Monitor - November 2014

taught the mental health team in Rochester.

Chauncy Parker, who was commissioner of public safety at the division when Alexander served as deputy commissioner, says Alexander was the first person in that role who was more than a career-track officer — and it showed.

“He was always approaching criminal justice with a very broad, creative perspective,” says Parker.

Streamlining airport security

In 2007, Alexander took on another challenge when he became federal security director for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. As the person in charge of coordinating all security and regulatory affairs, he found a climate with poor leadership and other problems.

“There were people hired into management positions who quite frankly didn’t have the appropriate skill sets to manage and motivate people,” Alexander says.

He put his trademark strategies into motion, helping managers set clear timelines and performance goals for improving the speed of security processing and the accuracy of airplane safety investigations, for example. He also coached managers on how to better communicate with employees, gave them leadership training and set high performance standards.

By 2010, the airport’s security department went from being disorganized and fractious in its security operations to being instrumental in the airport winning the “airport of the year” designation from the Department of Homeland Security.

“Dr. Alexander has the ability to quickly identify your comfort zone and challenge you to operate outside of it,” says Mike Donnelly, who worked with Alexander as assistant federal security director for operations at the airport. “He also said we should never rest on our successes, since leaders should be focused on continuous

Inroads in Georgia

In 2013, Alexander took his talents to another trouble spot, DeKalb County, Georgia, where he assumed the role of police chief for 1,300 officers and 300 civilian staff. The police department suffered from low morale and high turnover, and the local government was rife with corruption — the county’s former chief executive officer awaits trial for 14 felonies, including bid-rigging and kickbacks.

Again, Alexander took the opportunity to rid the department of leaders known for their bad influence and of officers known for corrupt behavior. He rewarded remaining staff with perks they had told him would help them feel better about their jobs, such as getting their first raises in seven years and tuition reimbursement for officers looking to expand their skills.

Last December, county leaders promoted Alexander to deputy chief operating officer for public safety. Now, the chiefs and directors of the county’s five public safety offices, including police, report to him.

“It’s a great group of people who have been on the job for a long time and are doing a dynamic job,” he says. “Now, our goal is to develop a single vision and a more integrated way of operating” so there is no unnecessary redundancy among departments’ roles and duties, for example.

While Alexander credits psychology and leadership training for giving him the tools to lead these transformations, he praises those who work for him for using those tools to get something done.