The Leander Police Department will spend about seven months reviewing its culture and processes to ensure employees and officers feel they work in a supportive environment that will be able to handle the city’s needs as it grows.

An item passed at Leander’s June 17 City Council meeting allocated $85,000 for a contract supporting that initiative. The contract is with LION Organizational Development Institute LLC, according to agenda documents.

“The LION Institute Transition Model provides a structured and research-backed approach to managing organizational change by addressing the human and psychological aspects of transition,” according to the documents.

What’s going on?

Leander Police Chief Greg Minton told Community Impact the assessment isn’t geared toward needed change. Instead, it is being done in the interest of assessing the department’s culture to ensure a positive working environment and success in operations as the city grows.


How we got here

Minton said he’s been with the department for 30 years.

When he started, the department served about 3,000 people, he said. The city now estimates it has over 77,000 people in it.

“I’ve seen a lot of changes over the last 30 years,” Minton said, noting that a newer generation is coming onto the force now, and he wants to make sure the department’s culture is conducive to them having fulfilling careers.


“I want a healthy department. I want people to be able to feel that they’re able to bring up any issues if they have an issue that comes up,” Minton said.

What else?

Ultimately, Minton said maintaining a healthy culture at the department will result in better treatment of the community.

He said he wants to avoid a situation where officers are carrying negative feelings from the department with them out into the field.