Police Promotion: The 5 Reasons Officers Don't Perform (And Why They're All on You as a Leader)
The Leadership Truth That Could Transform Your Promotion Board Answer
When you're asked about developing struggling team members in your promotion to sergeant or promotion to inspector interview, there's one fundamental truth that separates exceptional candidates from the rest: when someone on your team isn't performing, it's on you as their leader.
This isn't about blame—it's about understanding your role in creating the conditions for success. After decades of police leadership experience, I've identified five specific reasons why officers don't perform, and mastering these concepts will revolutionise how you answer people development questions at your promotion board.
The Detective Who Looked Busy But Achieved Nothing
Let me share a real example that perfectly illustrates this principle. Julie, a sergeant working in complex safeguarding, discovered an officer who appeared incredibly dedicated—first in, last out, always busy. Yet when Julie reviewed the crime files, she found months of entries reading simply "update next month and review again" with zero actual progress.
This officer wasn't lazy or incompetent. She was trapped in one of the five performance barriers that effective leaders must recognise and address.
Reason 1: They Didn't Know They Needed to Do It
The first reason officers don't perform is surprisingly simple—they genuinely don't know something is expected of them.
In our complex policing environment with countless forms, procedures, and additional requirements, it's entirely possible for motivated officers to miss critical expectations. They're not being defiant; they literally don't know the task exists.
The leadership solution: Clear, explicit communication—both verbal and written. Don't assume knowledge. If an officer isn't doing something, first check whether they actually know it's required.
For promotion boards: Demonstrate how you ensure comprehensive briefings and follow-up to confirm understanding, not just assumption.
Reason 2: They Know They Need to Do It, But Don't Know How
This was exactly Julie's situation. Her officer knew she needed to progress investigations but had never been shown how to do it effectively. She was too embarrassed to ask because everyone else seemed to know what they were doing.
This scenario is more common than you might think. Consider a stop and search example: we assume every officer knows how to conduct them because they attended training school. But what if their mother died that week and they missed the crucial training? What if their tutor wasn't proactive? Now they're on response, avoiding stop and searches because they don't know how to do them properly.
The leadership solution: Recognise that your role isn't just management—it's development. Don't send them on a course; personally invest in their skill development.
For promotion boards: Explain specifically how you identify skill gaps and your personal approach to developing competence and confidence.
Reason 3: They Didn't Know It Needed Doing by a Certain Time
Without clear deadlines, officers can't prioritise effectively. Saying "by the end of the day" is woolly—do you mean 5pm or 23:59? This ambiguity creates performance issues that appear like negligence but are actually communication failures.
The leadership solution: Crystal clear deadlines with specific times and priority context.
For promotion boards: Demonstrate how you communicate expectations with precision, eliminating ambiguity that leads to missed deadlines.
Reason 4: They're Not Motivated to Do It
This is where leadership becomes more sophisticated. Officers need to see three elements in their work:
Merit: Does the task achieve its intended outcome?
Worth: Does it align with why they joined the police?
Value: Does it make a meaningful difference to the community?
As a neighbourhood inspector, I refused to put PCSOs in ASDA to stop shoplifting or park officers at petrol stations to prevent drive-offs. Why? Because while these tasks had merit (they might reduce incidents), they had no worth (nobody joins the police to guard supermarkets) and questionable value (the community wanted us tackling serious organised crime, not retail theft).
The leadership solution: Help officers understand how their work connects to meaningful policing outcomes and community value.
For promotion boards: Explain how you ensure tasks have merit, worth, and value, and how you motivate through purpose rather than just instruction.
Reason 5: External Factors Are Preventing Them (Extrinsic Barriers)
Sometimes officers are completely motivated and capable but are prevented by factors outside their control. Picture this scenario: officers excitedly radio that they've spotted a target vehicle with known offenders—exactly the proactive policing the Chief Constable wants. Then comms redirects them to Grade 1 calls instead.
These officers know what to do, want to do it, and are skilled enough to do it, but systemic barriers prevent performance.
The leadership solution: Identify and address systemic barriers; advocate upwards for your team; create workarounds where possible.
For promotion boards: Show how you protect your officers' ability to perform by removing obstacles and fighting battles on their behalf.
How This Transforms Your Promotion Board Answers
Understanding these five reasons completely changes how you approach people development questions. Instead of generic answers about "supporting struggling officers," you can:
Demonstrate diagnostic thinking: Show how you systematically identify which of the five reasons applies
Provide specific solutions: Explain your tailored approach for each performance barrier
Show leadership accountability: Acknowledge that performance issues reflect on your leadership
Display developmental mindset: Position yourself as someone who develops people rather than just manages them
The Merit, Worth, and Value Framework
When discussing motivation in your promotion board, remember this isn't about making everything fun—it's about helping officers see the merit, worth, and value in their work. This framework, derived from evaluation theory, provides a sophisticated approach to motivation that goes far beyond basic management.
Real-World Application
Julie's example shows this in practice. Once she identified that her officer didn't know how to progress investigations (Reason 2), she could provide specific development rather than performance management. The officer's apparent lack of motivation was actually caused by lack of knowledge—showing how these reasons often interconnect.
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