Week 6_DQ 1

Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read Chapter 10 from the text and the Ball (2014) article.

After reading the required resources, your task is to examine the ways economic decision making affects the gestalt of an organization. The various facets of economics, financial decision making, and budgeting do not exist in a vacuum. Decision makers must consider a host of salient extra-organizational aspects such as the existing political climate, legal mandates, and public relations in order to formulate effective solutions for the betterment of the agency.

For this discussion, you will examine the five phases of project management. You must focus on the integration of project management as applicable to either a law enforcement or corrections organization.

If you opt to focus on the integration of project management from a law enforcement perspective, your task is to select a project suitable to policing highlighted in your text. Suitable law enforcement projects might include the purchasing of firearms, development of a new policing strategy, implementation of marketing strategies, or the creation of branding schemes. Ultimately, the choice of which project you examine is entirely up to you.

If you opt to focus on corrections, your task is to examine the ways inmate leasing was addressed by correctional agencies as highlighted in the Ball (2014) article. Inmate leasing programs were an integral part of corrections for many years. Such programs did not fully die out until well into the 20th Century. These programs served important financial and economic purposes for the agencies and local economies in which the inmates were leased to work. You must examine the practice of inmate leasing programs.

In your initial post:

Identify each phase of your law enforcement or corrections agency project and provide a working definition for them.
Explain how the basics of budget management and preparation are affected by the integration of project management.
Analyze how the technical aspects of budgeting and finance are integrated into the various phases of project management for your organization.
Evaluate financial constraints that can arise during the integration of project management.
Propose at least two additional financial constraints or considerations that organizational decision makers must take into consideration in order to effectively integrate project management techniques. Provide a rationale for your reasoning supporting your statements with evidence from the required sources. Consider your peer’s analysis from the standpoint of a taxpayer. Explain the potential challenges taxpayers might present in relation to specific budgeted line items. Suggest ways in which law enforcement or corrections administrators could counter these challenges. Your response posts to your colleagues should be meaningful and advance the discussion of the issues, ideas, and questions that were raised in the initial posts.