Strategic management is increasingly important in the public sector. Public sector organizations are incorporating strategic management principles in an effort to enhance organizational effectiveness and efficiency. In any organization, “strategic management is the center of all managerial activities” (Doss, Guo & Lee, 2012, p. 33). This underscores the importance of effective strategic management. Strategic management is particularly important within the context of law enforcement. Law enforcement organizations must have a specified vision and mission as well as goals and objectives. For a police department, the goals and objectives must be informed by both internal and external factors, such as available financial resources and personnel, crime rates, and socio-cultural setup. During strategic planning, the department must, for example, consider whether it has the resources and personnel needed to respond to crime, prevent crime, and to enhance public safety.An important aspect of strategic management relates to stakeholder involvement. As an organization, the police department is surrounded by a multiplicity of internal and external stakeholders. Internal stakeholders mainly include police officers and police leaders. The department works with or is affected by several external stakeholders, including the state government, elected officials, correctional personnel, court personnel, the media, communities,...

Each of these stakeholders has its own unique needs. It is imperative to take these needs into consideration during strategic planning. The leadership of the police department must carefully acknowledge each stakeholder group and respond to its demands (Mitchell & Casey, 2007). For instance, police officers demand reasonable remuneration and adequate equipment, while communities demand a safe and secure society. Also, the department may require the assistance of court and correctional personnel in matters such as prosecutions and investigations.
Identifying stakeholders and their needs has played a crucial role in increasing the effectiveness of the police department. For instance, the department’s community policing initiative has succeeded largely because of extensive involvement of the community it serves. The department has strove to work closely with community leaders and members in developing and implementing its community policing strategy. This approach has led the department to discover critical perspectives it might have left out without involving stakeholders within the community. Involving stakeholders in strategic planning has also helped the police department improve its relations with the public. In most cases, police-public relations are not cordial, particularly due to the public’s distrust of the police (Mitchell & Casey, 2007). By working closely…