Active Learning Discussion
Respond to the stated question, including any relevance to and implications on the field
of criminal justice. Be sure to discuss the issue(s) to which the question pertains.
Remarks can include your opinion(s), but must be based on experience, research, and/or
prior learning. Use this exercise to foster a rich dialogue with your colleagues about
issues that are important to the field of criminal justice.
During the span of the discussion, you must post to this board on four unique days.
Your initial posting must be no less than 300 words and is due no later than Thursday
11:59 PM EST/EDT. The day you post will count as one of your required four unique
postings.
You will also be required to post responses to at least three of your colleagues' initial
postings. Responses must be no less than 100 words, be posted on at least three unique
days, and are due no later than Sunday at 11:59 PM EST/EDT.
INITIAL POST
Assignment
There are many qualities a good leader or manager must possess to be successful. Your
assignment is to:
• Discuss the characteristics of the best and worst manager you have worked for.
• What made them good or bad?
• How did they handle conflict in the workplace?
• Based upon your readings, what do believe are the top three things a correctional
manager must do to be successful.
POST 1
Reginald McKelvin posted Apr 7, 2019 10:57 PM
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1. The best manager i've worked for.
The best manager that I had the pleasure working for, was a relief lieutenant at the last
correctional facility I worked at. This Lieutenant was one of the most effective leaders I
knew for a multitude of reasons. (1) She was firm, fair, and consistent. She made it her
business to ensure that all her staff as confident in the post they worked, taking into
account their workload for the week. (2) She handled conflict with staff in a effective
way. I remember one day I had gotten into an argument with another shift supervisor in
the OIC office. The lieutenant sat both of us down, and mediated the entire conversation
explaining the pros and cons of our decisions and helping us understand how to deal
with conflict more effectively in the future. She indeed was an effective leader.
2. The worst manager i've worked for.
The worst manager I worked for was also a lieutenant. But, she was assigned as the full time shift OIC. She was as ineffective as they came. She falsified paperwork on a daily
basis. Allowed the supervisors she was acquainted with the most have unlimited power
with staff. They constantly forced officers to work overtime, allowed personal feeling to
decide on where staff was posted, and they withheld information depending on how they
felt and if it would make their job more difficult. This Lieutenant allowed some of the
most ethical behavior I had ever seen. She didn't favor handling conflict. Usually
concealing any conflict on the shift, and when she couldn't conceal the issue, she
threatened and demeaned staff with disciplinary action and threats that made them
either resign or request a shift transfer.
3. How are the weekly readings related?
For a correctional manger to be effective in dealing with conflict and managing/leading
staff they must:
(1) Take an empathetic approach - Always be an open listener. Correctional leaders must
listen and be open to all situations that arise in a correctional facility. Taking into accord
the perspectives of all parties and coming to a decision that positively affects all parties
involved.
(2) Facilitate conflict resolution - correctional managers must sit and facilitate mediation
for all team members, officers or supervisors. They should identify the conflict, listen to
all parties, and identify a solution that works for both parties and the organization.
(3) Develop an action plan - Conflict is never a one time incident. An effective leader
would develop an action plan to deal with the situation if it were to ever happen again. A
solution should be identified and be general guide to dealing with any conflict that may
arise under their leadership. A resolution should include information from policy and
procedure nd be guide for employee relations.
References
Campbell, N.M. (2006). Correctional leadership competencies for the 21st century:
Manager and supervisor levels. [Rev. ed.]. National Institute of Corrections. Retrieved
from https://s3.amazonaws.com/static.nicic.gov/Library/020475.pdf
Post 2
Raymond Swallows posted Apr 8, 2019 2:01 PM
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The best supervisor I ever worked for:
That would be the captain I worked before prior to transferring back into IA. That captain was
perhaps the most knowledgeable person I have ever worked for. Recognizing his own
capabilities, he also knew he didn’t know everything. A good example of that was his not
knowing exactly what my job responsibilities entailed but leaving me to my own devices to
ensure that proper things were done. I met with him twice a week to give him updates on what
I was up to and currently dealing with. Again, he did not want to get into the technicalities
unless there was a need to. As for his leadership style, he was very supportive and would
stand up for his folks, so long as his folks were righteous. The only real complaint I ever had
with him was that he was anxious and impatient about getting things done. In law
enforcement, you have a chain of command for a reason. It is to ensure that the subordinates
are reporting to only one individual (at a time) and all orders are going through your squad
supervisor, watch commander, etc. If this particular captain did not think to discuss with me
something he wanted done and happened to see one of the people that worked for me, he
would go directly to them and tell them to handle X or Y. Then, whoever that individual was
would contact me and ask me if I was aware of it. So, I would then go confront him and he
would get a look of chagrin realizing that he blew the chain of command downward, which
was a huge source of frustration for me. So, we created a workaround for it and it was pretty
simple: Anytime my captain went to one of my sergeants or deputies to get something done,
they all had standing orders to contact me immediately—regardless of whether I was off or
working—so I was (1) aware of what was happening and (2) to give me an opportunity to vet
it out and ensure that we are going to handle things that way. This captain handled conflict via
face to face communication. If there was a problem between two people, divisions, etc. he
would get the players in the same room to talk the problem out.
The worst supervisor I ever had:
The worst supervisor I ever had was my first lieutenant when I was promoted to sergeant. He
was very sneaky and would use his sergeants in the furtherance of his personal agenda. I fell
victim to his game more than once when writing memos on his behalf, coming from me,
which would be a bit controversial and would call out certain administrative folks. I got
smacked more than once for that. Beyond that, he would constantly “stir the pot” amongst the
shifts and became known as a person whose word was just about useless and rampant with
dishonesty. How a person like that made it to lieutenant I never understood. I guess you could
say he was part of the long gone “good ole’ boy” system that favored liked individuals over
the qualified ones. There was a bit of celebration on his retirement day; not celebrating him
but absolutely celebrating his retirement. This lieutenant handled conflict very poorly. Instead
of having rational conversations with folks about problems, he would ration the problems off
to the sergeants to deal with, even if the problems were over the sergeants level of
responsibility. When face to face with problem employees, he would whitewash it away and
act like it wasn’t a big deal. Yet, when that employee wasn’t around, he would trash talk
them, even when it was a peer to the individuals being told about it.
While not based solely on the readings alone, the top three things I think are imperative
to a successful correctional manager are:
1. Communicative: The main issue I have had through the years with various individuals I have worked
for is a lack of communication. While I agree that not every bit of information is necessary to be
shared downward, there is a distinct need-to-know that exists when information related to the
mission or vision is available. Not communicating with your subordinates is essentially setting them
up to fail (Gladwin & McConnell, 2014, p. 118).
2. Honesty: This kinda goes without saying. If you can’t trust the people you are working for, you may
as well go home. Neither corrections nor law enforcement is a place for dishonesty or people that
can’t be trusted. The quickest way to lose your staff is to lie to them (Gladwin & McConnell, 2014, p.
39)
3. Leading by example: There is not a better way to get people to accept change than to show them you
are willing to do as you say; practice what you preach, as it were (Bradt, 2013). In contrast, not
adhering to your own edicts will kill credibility and cause doubts about leadership ability.
The readings essentially discussed problem employees and how to deal/not deal with them,
the importance of communication, and conflict management. For someone that has been in
some form of management or another for over 20 years, the majority of the ideas mentioned
therein I have attempted at one time or another. At the end of the day, when you have a
problem employee who is not succumbing to traditional communication and managerial
efforts, that is when the autocratic nature of the business comes into play. Unfortunately, I
have had to flat-out “lay out the law” to some employees before. In the simplest of terms, I
have had to basically tell individuals how exactly they will do their job or I will commit
myself as their personal shoulder angel until such a time as they get it right or the progressive
discipline system claims them for its own. No one prefers to use the authoritarian method but
sometimes, blunt force is the only thing some people understand. It is unfortunate but at the
same time, it is the very nature of our business. There are gray areas, but there are times when
it must be black and white. There is far too much at risk to simply not deal with problems.
The longer things go unchecked, the greater the likelihood for disaster.
~RS
Bradt, G. (2013, June 27). Practice what you preach or pay the price. Retrieved from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/georgebradt/2013/04/10/practice-what-you-preach-or-paythe-price/#4c3eadbb528b
Gladwin, B., & McConnell, C. R. (2014). The effective corrections manager: correctional
supervision for the future (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Post 3
Abodunrin Oduyemi posted Apr 8, 2019 8:03 PM
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The Best Manager I have Worked For.
In order for me to talk about the best manager I have worked for, they are certain
qualities I look for in people, qualities like their leadership style. A leader’s leadership
style is essential to me because it could be the difference between motivating an
employee and killing morale. In the military, we are giving a four-year contract, and as
your contract is coming to an end, you have the option to either reenlist or not. I had a
Chief Petty Officer who in the civilian world would be considered a manager knew how
to motivate and get the best out of sailors. His leadership style was transformational,
developmental and coaching. He was able to transform me to become a better sailor and
even think about reenlisting.
Whenever there was a conflict between sailors or if they were afraid of
disagreeing with him which would lead to them sacrificing their self-esteem and
depression, he would schedule a one-on-one with them in closed doors and work on the
issue they had either it was performance issues or problems with another sailor. By
doing this, he was able to clarify, and alleviate any stress they might be having. He
showed that he cared about the sailors and wanted them to succeed regardless of what
they were going through especially for a sailor who has just enlisted.
The Worst Manager I have worked For
When the best manager I worked for transferred to another department, we got
another chief that I would consider to be the worst chief in the department. He was
nothing like the previous chief we had. His leadership style was more dictatorial and a
demanding one. It was either his way or the high way. His leadership style killed the
morale of a lot of sailors myself included. In the space of one month, he destroyed all the
hard work the previous chief had done especially when it came to motivation,
developing sailors and getting people to reenlist. He was especially bad at solving
conflicts or problems at work. Instead of providing a solution or a reasonable answer he
would get mad and punch things like the table, chair, and wall.
Whenever he found himself in a situation where he had to handle conflict, he would
confront both parties in public which would make it more hostile instead of separating
them and having a one-on-one discussion with them behind closed doors.
What a Correctional Manager must do to be Successful
In order for a correctional manager to be successful, they must be able to lead the
organization and facilities towards a common goal. In order for them to be successful, a
correctional leader must have personality traits in order to be recognized as an effective
leader (Basefsky, Maxwell, Post, & Turner, 2004). This attributes and characteristics that
are important to be a successful leader are; Motivating and inspiring others, optimistic
and positive energy and have ethics and integrity.
Motivating
A correctional leader should be able to drive and influence others within the correctional
facilities to direct their energy to maintain peace and order in the facilities. An effective
leader is ready to lead others to achieve a common goal.
Positive Energy
A correctional leader is optimistic that the goals and objectives of the organization are
achievable. Positive energy is what drives the officers to maintain peace and order as
well as achieve the goals of the facility.
Integrity
Leaders lead by example. A leader who is able to uphold their integrity and ethical
standard is an excellent example for the subordinate. A leader who is ethical keeps their
promise and is considered to be trustworthy.
Conclusion
I learned and gained a lot from my chief who I considered being a great leader. He
possessed traits and knowledge that I found to be desirable in a leader. Whereas with
the leader I believed to be the worse, he possessed features and attributes I detest in a
leader.
References
Basefsky, M. Maxwell, J, L. Post, A. Turner, B, G. (2004). What Are The Five Most
Important
Qualities Of A Leader. Manager to Manager. Journal of American Water Works
Association.
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