Abstract:
A computer-driven police dispatching system, keyed to respond to emergency 911 calls, proves an obstacle to the implementation of an innovative new community policing system in Houston. In 1989, the city's police department faced tough questions about what it thought, until recently, was a state-of-the-art dispatching system: Was it appropriate to Houston's new style of policing? If not, could it be modified so that it would be? The case invites discussion of the link between strategic goals and new technologies.
Learning Objective:
The case invites discussion of the link between strategic goals and new technologies.