Customer-Based Policing

The traditional police view that the priorities of police and the focus of their work is the sole domain of the police has been part of the organizational transformation required to implement the philosophy of community policing. As community policing evolves, the needs and desires of the consumers of police services (police customers) takes on a greater importance. Community policing, as a philosophy, challenges the traditional police thinking that “we’re the experts; we’ll tell you what you need.”

Customer-based policing is but one element of the philosophy of community policing. It focuses on the consumers of police services and develops and tailors services for the needs and priorities of the customers. Just as intelligence-led policing relies on data to solve problems and guide police activity, customer-based ...