Leading From the Inside Out: What Policing Can Learn from a Bicycle Company CEO

At first glance, there might not seem to be much in common between policing and a bicycle company.

But in a recent webinar between Simon Sinek and Trek Bicycles CEO John Burke, it became clear: the most powerful leadership lessons often come from outside our own profession. And what John has built at Trek over decades—an intentional culture rooted in values, humility, and accountability—is exactly the kind of culture we can draw inspiration from in policing.

Here are a few takeaways that resonated deeply, especially for those of us aspiring to lead and change the profession from the inside out:

Good Is the Enemy of Great
Burke shared that one of the first cultural shifts he made as CEO was to challenge the belief that being “good” was good enough. He encouraged his team to always ask, “How can we be better?” especially in the areas where they were already succeeding.

In policing, tradition can become a comfort zone. But defending the status quo because “that’s the way we’ve always done it” is the fast track to stagnation. If we want great policing, not just good enough, we need to question, evolve, and reimagine—every day.

The Power of Worthy Rivals
Drawing from The Infinite Game, Burke talked about the importance of identifying “worthy rivals”—those individuals or organizations that are doing something better than you. Not to beat them, but to learn from them.

What if, instead of defending our agency’s way of doing things, we sought out departments we admire and asked: “What are they doing that we could learn from?” And what if we did the same within our own departments, learning from each other rather than competing?

Measure What Actually Matters
At Trek, every part of the business is divided into “sparkling minibuses”—smaller teams responsible for performance, with five clear, weighted metrics. Each team’s results are reviewed quarterly and shared transparently.

What if we translated this into policing? Imagine each team—patrol, investigations, community outreach—having its own scorecard that includes not just arrests or response times, but things like trust, culture, retention, and well-being. What gets measured, gets done.

Culture Is Behavior, Not a Poster
“Culture,” Burke said, “is how people behave—not the words on the wall.” It’s lived out in the choices leaders make, in what gets rewarded, in how people treat each other when no one’s watching.

That’s true in every team, every shift, and every roll call. Are we building cultures where deputies and officers want to come to work, feel safe to ask for help, and know their leadership has their back? Or are we ignoring the small behaviors that slowly erode trust from the inside?

Everyone’s a Leader
Leadership isn’t about rank. Burke hammered this home: “Everybody’s a leader at Trek.” That belief—that anyone, at any level, can choose to take responsibility for the people to their left and right—is foundational.

We say this at The Curve all the time: You don’t need a title to lead. Whether you’re a rookie or a chief, your influence comes from how you show up for others.

Start Small
Burke told the story of one team at Trek that had the lowest employee satisfaction score in the company. Instead of quitting or blaming others, the leader brought his team together and asked, “What can we do to make this a better place to work?”

In a year, they became one of the highest-performing teams.

If you’re an officer frustrated by the culture around you—start with what’s within your control. Your shift. Your squad car. Your partner. Turn your corner of the agency into a “sparkling minibus.” That’s how real change begins.

At The Curve, we believe the path to better policing starts with better leadership. And better leadership begins with leaders who are willing to grow, question, and learn—not just from within, but from every worthy rival around them.

If a bike company in Wisconsin can inspire us to lead with humility, accountability, and purpose—maybe it’s time we hop on and ride.

Watch the entire webinar here