By Ben Jones
If there’s one constant in police leadership, it’s change. Being a leader in today’s technology-driven world requires a complete mindset shift — from how you were trained, how you policed and how you supervised. You have to be willing to ask questions, listen to ideas and get comfortable with not always having the answers. Modern police teams face evolving challenges that move faster than policies, training, or even technology can match.
I experienced this firsthand when tasked with building the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) for the Winston-Salem Police Department (WSPD). While procuring and integrating new technology was challenging, my most critical mission was far simpler: to lead our agency and the community through the changes the tech brought. The tools will continue to evolve, but the foundation of self-sufficiency, resourcefulness and trust remains essential for modern police leadership.
A new era: When instinct meets data
When I was a young officer in the 2000s, the tools we relied on were analog. The technology available today has completely flipped the script on law enforcement. What started in 2005 with the NYPD developing the first RTCC has developed into a new era of policing where cloud computing tools enable faster, more efficient and more collaborative data access.
As a newly promoted lieutenant, I was tasked with building a technology stack and leading people in a space that didn’t exist when I started my career. The groundwork for the Winston-Salem RTCC had been laid through a small-scale version, but now we were moving into a $1.2 million facility — expectations were high, and the operational stakes were immense.
My background was in operations. I came up working street crimes, SWAT, burglary and homicide. I wasn’t an IT expert, but that operational experience became my greatest advantage. I knew what officers and detectives needed in the moment because I had lived those moments. My role wasn’t to master the technology, but to bridge that operational experience with emerging tools.
Leading with vulnerability
Without a definitive roadmap for building and operating an effective RTCC, it was important to bring together people with the right mix of operational experience and technical know-how to teach and learn from one another.
This experience reshaped my understanding of leadership. Vulnerability became my greatest strength. Cloud platforms and data integrations were new to me, and I was honest about that with my team from our very first planning meeting. I leaned heavily on people who knew more than I did. This openness helped break down long-standing barriers between operations and IT, fostering a high-trust environment where we could pursue the best solutions.
I learned that on-premise systems, once the standard in policing, were limited. In the RTCC, where speed and efficiency are everything, they created silos and slowed workflows. Understanding cloud-based systems and web platforms was critical; they became the backbone of our success.
Our message to vendors was clear: simplify, don’t complicate.
Officers don’t want 12 systems; they want one screen that makes their job faster and safer. This led us to cloud and web-based technologies that integrated formerly siloed tools — CAD, records management, ALPR, cameras, drones and analytics — into a single environment.
Embracing failure and partnership
Building an RTCC unlocked new leadership qualities because the job was no longer just about being reactive or tactical; it was about thinking ahead. Things I had never considered in my previous roles — like budgeting, writing job descriptions and shaping policy around RTCC operations — took time and patience to learn.
We also had to learn to fail forward. We made mistakes, like implementing procedures that were less efficient than expected. But you have to be willing to acknowledge failures to find real success, even when that means swallowing your pride.
One of the most valuable lessons was the importance of building relationships beyond our department. Establishing partnerships with other city departments helped break down long-standing silos. Connecting with other RTCC leaders across the country allowed us to share lessons learned and avoid common pitfalls.
We also addressed community concerns with clarity. We opened our doors, explained the purpose of the tools and backed it all up with clear policies. We demonstrated the technology’s value by showing how we could solve serious crimes in just 15-20 minutes, helping shift the narrative from suspicion to support.
My role became about asking the bigger questions to push the team to think deeper, faster, and smarter: “You found the car — great. Now, what can you tell me about the driver? Their associates? How quickly can we get that information to officers on the ground or detectives before they even open the case file?”
Why progress depends on leadership
The success of an RTCC has less to do with the tools and more to do with the leadership behind them. When officers see it as a lifeline, not just another system, it’s because someone took the time to build trust, break down silos and connect technology to real outcomes. That doesn’t happen by chance; it happens by choice.
Internal support, community transparency and strong external partnerships are just as vital as the technology itself. The center’s success wasn’t just about officer buy-in; it was about community support, and transparency became the key to building public trust.
The next chapter of policing isn’t waiting to be written — it’s waiting to be led. Technology will continue to evolve, but progress depends on leaders who are willing to embrace the mindset shift and build environments where innovation, collaboration and people thrive together.
About the author
Ben Jones is a Public Safety Advisor at Verkada, where he helps agencies build and scale real-time crime centers (RTCCs) using cutting-edge technology. Before joining Verkada, Ben served as a Lieutenant with the Winston-Salem Police Department, where he spent 25 years in SWAT, Homicide and Street Crimes. Tasked with developing the WSPD’s RTCC, Ben integrated advanced technologies to support intelligence-led policing and combat violent crime. His leadership helped establish the RTCC as a national model, earning him the 2023 National Real Time Crime Center Association (NRTCCA) Supervisor of the Year award.
