Workload-Based Staffing Allocation and Resource Optimization: Emerging Practices and Research that can Help Address Your Staffing Needs

Tuesday, October 21, 2025

8:00 AM - 9:30 AM MT

Location: Mile High Ballroom 2B/3B, Colorado Convention Center

As police agencies around the world contend with staffing shortages, managers are increasingly focused on recruitment, hiring, and retention to stabilize workforce levels. Yet one critical question often goes unasked: How many officers are needed overall, and in which functions? While there is a well-established body of literature on patrol workload analysis and staffing, best practices for assessing investigative workload and staffing remain limited. This session will highlight the vital role of workload allocation in investigative staffing, presenting both academic and emerging practical approaches. It will also detail the Montgomery County, Maryland, Police Department’s strategy for addressing this essential aspect of workforce planning.

Submitter and Speaker(s)

Ronal Serpas

Superintendent of Police (Ret.)
New Orleans Police Department
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Speaker(s)

Darren Francke

Deputy Chief
Montgomery County Police Department
Germantown, Maryland, United States
Seth Williams

Director
The PFM Group
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Jeremy Wilson, Ph.D.

Director of Police Staffing Observatory, Professor
Michigan State University School of Criminal Justice
East Lansing, Michigan, United States