Consulting

Consulting Services for Police and Criminal Justice Organizations

Strategic Planning

The use of this technique helps chiefs to get the whole organization to participate in identifying and taking ownership and accountability for the department's priorities. It helps to get "every brain in the game" and to allow organizations to clarify their assumptions and address the problems that need to be addressed. It is a very effective tool for making organizational change.

"Jim has demonstrated a remarkable capacity in the way he approaches strategic planning, facilitated discussions, and the promotion of planned change. He brings a style that encourages and excites participants in planning sessions that has proven to be extremely productive."
— Commissioner Robert C. Haas, Cambridge Police Department

Organizational problem-solving

Every police department has underlying tensions and issues that serve as stumbling blocks to progress. We can help the chief identify and address these obstacles by using a highly-participatory problem-solving approach that builds ownership and accountability, especially in middle management and supervisory ranks, for both identifying the problems and developing solutions. Sometimes you actually eliminate the obstacles. Sometime you can get people so focused on doing better that they forget about the obstacles or wear them down by crossing over repeatedly. The outcome is the same: less precious time on what we can't do and more on what we can do.

"Liz is a skilled facilitator and strategic planning consultant. She can distill the key areas of agreement and difference in a discussion, and pull out the important ideas. She has a light but clear touch, that can help a group move through a complex process. And, she's funny in a productive way."
— Sally Waldron, Vice President, US Division, World Education

Learning to solve problems between officers and within police departments

Anti-crime strategy

Jim has been fortunate to have had in his career a wealth of exposure to some of the best practitioners and thinkers in anti-crime strategy. He draws on first-hand experience with Commissioner Bill Bratton and Jack Maple in Boston, on what would become "Compstat" in the NYPD; with the BPD Youth Violence Strike Force with Commissioner Paul Evans, Sgt. Paul Joyce and Lt. Gary French and later Harvard police strategist David Kennedy on Operations Cease Fire and Nite Lite; and scholarly work with Dr. George Kelling while studying at Harvard's Kennedy School.

We bring the great ideas behind these strategies, combine them with the knowledge and insights of local personnel and apply all this to the particular circumstances and conditions in your community and department. Our mission is to serve as a resource in crafting effective, efficient anti-crime and order maintenance strategies customized to your needs and aspirations.