Dixon, Illinois is a town near to where I live and their police department started a Twitter account this year. Their tweets update the community on arrests and town information, but they also share hilarious stories. From what I can gather through their tweets, one or two officers are in charge of the account. An officer thought of the idea and was given permission to do it.
This is a great reminder that the people doing things do not need to be at the highest level in an organization. People at the top need to give the people below them permission to come up with new ideas and to think outside of the box.
This summer, Northern Illinois was hit with a heat wave. The Dixon Police Department asked parents to tweet their address with the emoji of police lights. Officers showed up with water guns and had a water gun fight with kids in the community. What a great way to build positive relationships and reach out to the community! They also handed about freeze pops.
Some supervisors hear about these two ideas and come up with reasons they won't work, but these officers were given permission to think outside the box. The water gun fights and their tweets have gained attention from more than just their local community and they are great reminders for all organizations. Let your people think outside the box and don't make it impossible to try new things.
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