We are engaged in an endless battle to keep the public, offenders, and ourselves safe. No doubt, corrections is an important job. However, it is no secret that the positive results of our labors are not always readily evident.
Then why do we do it? Is the corrections profession worth it? How do we anchor ourselves to our job? 
When asking such questions, we often feel forsaken in a wilderness of tasks looking for a meaning to our work. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Inside Out, Self Scrutiny
Sometimes when we make plans to improve elements of our institutional culture, we do so with high optimism. The sky is the limit in what may be achieved. However, our expectations may fall in mid-flight as the harsh truths of corrections charge in at us from the horizon. By surveying the landscape, we can battle our fear of flying.
There are seven vocational concepts that we should consider when we endeavor to improve the culture of our institution. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Staff relations
Do horns and halos coexist on the same person? Can one be a devil and an angel at once? Can one operate in a consistent nature in dual modes? Is there a thin line between professionalism and jealousy? These questions can be answered by looking into the phenomenon of the Performance Bully.
Bullies hold sway over their victims through coercion. The most common type, the physical bully, threatens to administer pain. And most bullies of other varieties gain power over others through delivery of something unpleasant. However, there is an agent of intimidation who does the opposite. The threat is to withhold something from the target. This is a common tactic of the performance bully. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Self Scrutiny, Staff relations
I thought that I had heard all of the idioms and expressions that relate to one of our most common transportation tools. I speak, of course, of the wheel. Imagine how much less interesting our language would be without the following:
…the wheels of industry (or progress)…
…let’s not reinvent the wheel…
…let’s roll… 
How about the Wheel of Corrections? Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization
Sometimes, we perform a task so often that we can do it with our eyes closed. In fact, if not for change, we could cruise along in perpetuity in a blindfold. Yet, that is a perfect world. As reality teaches us, the world does not stand still for anyone.
Did you ever hear the one about the Hummingbird and the Raven? I think that it is a good story that illustrates the dynamics of how we adapt to change. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Self Scrutiny
Custody staff comprises the largest segment of correction land. Typically, when one is asked to identify a job done in corrections, usually the first answer offered is the corrections officer. Of course, while very crucial, it takes much more than custody staff to run a modern prison. There are clerical staff, supervisors, administrative staff, food service workers, and health care staff. Yet, a significant group is often overlooked. They are the programmers.
Are programmers forgotten in the scheme of things? Perhaps this is so. Yet, the impact of those who run our prisons’ and jails’ classrooms, libraries, athletic facilities, and vocational education centers should not be underestimated. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization
Many of us have observed division that originated from ineffective or malicious mentors. It is a topic about which I have been curious for some time. I believe that it a large and overlooked source of staff division in our vocation.
A few years ago, I presented “We don’t have to like each other. We just have to work together.” in Nashville at IACTP’s 21st Annual Trainers’ Conference. That long-titled program is essentially about recognizing and repairing staff division. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Staff relations
“Action speaks louder than words!”
This is a common phrase that more or less elevates the deed over the spoken word or written thought. However, while it is true that action is the end product of an idea, the idea process should not be discounted.
The words in and of themselves are neither good nor bad. The intention of author through words is not necessarily more powerful than the execution of the ideas by the reader. So while actions speak louder than words, those words are the persistent persuader, whispering into many receptive ears. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization
Think of the applied power and knowledge of the human race! When focused and in concert, we can do almost anything. The Hoover Dam is a prime example of cooperation and problem solving. Quite literally, it is a concrete manifestation of power. Without it, the Southwest would be completely parched and less settled than it is now. And before any building action commenced on this modern marvel, it existed only in the form of a concept. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization
About six years ago, I was contacted by a Deputy Warden who works in the same agency as I work. She asked me if I had any resources on bully control. As I am a librarian by trade, I did my best to meet her information needs. And I believe that those resources assisted in crafting an excellent training session.
That fueled some curiosity in me about the topic. Prior, I thought about bullies as existing in adult form. Certainly, the bully mentality is not outgrown and left on the playground. Professionals just happen to use more sophisticated versions of the behavior. And the issue of offenders who use intimidation came to mind, as well. Read more…
joebouchard Assessing the organization, Self Scrutiny, Staff relations
