In many organizations, joint committees rule out discussion of contractual issues in the design process and in other stages. The choice of which strategy to pursue is very individual. Keep in mind, however, that the way labor and mangement handle these issues may affect their satisfaction with community policing processes and outcomes and the long-term effectiveness of the department. The exploration, design, and implementation processes as well as the outcomes of each stage should be subject to review. Identify and objectively measure the criteria for success for each stage and decide how these measures will be packaged for review and then used by the joint committee and the workforce.
Employees are the stakeholder group most critical to the initiative's success.
Unionized police departments have a unique opportunity to make use of the workforce's knowledge and expertise through the collective voice of the union. A joint labor-management committee using a systematic approach, including exploration, planning and implementation stages, offers the greatest opportunity for community policing success. In The Planning of Change, ed. W. G. Bennis, K. D. Benne, and R. Chin, 32-59. A critical review for labor.