The Burden of Command is a short primer or handbook regarding successful strategies with specific tactics for use in leadership, supervision, and management in today's public and private sector workplace. The book uses an introduction to open and five chapters, each identified as a particular burden or requirement for anyone appointed to a position of supervision as a guide to shape their conduct and plot their course to develop the necessary skill sets for effective and meaningful job performance. The epilogue ties everything together with the latest research in support of the strategies implemented. Two case studies and a reading list complete the book's goal of providing new and seasoned supervisors with a "tool chest" of management tools to perform proactive maintenance, problem repairs, and high performance enhancements in the leader's personal repertoire. The book uses practical applications, detailed lists, and specific examples in each chapter to explain how and why the book's methods are important and useful. This book is a result of the author's many years of practical experience and many interactive classes with hundreds of supervisors across the country. It is a very unique and useful book, easily understood with an interesting and important angle of view for modern leadership expectations. It provides objective insight and promotes best practices for anyone given leadership authority over others.
About the Author: John B. Edwards began his career in 1977 as a uniformed Deputy Sheriff at the Evans County Sheriff's Office. John joined the Georgia Bureau of Investigation in 1978, where he worked as an undercover agent, a narcotics and smuggling investigator, and in general investigations. In 1992, John was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge and designed, staffed, and supervised the Tri-Circuit Multi-Jurisdictional Drug Task Force. John returned to the Statesboro Regional Field Office as the Assistant Special Agent in Charge in 1996. In 2000, John was appointed acting Special Agent in Charge of the Savannah Regional Drug Enforcement Office until 2001, when he returned to the Statesboro Regional Field Office as the Special Agent in Charge. In June of 2004, John served with F.B.I. and Secret Service as Co-Chair of Crisis Management during the Sea Island G-8 Summit. John retired from the GBI in October of 2008. John was appointed Chief Deputy Sheriff in Evans County, Georgia in 2009 where he designed and implemented an Intelligence Led Policing Operation for the Evans County Sheriff's office. During this time Evans County was one of thirty agencies in the nation that was part of the Bureau of Justice Assistance's "Smart Policing Initiative" and Evans County was recognized as one of the ten best practices in the nation. In 2013, John as an executive board member became the manager of the peace officers association of Georgia and C.E.O. of J.B. Edwards and Associates consultants. John continues to teach many investigative management and leadership courses from originally designed curriculum throughout the country. John has lectured for The National Law Enforcement Institute, the Regional Counter Drug Academy, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, National Sheriff's Association, Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Justice Assistance, F.B.I. National Academy Associates and various Federal, State, and local Agencies. John served as an adjunct instructor, teaching his personally designed course, "The Burden of Command," at the Georgia Law Enforcement Command College at Columbus State University. John consults for both national and international police agencies and has published numerous articles regarding the management of criminal investigations, major incident management, and law enforcement operations. He currently conducts three-day seminars throughout the country centering on "The Burden of Command" philosophy.