will give us a foundation to work from. The answers will generate not only a list of tasks that we perform, but more importantly, a list of qualities will be identified. Those qualities enable us to hold a position of trust and help us excel in our jobs. “Man vs. Mission” –Group Activities The class will watch a segment from Saving Private Ryan. In the clip, the Captain, played by Tom Hanks, discusses how complaining travels upward. Summary of the Mentoring Program

The Pacifica PD mentoring program began as the result of the team-

building workshop in 2008. Rather than re-inventing the wheel, the Fontana PD program was used as a model. It’s a program that has been used as a model across the United States.

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The mentoring program begins its first installment as an 8-hour in-house course. Supplemental training will be given on a continuous basis. Mentors will receive annual refresher training.

Course Philosophies

The aim of the course is to provide younger/probationary officers with

mentors (big brother/big sister officers) to help guide them through probation and into a successful career in law enforcement. The course will provide survival skills and the “keys to success” to not only the new officers, but the mentors as well.

(Block 2)

Natural Mentoring Natural mentoring occurs all the time and always has. It happens when one person (usually senior) reaches out to another, and a career-helping relationship develops. Research shows this type of mentoring most often occurs between people who have a lot in common. This is because we are usually more comfortable with those who are most like ourselves. (Discuss how questions in the oral board relate to questions asked to the protégé and how it affects pairing.)

Mentors in your life

If we were to take a look back through our lives, we would each acknowledge at least one person who played an influential role in who we became as a person. It might be a family member, a friend, a co-worker, or maybe even a celebrity that we never even personally met. Who were these people? And most importantly, how did they each affect who you would become? (Have everyone discuss an example of a mentor in their life.)

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Why is mentoring so important to organizations?

Helps retain the next generation of leaders (73%)

Improves leadership and managerial skills (71%)

Develops new leaders (66%)

Enhances career development (62%)

Puts high potential individuals on a fast career track

(49%)

Promotes diversity (48%)

Improves technical knowledge (30%)

Helps manage knowledge within the organization

A Mentor is… � Advisor

� Sponsor

� Tutor

� Advocate

� Coach

� Protector

� Role Model

� Guide

Benefits – Mentee/Protégé � Improved ability to manage conflicts

� Opportunity to work with partners

� Assistance in learning organizational politics

� Successful programming start

� Quality programs that show impact

� Engenders a feeling of “belonging”

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Benefits – Mentor � Engenders organizational respect

� Reinforces goals/mission of organization

� Provides new and refreshing ideas

� Promotes collaboration and partnerships

� Contributes to performance appraisal

� New perspective of own behavior

� Promotes personal growth

� Develops new perspectives on work and organization

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The Heart of Mentoring

Mentoring partners who continuously work at building, maintaining and growing their relationship are more likely to achieve successful learning outcomes and mentoring satisfaction than those who do not. Learning is the primary purpose, process and product of mentoring.

The Role of a Mentor Before we define your responsibilities as a mentor, ask yourself, “Is it your goal to…?”

1. Provide a welcoming atmosphere that will anchor the new employee to the organization.

2. Provide a career development mentoring process to help employees identify and map out career targets.

3. Begin a mentoring program that ensures the continuity and quality of the next generation of police leaders, or all three.

The Responsibilities of a Mentor

1. Encourage and model value-focused behavior. 2. Share critical knowledge and experience. 3. Listen to personal and professional challenges. 4. Set expectations for success. 5. Offer wise counsel. 6. Help build self confidence. 7. Offer friendship and encouragement. 8. Offer guidance, give feedback and cheer accomplishments. 9. Discuss and facilitate opportunities for new experiences and

skill-building. 10. Assist in mapping career plan.

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Is servant leadership fundamental to mentoring?

“The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. He or she is sharply different from the person who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions. For such it will be a later choice to serve – after leadership is established. The leader-first and the servant-first are two extreme types. Between them there are shadings and blends that are part of the infinite variety of human nature. The difference manifest itself in the care taken by the servant--first to make sure that other people’s highest priority needs are being served. The best test, and difficult to administer, is: do those served grow as persons; do they, while being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become servants? “ R. Greenleaf quoted in http://www.greenleaf.org/leadership/servant-leadership/What-is-Servant-Leadership.html

What does it take to be an effective mentor?

Respect

Listening

Observation

Asking questions

Feedback

Self awareness

Knowledge

Experience

Time

Commitment

Skill

Anything else?

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The First Meeting

The first meeting sets the tone of your entire mentoring relationship. It can be a little bit uncomfortable—for both of you! Make this meeting as comfortable as possible.

Call your protégé to schedule a meeting Pick a comfortable meeting location Help your protégé prepare (tell them the purpose of

the meeting) Prepare yourself (what do you want to get

accomplished) Be on time

S.M.A.R.T. Objectives Objectives should include 5 attributes: � S – Specific, very defined

� M – Measurable, increase in numbers,

sessions, etc.

� A – Achievable or attainable within the

time frame

� R – Realistic

� T – Timed, indicating an ending point

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Use of appropriate questions What questions might be appropriate in the following situation? Situation: The new employee has difficulty articulating their needs/goals for the mentoring relationship. What questions might you, as the mentor, ask? Possible Questions:

• What do you want to get out of this relationship?

• Do you feel there is more that you are after from me as

a mentor? If so, what?

• How can I, as your mentor, better cater for your

needs?

• Can we discuss what you would like to accomplish by

the end of the year?

Do & Don’ts (Just a few)

Do � Initiate and support the relationship

� Create atmosphere of trust and friendship

� Take time and schedule

� Set goals

Don’t � Be too judgmental

� Rescue

� Give advice without being asked

� Do or take responsibility of protégés work

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The Six C’s of Mentoring Clear Expectations: Have the Mentor and the Mentee clearly communicated their expectations for the mentorship and expected outcomes? (Later in the program, goal-setting will be discussed.) Context: Do each of you understand why you are participating on the mentorship? (Realistic expectations should be established.) Commitment: Are each one of you committed to one another in the success of this partnership? Communication: Are each of you willing to share you thoughts, ideas, and constructive feedback? Coordination: Is your mentoring experience being coordinated well by your organization? Are they assisting in the collaboration? If not, seek the assistance that is needed. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Cultural Change: Are you both ready to “create a new culture” and learn and discover in an equal partnership? (Obtain buy-in.)

The Process of Mentoring

Connect, Establish Rapport

Communicate, Observe, Assess

Consider Teaching Strategies, Execute

Teaching

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(Block 3)

Legal Issues & Mentoring In order to adhere to the Fair Labor and Standards Act, better known as FLSA. The following guidelines were set forth by the department. Program is voluntary The majority of contacts should be made during work hours. It is the goal of the department to use as little overtime as

possible. Overtime may be approved by your supervisor for special

circumstances. Confidentiality issues.

FTOs vs Mentors

What is the difference between a mentor and an FTO for a new employee?

The role of the mentor and FTO are distinct, yet compliment each other. The role of the FTO is to train and develop effective police officers. As required during field training, the FTO evaluates the recruit’s performance on a daily basis. The mentor’s role is supportive and relational. Mentoring is not performance evaluation. Mentors contact the new employee and assist with transitioning them into the police department by answering questions and serving as a resource. The mentor is not a supervisor. In this program, we have sought to create mentors who would not have a supervisory relationship with their protégés. While it shouldn’t be, rank can oftentimes be intimidating and can get in the way of open dialogue, especially where new employees are concerned. The mentor must be aware that situations may arise where they can become aware of violations of policy, procedure, or even the law. Mentors have a responsibility to the organization to make supervisors aware of those incidents should they arise. This is something that will be made clear to mentors and protégés when entering into a relationship. *** LUNCH BREAK***

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The PPD Culture PPD’s History Pacifica PD was formed in 1959 a few years after the city was incorporated. The city itself was formed from a series of beach communities which has its own individual flavor. Employer Expectations Productivity- quality vs. quantity Just how does the new officer obtain “quality”? Loyalty How is it expressed? Support Initiative Problem identifying Problem solving Employee Expectations Solid employment Hiring quality employees Promoting quality supervisors Training Support Consistency Defense- citizen complaints/Ias “Room” Citizen Expectations “A Tradition of Community Service” Responsiveness Responding to call Contact with citizens How would you want the police to responded if your grandmother

called? Preventing crime Solving crime An example- Citizens want their officers to be the best officers possible.

The want the officers to engender the qualities/beliefs they hold as a community.

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Anyone who has lived life, knows that people see things differently.

Opposing sports teams see plays differently. Witness at crime scenes give varying suspect and vehicle descriptions. It’s all a matter of Perspectives. The way in which we look at things, affects what we see. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNdekYNzvzA)

As a mentor, you need to be aware of the “big picture” and how many

perspectives exist. Help the protégé to understand those as well. Will you and/or the protégé may not agree with other perspectives, you must recognize that they exist, appreciate them, and be aware how they may have developed.

Listening & Communication Skills The Pygmalion Effect (self-fulfilling prophecy)

We are the finest police department in San Mateo County. Is this a true statement? Give the protégé positive reinforcement. (Discuss example of 2nd grade class test.) How does that apply with new

officers at PPD? Successful employees “dress” for the job they want, not the job they

have.

Dealing with Mentee’s Fears New officers are often unsure of themselves. They’ve passed the academy and our field training program, but may feel like they are adrift in the ocean because they are now on their own. They may need direction to find themselves. What kind of officer will they be? Assist the officer in: Goal setting Building their “hero sheet” Building their resume

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Use positive affirmations

Officers can often have a negative (defeatist) attitude. Help get them out of that rut. Don’t let them prove themselves right. (One example)

Is the protégé having a real bad day? Is he or she in a rut? Have them write 10 of the best experiences on a piece of paper. On the other side, have them write their 10 worst experiences. In writing, the protégé will visualize each of those experiences. You don’t need to see the experiences (and probably shouldn’t), but talk with the protégé so they understand how much they’ve overcome, how much they’ve accomplished. John Wooden, one of the winningest coaches in college basketball history, got his first title after 16 years!

Find the teachable moments to help the protégé learn by example, whether yours or theirs. Provide support without “rescuing them”. If possible, assess if the protégé learns by seeing, hearing or doing. Have them use a method which helps them best accomplish that goal. Keep their expectations realistic. They are new officers. Avoid perfection; demonstrate authenticity and realness.

Talk about situations/aspects in which new officers have control. Explain how while outside influences do exists, they should not focus on them. Race care drivers, as an example, do not worry about what is behind them as much as they concentrate on what’s in front.

(Give Pete Carroll’s example of standing on a table- to put things in

perspective.)

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Recognizing Stress

As a mentor, a protégé may confide a variety of subjects with you. One of those subjects will understandably be the stress that he or she feels. We’ve all encountered stress in our lives and it can be a healthy thing. Stress can make us stronger by prompting (forcing) us to confront and overcome obstacles. Stress can come from internal or external sources.

SOURCES OF STRESS Individual Factors Environmental Factors Knowledge, Attitudes Citizens, Co-workers, Beliefs, Motivation, Family, Supervisors (toxic) Self-efficacy Work Schedule, Opportunities We all deal with our stress in different ways. Depending on the nature of your relationship with your protégé, you may observe negative (or detrimental) ways in which stress is demonstrated.

Indicators of stress

Physical Behavioral

Peer counseling concepts Perspectives Understanding of Larger Cultural and Political Issues Shared Responsibility Being Held Accountable Not Using Symptoms As An Excuse For Bad Behavior Empathy and Accountability

Giving and Receiving Critical Feedback Learning To Work Through Conflict

Resources

Utilize the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Mental health professionals Church, clergy Other

Supervisor notification

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Relationships

As a mentor, you are going to be providing quite a bit of information and guidance to a newer employee who knows little, if anything, about or and the department. In order to gain that person’s acceptance of you as their mentor, it’s critical that you work to build trust and credibility. Building Trust � Offer personal thoughts and genuine feelings

� Share related personal examples

� Provide direct, realistic assessment

� Express confident view of appropriate risk-taking

� Make encouraging statements

� Make statements which require reflection

Building Credibility � Ask questions to clarify perceptions

� Review individual choices

� Make strategic comments

� Offer remarks showing respect

� Maintain confidentiality within the

relationship

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(Block 4) Movie Review The class will watch the movie Glory. Afterward, the following points will

be discussed:

Soldiers of "Glory"

Our choice for a movie about leadership is the 1989 film "Glory." This film, nominated for six Oscars and won three, told the little-known story of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry -- the first all-black unit in the America Civil War. The cinematic portrayal of this regiment of "Colored" soldiers provides a study of various aspects of leadership. The traditional treatment is to follow the development of Robert Gould Shaw who was offered and reluctantly accepted command of the regiment. After being wounded as a captain and then appointed as colonel, Shaw was charged with raising the unit, training it for war, and leading it in combat. Throughout the movie, we see the growth of Shaw as a leader who learns to empathize with and then love the black soldiers of the regiment. We also see a group of people -- not fully members of American society -- join a dangerous enterprise for many reasons but who stay together with a sense of purpose for themselves, a calling to service for a greater good, and for each other. We see the emergence of leadership from the unexpected -- a gravedigger who becomes the regimental Sergeant Major and the runaway slave as the informal leader who finds his identity with the unit. The closing scenes in the movie showed the leader, Colonel Shaw, insisting on the opportunity for his men to engage in combat against a formidable force. The men of 54th-its white officers and black enlisted soldiers-knew the odds as they headed into battle side by side.

In that act, they were just Soldiers committed to the mission and who led themselves to Glory.

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Mentor Relationship Officers will be selected to mentor academy level and probationary officers. Corporals will be selected to mentor probationary Corporals. Sergeants will be selected to mentor probationary Sergeants. Non-sworn employees in a non-supervisory level may mentor other non-sworn employees. Job title will be considered when pairing non-sworn employees. Mentor Selection Criteria Minimum 2 years officer experience, off of probation.

Educational Requirements-

- 30 College units -OR- completion of, or current assignment in, a special assignment/collateral duty

(This indicates a maturity level, interest in the department, and the ability to multi-task and grow within an assignment.)

Review of evaluations. - Should show average to above average statistics and below average report rejection rate

Background - Should not have excessive citizen complaints, POBs or reprimands - Should be perceived as being content/happy with job - Should be someone who easily interacts with other officers and is approachable - Should present a good impression in uniform, maintaining uniform and equipment in

good shape Oral Interview - Pass a brief in house oral board designed to show working knowledge of new role and

how it relates to the FTO program and not to conflict with FTO direction (not all mentors, in theory, will be FTO's)

Officers’ memos of interest will be screened according to the process mentioned above. Those qualified officers will be invited to participate in the oral interview. Names of applicants passing the interview and receiving recommendation from the panelists will be forwarded to the Administrative staff for final approval. The initial panel will be comprised of the original Mentoring Committee members. After being selected as mentors, officers will participate in an initial 8-hour mentor training program as developed by the committee and approved by POST.

Loyalty

Accountability

Responsibility

Rialto Police Department

Mentoring Program

“Committed to Our Community”

A Historical Perspective “If you do not plan for the future, don’t worry about it, someone else will do it for

you.” How true this statement is and organizations that fail to apply it as part of their vision

will quickly see the ramifications. Whether it is looking at long-term financial stability, or as

in this issue, if a formal mentoring program will have effects on the leadership competency

of a law enforcement agency, planning is not just a good device to use; it is a necessity.

Mentoring programs are a means by which organizations can plan for leadership succession.

Mentoring occurs both formally and informally. Informal mentoring occurs with a

protégé identifying a mentor, and using him or her as a role model. Informal mentoring in

some cases also occurs with a mentor identifying a protégé and assisting in his or her career

development. The informal form of mentoring is generally the most prevalent. Formal

mentoring differs in that there is a structured program the mentors and protégés follow. As

with any type of formal process, accountability is vital. Mentors and protégés may be

required to complete evaluations of the program along with other forms of documentation.

There are positives and negatives associated with both informal and formal mentoring

programs. The factor tipping the scale towards a formal mentoring program is availability.

A formal program is available to all employees who desire to participate whereas informal

mentoring can be seen as selective.

Mentoring allows for the development of the organization’s most valuable resource,

its employees. Many in today’s workplace believe in offering valuable assistance to their

colleagues who are striving to improve themselves, their organizations, and society.

Mentoring enables individuals to gain experience and ability sooner in their given profession

and allows organizations to move towards their goals. Mentoring benefits every employee -

civilian and sworn, veteran and rookie, male and female. Mentoring operates on the

assumption that people relate more readily and positively to peer assistance than to

supervisory direction. This is especially true of individuals who do not have a high level of

confidence. Having an individual they can go to and feel comfortable asking questions of,

goes a long way in the learning process and insures things are done correctly. Mentoring can

be helpful and effective as an employee moves to higher levels of responsibility.

Mentoring Overview

Mentoring dates back to Greek mythology, where a friend of Odysseus was entrusted

with the education of Odysseus’ son, Telemacus. Webster defines mentor as, “a trusted

counselor or guide, coach.” Mentoring is not a concept that is foreign to law enforcement

professionals, whether formal or informal. It is something that has touched everyone in one

way or another.

Mentoring in law enforcement begins the first day of a recruit’s career, when he or

she has an opportunity to meet his or her tactical officers in the academy. These individuals

become the recruit’s mentors for the next twenty-three weeks of their lives. The recruits

graduate from the academy and then begin a Field Training Program of twenty to twenty-five

weeks. The agency provides the recruit with several field training officers; tasked with

instilling the necessary skills to insure the recruit’s safety and allow him or her to become a

productive part of the organization by giving him or her a foundation to build on. This

period of time is stressful for the new officer who has gone from the safe environment of the

academy where mistakes only require remediation to an environment where mistakes can

result in lawsuits, injuries, and occasionally the loss of life. It is during the field training

process the greatest numbers of officers leave the profession by choice or by failing to

successfully obtain the necessary skills needed by a law enforcement officer.

A formal mentoring program vanishes in most organizations after completion of the

field-training program. This is unfortunate, as some individuals will not have the

opportunity to benefit from having a mentor to lead them through the maze of the

organization. Mentors can provide new officers with the organization’s history and provide

insight into how to avoid obstacles in their quest for advancement. It is almost as if

organizations insure that basic training is completed and then leave it up to the individual to

develop his or her leadership skills by trial and error.

When there is not a formal mentoring program, some individuals will seek out those

they see as role models and follow their example. This could be good or bad for the protégé

depending on whom he or she chooses as a mentor. If the protégé chooses a malcontent as a

mentor, this could result in creating another malcontent within the organization, whereas a

protégé who chooses a shining star will have a higher probability of becoming a shining star.

This particular concern with an informal mentoring program is more applicable to the early

molding stages of an officer’s career than later stages. In later stages, he or she has a better

foundation to use when selecting a mentor.

Mentoring programs for law enforcement agencies continue to become more

important as the life experiences of applicants continues to decrease. Through the 1980’s, a

large portion of applicants for law enforcement positions had military experience. Today’s

applicants are more likely to have no military experience and to be living at home with his or

her parents, both of which slow the life experience process.

Mentoring programs can have a direct effect on the retention and progression of

women in law enforcement. Women report they often feel isolated when they join the

department and have no one to whom they can turn to for advice or support. A formal

mentoring program will provide them with an individual to assist them in their progression.

It would appear on the surface that there would be nothing negative associated with a

mentoring program; however, a program that assists in career advancement can have pitfalls.

The issues of concern become known when the integrity of the program is questioned. To

minimize this, organizations must insure mentoring programs are mandatory or, at minimum,

available to everyone interested. The availability and selection of mentors should be the

most important components of a program. The matching of mentors to a protégé will

require a needs assessment to insure the relationship is not adversarial. Mentors must be the

cream of the organization; their integrity, values, ability, knowledge, and loyalty can only be

of the highest level. Mentors provide their perspectives and experience to others in an effort

to allow for career development.

Leadership Competency

Leadership competency is an evolutionary state for any agency. The experience and

knowledge needed by today’s leaders is overwhelming and constantly changing; twenty

percent of what is known today will be obsolete in one year. Leadership requires a

determination to move the organization forward on a foundation of ethical and professional

conduct. This requires law enforcement agencies to begin to mold leaders not just for

tomorrow but for the future. The number of experienced leaders today is shrinking in part

because of the three percent at age fifty retirement program and because there are a smaller

number of individuals who are willing to make the commitments required. Lack of interest

in upper staff positions, especially those for Chief of Police, is becoming more prevalent.

This factor in and of itself is a reason organizations need to step back and take a long look at

what is being done or more appropriately not being done to develop future leaders. The

need for competent leadership within a law enforcement agency can be summed up by the

following five axioms:

The best predictor of the overall department performance is the quality of its

leadership.

Leaders are made, not born!

Leadership development is the #1 concern of most organizations today,

public, and private.

Leadership skills need to exist at every department level, not just at the top.

The complexities involved in leading police agencies are increasing, not

decreasing.

Mentoring programs both formal and informal have been used successfully for

hundreds of years. Law enforcement uses mentoring extensively in the early development of

officers through field training officer programs. One of the current needs for law

enforcement is to adapt mentoring programs to enhance leadership development of

employees.

Implementation Plan

The implementation stage is where any faulty planning will be visible and

adjustments will need to occur. This will be a critical stage in the implementation of formal

mentoring, as it will set the tone for the program. Once implementation begins, planning

does not disappear: it changes from short term to long term. Both stages need to work side

by side to fine-tune the plan. One way to accomplish this is by following the Ten

Commandments for Implementing Change. This will allow for the successful execution of

the plan. The Ten Commandments are:

1. Analyze the organization and its need for change

2. Create a shared vision and common direction

3. Separate from the past

4. Create a sense of urgency

5. Support a strong leader role

6. Line up political sponsorship

7. Craft an implementation plan

8. Develop enabling structures

9. Communicate, involve people, and be honest

10. Reinforce and institutionalize the change

During the implementation of a mentoring program, the transition manager

will need to pay close attention to the police officers involved in the program. This will

decrease in importance if the program is voluntary not mandatory. As indicated previously,

the internal stakeholders will have a major influence on the effectiveness of the program.

Listening to their concerns and making the appropriate adjustments will help to insure the

successful implementation of the program.

Responsibility Charting

A key to a successful transition plan is to determine responsibilities for each step in

the process in an effort to reduce wasted time and effort. The identification of persons who

have a responsibility for either action or decision-making is the first step in the process. The

next step is to identify the particular activities which are crucial in the change process. This

can be broken down into three categories: Develop Program, Implement Program and

Evaluate Program. Each of the categories would encompass several objectives or tasks. The

Development category would include: preparing a written document of program, identify

participants and the preparation of a budget. The Implementation portion would consist of:

the matching of mentor and protégés, providing time needed to become acquainted and the

opportunity to change matching. Finally, the Evaluation portion would consist of a written

document containing both a statistical analysis and an overall perspective of the program

from both the mentors and protégés.

The charting then requires a determination to be made on the involvement of each

individual for each activity. Once the assignments are made, a timeline can be generated to

provide a guideline for the transition. Responsibility charting provides a written document,

which allows everyone to know who is responsible for which aspect of the plan and when

completion will occur. This is of benefit as it minimizes duplication of effort while

maximizing accountability for the assignments.

Commitment Plan

The commitment plan is a strategy used to affect the change effort. Identifying the

stakeholders is the first step of the commitment plan. Implementing a formal mentoring

program will involve the commitment from the following: chief of police, command staff,

police officers, police officer’s association, city manager, and city council. The next step is

to determine the critical mass needed to effect the change. Critical mass is not meant to

relate completely to numbers. Critical mass could occur with relatively few individuals who

have significant influence over the group. Determining the critical mass for a mentoring

program involves a minimum of three stakeholder elements: the chief of police, who will

provide the administrative direction, the mentors, and the employees who will be the

recipients of the program. There must be some form of commitment from the other

stakeholders, not necessarily that of complete commitment. The key elements need to have

the commitment to make it happen, the others can take the position of letting it happen or

even helping it to happen.

The development of a plan to obtain the needed commitment from these stakeholders

sometimes can be the largest obstacle to overcome. To obtain buy-in the employees will

want to see how they can benefit from the program. The officers must be confident that it is

not just another flavor of the month, that there are safeguards in place to protect them by

maintaining confidentiality, and that it is not for just the fair-haired boys and girls. To

accomplish this, there needs to be involvement from all the stakeholders from the inception

of the planning process. Obtaining commitment and buy-in from the officers will allow

information concerning the program to flow freely throughout the organization. Then, as

with any program, there must be a system set up to monitor the progress and

accomplishments.

Implications for Leadership

The development and implementation of a mentoring program will create challenges

for the leadership of any law enforcement agency. The leaders will be the ones who are

responsible and accountable for the administration of the program. Paying close attention at

the start to the critical elements of the program will help minimize criticism. The areas of

concern and where focus should be given are:

Selection of Mentors

Training of the Mentors

Program Integrity

Internal Sabotage

Constant Program Evaluation

Evaluation

The evaluation phase is one often left out of the planning process. Traditionally,

plans or changes are implemented and then there is no follow up to determine if the

completed work accomplished the desired results. The evaluation phase of determining what

effect a formal mentoring program will have on the leadership competency of a medium-

sized law enforcement agency can use quantitative and qualitative means to measure the

successfulness. Quantitative measurers will include looking at the number of qualified

applicants for promotional opportunities, number of adjustment problems of those promoted,

and number of leaders who enhance their careers with other agencies. Qualitative measures

will look at the morale of employees as it relates to the program. The use of a program

evaluation will provide additional information regarding the quality and usefulness of the

program. The program evaluation would be completed by the protégé before being assigned

a mentor and then by both the protégé and mentor at the conclusion of the assignment. This

will assist in the continual evolution of a mentoring program as adjustments are made to

enhance the leadership potential of all employees.

Managing the transition phase of implementing a formal mentoring program involves

obtaining the collaborative effort of all stakeholders. The individual selected to manage this

transition must have the ability to deal with individuals at different levels within and outside

the organization. If he/she is successful in this endeavor, the institution of a mentoring

program will have the capability of enhancing the leadership capacity of the organization and

its members.

Recommendations

Law enforcement agencies must be prepared for the challenges of the future,

equipped with leaders who are willing to step to the front. There is an identified system

which will enable agencies to build on the leadership competency and do so while improving

the overall effectiveness of the organization. A formal mentoring program will accomplish

this task. While there is no activity or program that can ensure the development of leadership

competency, a mentoring program will enhance the opportunities. Agencies who are willing

to spend the necessary time to develop and implement a formal mentoring program using the

roadmap previously described will see an increase in leadership competency throughout the

organization.

Conclusions

During the last ten years of the nineteenth century, mostly due to the information

highway brought to everyone through the Internet, we have seen change happen at an

astonishing rate and there is nothing on the horizon that would lead us to believe this pattern

will change. Law enforcement currently is faced with a critical turning point by which no

proactive action could place some agencies in a position of having no leadership to take them

into the future. Traditionally, law enforcement agencies have done very little to promote

leadership-related training. Programs offered by the International Association of Chiefs of

Police along with the F.B.I. National Academy have tried to address this concern, but the

need has outweighed the availability of training. It has only been in the last fifteen years that

programs such as Supervisory Leadership Institute and Command College have provided

advanced leadership training to help fill the void. Now faced with a need for leadership

competency because of retirements and growth, organizations may not be prepared. The

creation of a formal mentoring program within a law enforcement agency will provide

individuals with: the abilities needed to assume leadership roles in the agency, a more

consistent perspective of the organization, and supply a higher quality of employee

throughout the organization. The number of formal leadership positions within an agency is

few in comparison to the number of employees. While a formal mentoring program will

provide leaders to assume those positions, it will also provide additional opportunities to

individuals who were exposed to the program.

The goal of a mentoring program is to cultivate one-to-one partnerships between new

and veteran officers that will encourage employees to reach their fullest potential as law

enforcement professionals. A mentoring program will be an extension of the existing field-

training program and will be available throughout the organization. Focused on providing

leadership competency, a mentoring program will provide for an organizational culture that

instills doing the right thing all the time. Organizations, which subscribe to an atmosphere

of enhancing the capabilities of their employees, will be the ones that blaze the trail into the

future while the others will spend their time fighting forest fires.

Obtained from website The Whittier Police Department Mentoring Program is one of the first of its kind in Los Angeles County. The Department values each and every employee and is highly committed to their development. We understand transitioning to the world of law enforcement can be extremely challenging. This progressive program is committed to assisting employees by providing an understanding of departmental culture, policies and procedures. This is accomplished by creating a welcoming, positive and professional work environment. Mentors are successful and dedicated veteran employees who are formally assigned to newly hired police personnel (Protégés) for the purpose of guiding and supporting them in the early stages of their careers. A mentor will also outline future paths of career development for their protégé to help ensure their careers are as rewarding and fulfilling as possible. The relationship established between the mentor and protégé is one that is based on trust and is designed to promote positive growth for the employee as well as the future of our Department. The Whittier Police Department Mentoring Program is a vital component to the recruitment, development, and retention of our employees.