The man set to become Queensland Police's acting commissioner says he won't just be a caretaker and will apply for the full-time role.
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Steve Gollschewski is still days away from taking over from Katarina Carroll, who will leave the force on March 1 after resigning as the state's top cop this week
Ms Carroll on Tuesday ended speculation about her future by announcing she would stand down amid an outcry over youth crime and reports of officer unrest.
Mr Gollschewski said he was honoured by the interim role but had his eyes on the permanent position.
The veteran officer said he would not be idle during the months it is expected to select Ms Carroll's successor, confirming he wanted the top job fulltime.
"I want to make it clear that I'm not just going in as a caretaker," Mr Gollschewski said on Friday.
"It wasn't the time for someone to just warm the seat.
"My commitment is that you will see an organisation that's not sitting on its hands."
He said a priority was ensuring officers felt supported amid reports of unrest and claims there was a "disconnect" between senior management and frontline police.
The senior officer said there were some "disconnects" they were concerned about and would pay particular attention to the Gold Coast.
Ms Carroll had come under pressure to intervene after reports of unrest over the standing down of Gold Coast officer Senior Sergeant Arron Ottaway for allegedly authorising officers to ram a stolen car.
"There's some things that we need to work on collectively with both (leaders and officers) to get it back to where it needs to be," Mr Gollschewski said.
He has been overseeing major reforms in which the State Emergency Service and Marine Rescue Queensland will sit within the QPS from July.
The initiative has led to some officers fearing it will add to an already hefty workload.
Mr Gollschewski said he was disappointed to hear those complaints but assured police the SES and MRQ would have their own resources, services and budget under the changes.
He said another high priority was domestic violence as they implement the recommendations from a 2022 inquiry into the QPS' response to DV.
The inquiry found sexism was a "significant problem" in the QPS.
After Ms Carroll's resignation, the police union claimed she had been treated unfairly by senior officers "because she's a woman".
Mr Gollschewski said he would speak to his close friend Ms Carroll about the claims but believed changing cultures took time.
"What we want to see is improvement and we want to see a system that deals with that quickly and effectively," he said.
Opposition leader David Crisafulli said youth justice should be the new commissioner's focus.
"The greatest gift that the new commissioner could get is a government that has his back and gives the laws and the resources to be able to heal the youth crime crisis," he said.
Australian Associated Press
