For years, the Philadelphia 76ers were a bad basketball team.
From 2012 to 2017, the Sixers never sniffed the .500 mark and were a model of futility. One particularly awful season in 2015 saw the team go 10-72 and finish with the worst record in the NBA.
The following summer, Philadelphia drafted forward Joel Embiid and improved dramatically. A few shrewd free agent signings later and the team was back in playoff contention by the time Embiid coined the phrase, “Trust the process.”
Embiid’s tongue-in-cheek comment about the Sixers being awful for so long intentionally in order to get high draft picks and save money under the salary cap, became a rallying cry for an improving squad that is currently among the most talented teams in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.
“Trust the process,” is now atop the hierarchy of sports clichés.
On Thursday, Highlands swore-in new police chief Andrea Holland and “the process” of selecting the 13-year veteran of the department was on full display. Mayor Patrick Taylor and town manager Josh Ward both thanked the public safety committee and two independent consultants from the NC League of Municipalities for their input in picking Holland for the position.
Holland, who holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Western Carolina University, has served for the past several years as a detective within the Highlands Police Department. She is no doubt qualified to handle the chief’s position. Her knowledge of the inner workings of the department and relationship with the officers and staff is also invaluable.
There were 13 applicants for the chief’s position following Bill Harrell’s resignation in May to become the chief in Franklin. Certainly many of those who applied were qualified to take over Highlands PD’s top job.
But by being thorough, and soliciting input from multiple people, Ward and the Town of Highlands learned that the right person for the job was already within the organization and decided to promote from within.
Building a police department is nothing like building a winning basketball team, but in hiring Holland the town should be applauded for trusting the process.