Date of Submission

8-27-2024

Document Type

DiP

Degree

Doctor of Education

Department

Education

Keywords

Inclusive leadership, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Leadership Training, Police

Abstract

Over the last several years, social and political events both in Canada and abroad, have resulted in the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) being brought to the forefront in society, and intensifying calls for police reform. Police organizations, like many others, have responded with a greater commitment to address these issues through things like DEI training, policy changes, and targeted recruitment of diverse employees. However, these efforts have failed to yield the desired change. Due to the tendency in police organizations to provide leadership training after employees have entered senior leadership positions, as well as the tendency to separate DEI training from leadership training, police leaders are being left ill-equipped to progress DEI goals, particularly from the standpoint of internal organizational culture and cultivating a respectful workplace. This Dissertation-in-Practice (DiP) explores a leadership problem of practice (PoP) faced by an urban Canadian police service—its leaders not having access to the comprehensive training and development required to develop inclusive leadership skills. This DiP details a plan to address the PoP through the implementation of a comprehensive leadership training and development strategy. Using inclusive leadership as the change leadership approach, Kotter’s 8-step model as an underlying change framework, and Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles supplemented by the Assess-Plan-Act model for monitoring and evaluating change, this DiP details a path toward forging inclusive police organizations through leadership training and development.

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