Wauwatosa Police Chief Recruitment Process

Press release from the City of Wauwatosa:

April 1, 2021

The citizen-led Police and Fire Commission is currently recruiting a new Chief of Police. A professional recruitment consultant is supporting them in this recruitment process. The citizen-led Police and Fire Commission will make the ultimate hiring decision under Section 62.13 of the Wisconsin Statutes, which gives them sole authority over the selection of police and fire chiefs. Information about the recruitment process is available online (wauwatosa.net/chief).

The Police and Fire Commission have emphasized and continue to emphasize the importance of having a public and transparent process for hiring Wauwatosa’s next Police Chief. The first public engagement opportunity was a survey to obtain public feedback on the new Police Chief’s leadership competencies. We had a total of 467 respondents who ranked the competencies they want to see in the new Police Chief in order of importance:

1. Law enforcement
2. Visionary and problem solving/decision making
   • Tied in ranking of importance
3. Community/citizen focus
4. Open mindedness
5. Developing others
6. Negotiation/conflict resolution
7. Diversity/equity/inclusion and interpersonal skills
   • Tied in ranking of importance
8. Adaptability
9. Decisiveness
10. Organizational
11. Assertiveness
12. Oral communication
13. Planning and organizing
14. Speaking and presenting
15. Coping with stress
16. Political sensitivity
17. Written communication

There will be several other opportunities for public input throughout the recruitment process that can be reviewed at www.wauwatosa.net/chief.

This press release was produced by the City of Wauwatosa. The views expressed here are the author’s own.