JAN. 13, 2006
THE TEAM-BUILDING WORKSHOP, PART I

Every year at this time, all the top police managers for SFPD travel to a cliffside hotel outside the city for a team-building workshop.

We're supposed to be spending the week establishing goals and objectives for the next year. They keep us pretty busy with all the budget breakdowns, motivational speakers, peer evaluations, team building, and every other kind of police-related management crap you can think of.

But probably the most entertaining part of the trip is watching how all the other guys (excuse me, and gals) act. Every year you can see the difference between the old-school and new-school cops even more.

There's always those guys who just bounce from one assignment to another, trying to build up an impressive resume and catch the eye of their superiors. Then there's the cops who rely on all the fancy new technology and barely even leave their desks. That kind of attitude really gets me, because that's not what being a cop is all about.

In my day, we learned that there's no substitute for experience - for being out in the streets, talking to people, watching body language, being in direct contact with the victims and the crooks and the perps.

The really good cops, in my lowly opinion, are the ones who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty out in the field. Well, not literally dirty, but you get what I mean.

And some of these new guys seem to forget that being a good detective is about being able to read and respond to different people and situations. That's the kind of thing you can't learn in a classroom or sitting at your desk.

Thank goodness I run a small division, and we can still do things the way they should be done, with face-to-face contact. If that makes me old-school, well, I can live with that.

It can be pretty interesting to watch everyone fall all over themselves kissing the butts of the Commanders and the Chiefs. The competition for attention is hilarious and sickening at the same time.

Honestly, some of the managers should have never made it out of a radio car. When I arrived, I passed by one of those guys, who I knew years back. He's a Commander now, would you believe, and must have done a lot of brown-nosing to get there. He has yet to make eye contact with me.

I can't blame the guy. I'd be embarrassed to even show my face around other cops if I was him...

(continue reading "The Team-Building Workshop")