The term professional is being used in different ways in the English language which impacts its scope and limitation. Are those working in public safety considered professionals? What does it mean to be professional in the public safety sphere? In this webinar, Dr. Jeff Fox shares how public safety can develop professionalism in the field.
One of the most beloved Justice Clearinghouse speakers, Dr. Jeff Fox is a criminal justice and public safety veteran with 27 years’ worth of experience across different roles in the Army, Virginia State Police, and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
Specifics of his discussion include:
- Dissecting and reflecting on the textbook definitions of professionalism.
- The fifteen characteristics of professionals in a business environment that ensures success for the customer, employees, and the company.
- Professional appearance and language that can be observed in day-to-day interactions.
- Reliability and accountability in their tasks and responsibilities.
- Emotional control, poise, positive attitude, and respectfulness when interacting with colleagues, leaders, and community members
- The ability to separate personal and professional, be organized, stay focused, and manage time effectively as it relates to their duties.
- Strong communication and soft skills when interacting with internal and external customers.
- The Five-I’s that allows those working in public safety to maintain a certain level of professionalism despite barriers and limited resources.
- Integrity: What it means, why it is integral in leaders and any individual, why it is necessary in our interactions, and what it looks like in practice.
- Intellect: Why this is essential and the different areas of intelligence, skills, proficiencies, topics, and issues that are critical for a public safety professional to familiarize with.
- Industry: The value of work ethics, productivity, and being results-oriented.
- Initiative: The different levels of initiative, the active nature of initiative, and the underlying reasons for not showing initiative which are rooted in fear.
- Impact: What it looks like, skills we must possess and develop in others to have an impact, and how it relates to influence and leadership.
- A step-by-step guide on how to level up individual and agency professionalism.
- The leaders’ responsibility in preparing their subordinates for pitfalls, challenges, and other risks.
- How leaders can pave their own success as well as the success of the people working for them, and the organizations they’re serving.
- Why leaders must be models of professionalism and how lapses of judgment from leaders have a greater impact on the agency.
Questions from the webinar attendees are about:
- Assessing public perception of the agencies we work at.
- Maintaining and creating professionalism in language within the workplace.
- Teaching accountability to subordinates and their subordinates through coaching and mentoring.
- Managing a supervisor who isn’t demonstrating professionalism.
- How professionalism can be trained as a skill.
Other Webinars with This Speaker:
- Dec 6, 2022: After Incident Analysis: Best Practices and Recommendations
- Jan 31, 2023: Understanding Police Professionalism (this webinar)
- April 18, 2023: Playing Nice in the Sandbox: The Human Elements of Disaster, Emergency Management and Incident Command
- Sept 19: The Performance Management Process: lessons for Criminal Justice Professionals
- Dec 12: Achieving Excellence in Criminal Justice Agencies
- Jan 25, 2024: In Defense of the Police
Audience Comments
- “The speaker was likable, engaging, and easy to follow. Good information on a tough subject.” — Shawn
- “I enjoyed hearing a different perspective and approach on how professionalism is used in terms of everyday work life but also outside of that workspace. The most valuable aspect that I have taken away from this webinar is to always hold onto my integrity and morals no matter what or who is trying to change them, as long as I am showing professionalism in the workplace and being unbiased in all situations, I should not have to change anything about myself unless I am wanting to better myself.” — Sarah
- “Everything in this webinar was great information. I loved how Dr. Fox gave examples of situations during his career and how it applies to all of us now.” — Isabel
- “Dr. Fox consistently emphasizes integrity as the foundation of any public safety profession.” — Robert
- “I really enjoyed the five “I”s of Professionalism. It made me look at myself to ensure I uphold all of them in my life. , Thank you for your time today, GREAT course!” — Sandra
- “He provided good examples from his work years that made relatable points.” — Scott
