DIGITAL POLICING ➜


currently sit untapped – suddenly becomes a major asset rather than a burden in efforts to fight crime.


Effecting that level of change within any organisation is, however, extremely hard. The challenge to do it in a critical service such as the police is even harder. It is vital that police forces embarking on a change programme do so on the basis not of procuring a single ‘solution’ to each problem but by fully engaging with the process as part of a detailed review of how their organisations function. It is only by understanding the many complex policing processes – from emergency and non-emergen- cy despatch, to the capturing of crime data, evidence collection, categorisa- tion, charge and custody – that forces will truly start to turn the corner in their digital transformation journeys. This will not be possible unless we also recognise that the data held by policing is part of a digital conversa- tion that includes not only intra- force cooperation but also the wider criminal justice community; that collaborative approach also reaches into other parts of the public and third sector, whether it be health and care, education, work and pensions, or local government. That will involve, ultimately, a more effective approach to collaboration and co-working that has been difficult for policing and other agencies to achieve up to now, but it must happen nonetheless. Leidos has considerable experience as a technology company that works to understand how organisations function at a deep level, and can then apply that understanding to cre- ate value from some of the internal systems that are keeping data locked away. We can offer a strategic view as to how operational processes need to change, or be adapted, and can pres- ent a vision of the ‘art of the possible’ through the spectrum of emerging technologies that will ultimately move policing towards the prevention model and improve citizen experi- ence, thereby winning all important public approval. Whilst it is right that technology is


viewed as an enabler, rather than a means to its own end, we must also recognise the risks of inaction. It is no longer acceptable to simply digitise the front end of outdated manual processes. It is only by understanding how data needs to flow across the or- ganisation and how policing touches the citizen that the real goals of first- class user experience and enhanced service provision can be realised. It is often said that knowledge is


power. Leveraging the value of existing


Surfacing police data in a way that it can be accessed ‘live’ and in a relevant and useable format will unlock untold benefits to policing.


police data and enhancing it with ‘open data’ that exists online publicly will provide more information for officers, enabling better decision-making at the heart of policing. This data could exist in the dark corners of the web, on social media or the multitude of plat- forms that people routinely transact with each and every day. If policing is to make a big digital step change and harness the power of data, then it will be through this dual focus: delivering actionable insights from internal police data and from data that exists online.


It is only by upping the pace and scale of transformation - and working with people and organisations that understand current challenges and the need to work and solve problems collaboratively, at scale - that UK policing will be able to respond to the changing nature of crime. No one is under any illusions: the crime scene of the future will bear little if any resemblance to the way policing has traditionally been delivered. Wet


forensics and door-to-door footwork will always have an important place, but crime is moving rapidly online and the tag ‘cyber’ is no longer an appro- priate term to demarcate the physical and digital world; they are quickly becoming one. Digital also pays no regard to


segregated, siloed processes and ab- solutely does not respect geographi- cal boundaries; our digital presence increases by the day, providing a larger and often less protected attack surface for adversaries. Policing needs to adapt to this challenge. This requires coordination and collabora- tion between police forces and other agencies, and for systems to be ro- bust, scalable and open to the idea of adopting leading-edge innovative tech in order to handle the challenges that arise from living in a world fuelled by data. Criminals will not themselves be held back in the adoption of new technology, especially if it makes crime easier, more profitable and less risky. Policing needs to catch up with


this fast-moving threat landscape and ultimately get ahead of the curve.


At Leidos, we pride ourselves in working collaboratively with our customers. We have designed mission critical services for 21st century po- licing and value some of the world’s highest profile law enforcement agencies as our customers. We lever- age the talent, assets and experience of a global workforce of 34,000 and have a strong partner eco-system. We recognise that budgets are under continual financial pressure; that is why we use agile, ‘fail fast’ and itera- tive approaches to software devel- opment, resulting in quick, tangible deliverables to ensure that business outcomes are met in a timeous and cost-effective way. We also recognise that policing


is a 24/7 enterprise and that forces must keep the lights on at all times. This means that there are few, if any, greenfield opportunities to start again. Large systems exist and are in


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