As fire service leaders we have a fundamental responsibility to develop the future leaders who will succeed them. To help meet the enormous challenge of succession planning and leadership development, CPC recently introduced a Chief Officer Mentoring Program. Mentoring is a mutually beneficial relationship in which a knowledgeable and skilled veteran chief officer (mentor) provides insight, guidance, and developmental opportunities to a protégé with lesser skills and experience.

This program prepares chief officers to step into their mentoring role with real-world dialog beyond the formal instruction of academic and certificate tracks. The program provides access to experienced, senior chiefs for new fire chiefs, seconds in command, and those appraising the top position, so they can learn how these mentors achieved success and resolved problems in serving agencies similar to their own.

The program provides assistance in handling nearly 80 areas of challenge, including governance/policies, finance, liability/legal issues, inherited issues, personnel issues, and leadership skills.