Everyday choices are made and products are purchased on the basis that someone has offered an opinion. Opinions on police equipment can be as sacrosanct as religion or as diverse as choices on the food we eat. The major difference between the two is that one opinion will effect you and the other opinion could effect thousands of others. Why is it then that police departments are still relying on someone’s opinion for their police equipment selection?
I recently read with great interest an article about two very high ranking military officers in Asia Pacific and their opinions on battle tank choices. Just as God made little green apples you can be sure that their opinions will be heard and addressed and in turn a purchase will be made based on those opinions. It was interesting to note that these two individuals had been ‘in the office’ for so long that their operational field interpretation could possibly be a little clouded. Unfortunately you can almost guarantee that armoured corps staff will have little involvement. That’s disappointing given the fact that the upcoming purchase will be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and most likely there will be some sort of selection error.
We are all aware of the purchasing department’s bungles, as in purchasing equipment that doesn’t work. There are so many case stories of error it would surpass Tolken albeit the fact that these accounts are true. If only those officials were spending their own money you would be rest assured a lot more investigation would have been undertaken prior to a purchase decision being made.
I’m sure we have all experienced the ‘Monday’ car or what is commonly known as a lemon. The car brand, make or model has a great reputation but it just so happens that the one you brought was always in the shop. Does that mean that that model of car is of poor quality? Not necessarily. It could be just a glitch in that particular vehicle. What if you brought a vehicle that was less popular but was floorless in performance and quality? Would your experiences be a true indication of that vehicle?
US Police departments spend billions of dollars a year in logistics and unfortunately many of those choices are derived from opinion, and not fact. People being people have biases. We have opinions and that’s normal, however when you’re spending large amounts of taxpayers dollars on equipment to protect not only the public but your staff wouldn’t you want the best products for that job. The only way to choose those products is from an informed, unbiased, factual review.
What is fact? Fact is of course something that is true, a datum of experience, an item of verified evidence. What we are getting at here is looking at facts, reviewing all the available information, gleamed from all the actual experiences. Furthermore these experiences should also mirror your situation whether it’s climatic, geographic, economic or simply available training resources.
In today’s environment of accountability, departments are seeking the services of independent, research and review specialists to ensure product selection is based on fact & not on opinion. These results ensure that the end user gets exactly what they want irrespective of brand bias, personal opinion, or external manipulation.
The Author; Michael Brookes-Jones is director for Law Enforcement Consulting an Independent Research and Review Company specialising in project review for both military and law enforcement agencies worldwide. LEC utilises their factual outcome methodology based on analytics, trialling and reference site investigation to ensure total client satisfaction in their equipment purchases. For further information visit their website at: www.lawenforcementconsulting.com