We love to introduce new Fox Associates partners to the larger Fox Family. Part of the Fox Tales mission is to use the newsletter as a platform to share a bit about them. In this month’s report, we have the opportunity to highlight our newest association partner, the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Joining us in a get-to-know-you conversation is IACP and Police Chief Magazine Managing Editor Dani Gudakunst. Read on…
Fox Tales: What are some of the things the association does to strengthen connections among your incredibly large and diverse membership of 35,000 members across 170 countries. In particular, what are coverage areas for the magazine and the association as a whole that are common across countries?
Dani Gudakunst.
Dani Gudakunst: The IACP brings our members from around the globe together through a wide range of events, from leadership training to topical midsize meetings, and our large annual conference. We make a concerted effort to fulfill the “I” in IACP and have extensive programs and partnerships to ensure training and resources reach all of our members.
The magazine comes into play by providing a venue for our members to reach across borders and giving a voice to diverse perspectives. Topics like community-police relations, terrorism and targeted violence, crime prevention, transnational organized crime, training, and technology are relevant across all regions of the world, and Police Chief strives to provide a way for our members to share innovative solutions and lessons learned to drive advancement.
Fox Tales: What are some examples of points of divergence in terms of member needs?
Gudakunst: The IACP is open to members of the policing profession of all ranks and roles, including not only sworn officers but also professional staff, as well as academics, service providers, and others. That means that we have chiefs at the peak of their careers, officers right out of the academy, and newly promoted command officers who need access to different training opportunities and resources.
Likewise, members may hail from a small municipal department, a big city department, as sheriff’s office, a university, a state or federal agency, or an international organization, all of which have different responsibilities and needs.
Fox Tales: Similar question: How are the needs of smaller-community law enforcement officials different from big cities?
Gudakunst: Smaller agencies may not have the budget or manpower to implement complex programs, so whereas a large city department might be able to invest in a new tool or system on their own, smaller agencies may need to work together to share the costs or partner with a larger agency. Likewise, they may not be able to spare people for training due to a more limited officer count, so on-demand, online education opportunities like our online learning management system, IACPlearn, can be critically important.
There are also benefits to serving smaller communities, where the officers may find it easier to connect and build trust with community members who are also their neighbors and friends.
Fox Tales: How has serving your members through the magazine changed or evolved since you’ve been managing editor?
Gudakunst: We’ve seen an increased focus on officer wellness, community engagement and trust-building over the years, along with critical incident response (e.g., active shooter, vehicle attacks, and so forth), so our annual editorial topic lineup has adapted to include the issues most important to our members. Although our print magazine is still preferred by many readers, we’ve also worked (and continue to work) to expand our digital content offerings as more members turn to mobile devices to read the magazine.
Fox Tales: Is AI affecting the work of police chiefs? If so, how?
Gudakunst: AI is affecting the work of everyone! In policing, specifically, it can be leveraged as a force multiplier due to its capability to parse and analyze huge volumes of data and identify connections across various data points; it can also save officers time by aiding in report writing and warrant generation and streamlining investigations. For police chiefs specifically, though, there is also the challenge of selecting the right AI tools for their agencies, as well as the need to maintain transparency and clear communication with their communities about use cases, privacy safeguards, and the ethical use of AI.
Fox Tales: How have police chief priorities changed over the last decade (or few decades) and how has that shaped your magazine’s coverage?
Gudakunst: This kind of goes back to the earlier question about changing member needs, as many of our members ARE police chiefs. I will note that as technology has evolved, so has cybercrime and transnational crime, so collaboration and information sharing across jurisdictions and borders are critical for chiefs, so we definitely include articles about those topics. There has also been a staffing shortage across the profession, so we cover ways that technology and partnerships can help agencies do more with less, as well as covering innovative recruitment strategies. A third priority I’ve noticed is communication, particularly with the public. With 24/7 news coverage and the explosion of social-media platforms, what happens in one community reverberates around the world, as shown by the public’s response following mass casualty attacks and officer-involved shootings. As a result, chiefs are striving to build open communication with their communities to dispel rumors and false narratives and ensure the accurate understanding of situations. Critical communication shows up in a lot of our articles.