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Australian police in the coastal regions of southern New South Wales (NSW), have taken law enforcement into the globalized realm of after sales service, with an innovative program designed to embrace the concept that of " keeping the customer satisfied."
The Shoalhaven region in NSW is a scattering of fishing villages and tourist towns, famed for its long, sandy beaches and summer holidays.
Crime exists, but on a scale enviable of major cities such as Sydney and Wollongong a few short hours north by car along the Princes Highway.
An enduring concern however, for all law enforcement, is the long arm of the law effectively distancing the community from the police that protect them.
That division is being bridged with a radical program launched this week, that aims to engage business philosophy with the Police policy of serving the community.
Police command in Shoalhaven, based in the town of Nowra have launched a new customer service program to record and recognize outstanding customer service in the community.
"We want to anticipate and provide the customer service experience expected by victims of crime, as well as witnesses, people we meet in the community and our colleagues," Inspector Johnson the Customer Service Duty Officer for Shoalhaven Local Area Command, told Xinhua.
Divided into eighty Local Area Commands (LAC), the NSW Police Force consists of over five hundred local police stations and covers an area of 801,600 square kilometres, serving the state's population of seven million people.
The motto of the New South Wales Police Force is "Culpam Poena Premit Comes," which means "Punishment Follows Closely Upon Crime".
Certainly NSW police have made a name for themselves in swift justice, with the "tasering" death of a Brazilian student in Sydney last year cited as an example of the sometimes over earnest policing.
The Compliment a Cop program, according to local Shoalhaven community members is a welcome step toward recalibrating the relationship between law and the people it enforces.
In a smaller community such as ours, it's important the police can be more than just tools and enforcers -- we need to be able to share the community good and bad with the men and women responsible for policing it, Kiama resident Rachel Hals told Xinhua.
"We want them to be responsible stakeholders. And we want them to be accountable -- that means also being available to praise when they perform a noteworthy deed," She said.
The program will expand on the NSW Police Force's commitment to excellence in customer service, by proactively attracting feedback from the community about staff from Shoalhaven Local Area Command who have delivered a high level of public assistance.
"Compliment a Cop" will assist Shoalhaven Local Area Command to ensure they are meeting and exceeding the expectations of the community by being accessible and professional; taking appropriate action and keeping people informed.
Police spread across the Shoalhaven region are encouraging members of the community to contact the Command if they have a positive interaction with an officer and wish to offer a compliment.
Inspector Johnson, said the program encourages the delivery of exceptional service through recognition in the community.
"All community interactions are a reflection of the NSW Police Force and our capabilities to serve and protect, so it is important to know how we are perceived.
"The 'Compliment a Cop' program is designed to attract complimentary feedback, which will allow us to reinforce the behaviors that have impressed our customers," Insp Johnson said.
It's a program that enhances both ties within the community to the police force, while also encouraging interaction with police during the often drawn out process of crime and its effects on the neighborhood.
Police operate on the fringes of community here and within a system of law which sees police at the coalface of violence, domestic and public infraction and with responsibilities that divide them from the community.
The program intends to begin linking police back into the values of the community not only by reinforcing their responsibilities, but also by allowing the community to take part in their measurement.
"By measuring our customer service delivery with the expectations of our community, and by providing high levels of customer service, we can increase public confidence and support for our work of reducing violence, crime and fear," Insp. Johnson said.
Compliments can be delivered in writing, over the phone or in person at Nowra Police Station, online at the Customer Assistance Unit page on the NSWPF website, via email or phone to the Customer Assistance Unit.
Giving a nod to the growing role of social media in public interaction community members are also being encouraged to post a comment on the Shoalhaven LAC Facebook page.
