The Toronto Police Service (TPS), in a time of almost universal fiscal restraint and paradoxically increased complexity of service, restructured itself by moving from a decentralized command and control model to a centralized command and communication model to reduce costs while simultaneously increasing the efficiency and breadth of service.
The Toronto Police Operations Centre (TPOC), staffed by a small cadre of subject matter experts, was designed to harmonize front-line operations with their support functions by leveraging existing technologies, granting the TPOC positional authority, and embedding a tactical communications liaison (TCL) within the TPOC. The TPOC’s operating model relies on positional authority to maximize efficiency via the elimination of overlaps in responsibility between ranks and roles, communication delays, redundant authorizations, and delays in operational or investigative responses to critical incidents.