FRA’s event for police personnel will be held August 6-8 in Las Vegas. This year’s program will offer the trusted themes of the past 11 editions plus an additional focus on agencies of all sizes, highlighting low-cost and non-financial opportunities for smaller agencies to gain a competitive edge on a national scale.
As the must-attend event for hundreds of law enforcement professionals each year, The Police Recruitment and Retention Summit will provide a five-star conference experience complete with critical discussions around what's working, what isn't, and how to implement an impactful recruitment strategy.
The three-day event will be held at the world-famous Horseshoe Las Vegas, with the room block conveniently located at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, which is connected to the Horseshoe.
In addition to high-quality content and speaking faculty, attendees will enjoy top-notch food and beverage throughout their conference experience. Registration for the conference includes all meals listed on the agenda, including breakfast, lunch, and hors d'oeuvres and cocktails during networking receptions.
Here’s a look at the agenda FRA has planned for the 12th annual event:
Preconference workshop day
The first day of the conference will offer a two-part workshop:
Part one will be a case study on the Columbus Police Department’s successful cadet program led by Columbus Police Department’s Lindsey Alli, MBA, CLEE, sergeant, cadet program coordinator, recruiting unit, and Jonathan Johnson, police officer. The workshop will explore strategies for starting a law enforcement centered youth program, the steps taken by the Columbus Police Department to reshape its approach to increasing youth engagement leading to an improved enrollment in the cadet program, the tactics used to increase the levels of diversity in the cadet program with an outstanding 50 percent female enrollment, the process and preparation to retain cadets to become leading members of your police departments, how to build the program into your departments’ overall recruiting and retention strategy, and the tactics to inspire and encourage the next generation of law enforcement officers.
The second part of the workshop will focus on streamlining the recruitment process through maximizing technology. Marvin “Ben” Haiman, chief of staff, Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, will lead the session and discuss new products and solutions that can ease the recruiting process for new candidates and capture their attention, communication cadence with candidates through technology solutions and social media to keep them engaged throughout the process, and how to reduce the burden on staff by implementing new technology solutions that can save time and increase efficiency to maximize recruiting efforts.
There will be a networking cocktail reception following the workshop, allowing participants to enjoy drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and face-to-face networking with peers.
Day two
The first day of the main conference on August 7 will kick-off with a keynote address on the future of policing in the United States from Michele Freeman, chief (Retired), City of Las Vegas, Department of Public Safety. Freeman will discuss the struggles of the past several years for police departments across the country related to budget reform and highly publicized incidents in the media, unique opportunities to change the perception of policing within your communities, and how to refresh the culture within your departments to promote a positive image and reward excellence in policing.
Next will be a session on how to capitalize on pre-screening to streamline the recruiting process. Todd Mickelsen, CEO, Converus, and Daniel Watson, deputy sheriff (reserve), Kane County sheriff’s office, Utah, owner, Watson & Associates Truth Verification Consultants, will share how to accelerate the hiring process to capture highly sought after candidates, reduce hiring costs by improving organizational workflow, increase candidate pool by offering valuable coaching for those that need extra attention, and avoid negative hires that would be harmful for your departments image through crafted assessments.
From Prince William County Police Department, Michelle McAllister, detective, police personnel background investigator, and Terry Ralph, master police officer, will speak about aspiring change for women in law enforcement through mentorship programs. McAllister and Ralph will discuss the importance of a mentorship program that helps nurture valuable female professionals on your team, how to identify mentors within your department who have the necessary characteristics of a mentor including leadership, communication, empathy, education, and guidance skillsets, and how to ensure that all female professionals within the department receive valuable support through mentorship to increase retention and guide them to achieve their career goals.
Additional session topics will include:
- A successful recruiting case study
- The best traits of a recruiter
- Community engagement utilizing reverse ride along
- Adopting a sales industry approach to recruiting new officers
- Improving recruiting efforts for smaller agencies
- The power of direct and indirect marketing videos and using low-cost equipment
The day will wrap-up with another networking cocktail reception with included drinks and hors d’oeuvres for attendees to enjoy while networking.
Day three
The second day of the main conference will begin with a session on supporting promotional goals through advancing your education. Jessica Gladney, senior director of partnership development, National University, and Dr. Vereen Barton, MAFP, MPhil, captain, assistant division chief, director of investigative & OAO services, Maryland-National Capital Park Police, will share their insights on the benefits of furthering your education to achieve promotional goals and stand out from the crowd; how police departments use educational incentives as a retention tool; educational opportunities that are available to you that support law enforcement professionals and understand the balance of education whilst working; and how to prepare your time efficiently to achieve success in your work life, personal life, family life, and education with strong time management skills.
During a session on the impact of department culture on officer retention, attendees will hear how academies, field training units, and first line supervisors impact retention of new employees; how your own agency's culture and practices and evaluate areas of growth opportunity; and how to implement tools to positively impact agency culture, foster and develop new staff, and increase retention. Graham Tinius, INCI, master field training officer, NAFTO; and Dan Greene, executive director, National Association of Field Training Officers; and Jason Devlin, sergeant, City of Scottsdale Police Department, will lead the discussion.
The day will also include a session on strategies to avoid recruiter burnout. Dr. Barton will return for the discussion and will explore the key characteristics of burnout to identify them within your recruiting department, the innovative approaches to ensure you are maximizing recruiting efforts without overloading valuable team members, and how to educate and utilize front line staff as the face of the agency to help with recruiting efforts.
The remaining sessions will address:
- How to positively change perceptions and attitudes to improve retention
- Physical and mental wellness as a retention tool
- A recruitment and retention overview for 2024 and beyond
The Police Recruitment and Retention Summit will be held August 6-8 at the Horseshoe Las Vegas. For more information, including the full agenda, list of speakers, and registration information, click here.