For sure the technology has changed and the equipment I'm sure is far advanced in terms of effectiveness; however, people don't change in the ways they think or respond to the tasks they are attempting to perform. For example, the main thrust of the police has always been and will always be to "Serve and Protect" the citizens. That being said, several different facets exist that govern what takes place in striving to accomplish that goal.
Politics, scheduling, recording, Public Relations, social skills, being pro-active, maintaining high levels of management and organizational professionalism attributes on behalf of the leaders, who remain and always will remain human, those things don't change much.
Having the right people in the right place throughout the department is crucial and key. Without cohesive and qualified, competent, individuals comprised of people making up the many segments and teams of the PD the performance of the department will begin to under achieve.
Having been part of and witnessing many changes during my tenure with the dept. I seen it demonstrated many times the good and bad that can and does exist in a department without the proper leadership and guidance.
The good times that a department enjoys depend on how many of the aforementioned attributes exist in proper proportions at any given time. For the most part, if the department has many divisions or teams that work like well oiled machines, the department is assured to be viewed by everyone as professional. Likewise bad times were usually during transitional periods which consisted of divisions or teams that were divided or made-up of people who were not placed in jobs where they performed best.
In looking back, I recall times when certain changes like, for-instance transfers, re-assignments or even an officer's retirement left a huge hole in the cohesive structure of a team or division within the dept. Many times it took some time to re-adjust while that change or hole began to mend or heal.
