Professional Development Catalog
Here you can find descriptions of all of our educational offerings. Registration and event details can be found on the Event Calendar.
Multi-Day Conferences
Our three multi-day conferences are annual events that bring together policing professionals from across the state and beyond, to learn, network, and make connections with our industry partners.
The Annual Training Symposium is the premier professional development event for California's police chiefs, executive leaders, and command staff. Through inspiring keynote speakers, timely education sessions, and meaningful networking opportunities, attendees gain practical strategies, fresh perspectives, and valuable connections to help them lead their organizations and communities more effectively.
Rise brings together women in policing and the colleagues who support them for an experience centered on connection, growth, and community. Through meaningful conversations, relevant education, and opportunities to build lasting relationships, attendees leave inspired, empowered, and better equipped to lead with purpose. More than a conference, Rise is a space to share experiences, learn from one another, and strengthen the connections that move individuals, agencies, and the profession forward.
The Technology Conference brings together policing leaders and technology professionals for a focused experience centered on innovation, collaboration, and practical application. Through engaging keynote speakers, timely education sessions, peer discussions, and opportunities to connect with solution providers, attendees gain the insight and tools needed to make informed technology decisions.
Designed for chiefs, command staff, IT leaders, and practitioners, the conference helps agencies move from exploring new ideas to implementing solutions that improve safety, efficiency, and community trust. Attendees leave with practical strategies, real-world perspectives, and stronger connections to support their agencies in an evolving technology landscape.
Education Courses
Our education courses feature small class sizes of 40 people or less, and provide in depth education for policing executives on a variety of specialized topics.
View our instructor roster here.
The Executive Leadership Institute (ELI) is an immersive leadership experience designed for law enforcement executives who are committed to leading with greater purpose, perspective, and impact. Offered in partnership with the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University, this two-week residential program combines world-class executive education with the unique challenges of modern policing.
Grounded in the timeless leadership principles of Peter F. Drucker and tailored specifically for public safety leaders, ELI challenges participants to think strategically, lead organizational change, strengthen decision-making, and build high-performing organizations. Through engaging faculty, nationally recognized subject matter experts, and collaborative learning with peers from across the profession, participants gain fresh perspectives, practical leadership tools, and lasting professional relationships.
More than a leadership course, ELI is a transformational experience that equips executives with the confidence, knowledge, and network to lead their organizations and communities into the future.
This course is a part of our Executive Leadership Certificate Program. Learn more here.
This is a POST certified course that challenges police executives to examine and strengthen their leadership identity, strategic perspective, and executive decision-making capabilities. The course focuses on the fundamental executive attributes and core competencies needed to lead modern policing organizations in an increasingly complex, uncertain, and high-consequence environment.
Using CPCA’s COPS Leadership Framework—Curiosity, Onboarding, People, and Storytelling—participants explore how effective executives set organizational direction, develop leadership capacity, build trust, and communicate with purpose. The curriculum integrates constitutional purpose, strategic thinking, critical decision-making, managing risk, and exercising leadership under ambiguity while emphasizing principled, values-based leadership.
Drawing on real-world case studies and leadership challenges, participants develop practical approaches for leading through uncertainty and extreme conditions, while strengthening organizational resilience and maintaining public confidence. Throughout the course, executives apply frameworks and tools that enhance judgment, executive presence, strategic communication, and organizational effectiveness.
Course Modules
-
COPS Leadership Framework – 4 hours
-
Setting Direction and Strategic Storytelling – 4 hours
-
Constitutional Purpose, Risk, and Strategic Decision-Making – 8 hours
-
Leadership in Extreme Conditions – 4 hours
-
COPS Leadership Framework Integration – 2 hours
This course is a part of our Executive Leadership Certification Program. Learn more here.
Today's policing executives are expected to lead people through uncertainty, inspire trust, navigate conflict, communicate under pressure, and influence change inside and outside their organizations. This three-day leadership program combines the interpersonal leadership skills of emotional intelligence with the practical communication skills required to influence teams, elected officials, community members, and organizational stakeholders. Participants build the internal leadership capabilities that create trust-centered cultures. Participants also receive practical tools for creating environments where accountability and high performance can coexist. Participants learn how to communicate messages with clarity and influence. They develop persuasive communication strategies by learning how to understand audiences, anticipate resistance, organize messages around a compelling "big idea," use stories and data effectively, and motivate others to action.
This course strengthens leadership at every level by giving participants practical tools to:
-
Build cultures of trust, accountability, and psychological safety.
-
Improve coaching, feedback, and difficult conversations.
-
Increase employee engagement, resilience, and ownership.
-
Communicate organizational priorities with greater clarity and influence.
-
Lead organizational change more effectively by reducing resistance and increasing commitment.
This course is a part of our Executive Leadership Certification Program. Learn more here.
This immersive two-day leadership course explores how history, race, and community experiences continue to shape policing in California and the United States. Through facilitated discussions, case studies, and interactive exhibits at the California Museum, participants examine the historical events, policies, and perspectives that influence public perceptions of law enforcement and the expectations placed on today’s police leaders.
Using these experiences as a catalyst for dialogue, participants explore strategies for strengthening legitimacy, building meaningful community partnerships, and leading organizations through complex social issues. The course emphasizes constitutional policing, historical context, cultural awareness, strategic communication, and executive decision-making while encouraging thoughtful reflection on how leadership actions shape organizational culture and public confidence.
Participants leave with practical frameworks for developing policing strategies that enhance trust, strengthen community relationships, and position their organizations to lead with transparency, accountability, and professionalism in an increasingly complex environment.
This highly interactive, POST Certified course explores the crucial partnership between city managers and police chiefs — a relationship that symbolizes staff alignment and professionalism and sets the tone for city governance. This course offers a unique opportunity for the Chief and City Manager to spend 1:1 time establishing and building a positive professional relationship, and learning more about each other's roles.
Participants will delve into essential topics such as the roles, needs, and expectations of both positions, navigating politics and interactions with elected officials, effective communication in both routine and crisis situations, building trust, and fostering community relations and engagement. Additionally, the course will address current and emerging issues and highlight the traits of the most effective managers and chiefs, ensuring that the manager-chief team operates at its best.
Supporting a Police Chief effectively requires a deep understanding of expectations and adept management of responsibilities. In this three-day course, executive assistants and other professional support staff learn essential skills to excel in their role and handle challenges. From practical tips on working closely with the Chief, to conflict resolution and managing records, participants have the opportunity to gain a variety of insights on various aspects of their role.
A highlight of the course is its focus on technology, offering practical tips for using tools like Outlook, Excel, and more. By mastering these tools, executive assistants can streamline their work and better support their Chiefs in the modern digital landscape.
The program emphasizes leveraging personal strengths for better performance and handling tough situations, through interactive sessions and group discussions. Additionally, the course covers time management, organization, and transitioning to support a new Chief smoothly, ensuring departmental efficiency.
Employee discipline is a cornerstone of accountability and is essential for building high-performing, ethical, and legally sound public safety organizations. However, there is no universally accepted approach to managing discipline effectively.
This course equips police executives with the knowledge and tools to approach employee discipline thoughtfully and strategically. Participants will explore key concepts such as ethics, organizational justice, progressive discipline, and stakeholder considerations. Through discussions on the benefits and challenges of discipline matrices and decision-making guides, executives will gain practical insights into crafting and implementing fair, defensible disciplinary processes.
The program includes interactive discussions and hands-on group scenarios to reinforce learning. By the end of the course, participants will have enhanced their ability to articulate and defend disciplinary decisions while fostering accountability and achieving organizational goals.
This course is a part of our Executive Leadership Certification Program. Learn more here.
Police executives face relentless demands that can erode physical health, cognitive performance, decision-making, and long-term career effectiveness. This interactive 8-hour course equips leaders with practical, evidence-based strategies to optimize personal wellness while fostering an organizational culture that supports resilience, health, and high performance.
Participants examine the unique health risks associated with executive leadership in policing, including chronic stress, sleep disruption, cardiovascular risk, burnout, and cumulative operational demands. Through current research, self-assessment, and practical application, attendees explore strategies for improving physical fitness, nutrition, recovery, stress management, emotional well-being, and sustainable lifestyle practices that enhance executive effectiveness.
One-Day Summits
Our One-Day Summits are responsive to YOUR needs, meaning that we rotate topics in and out in order to focus on ones that are currently most relevant to our members.
The health and wellness of law enforcement personnel is a top priority for Chiefs of Police and command staff. A key aspect of this issue is the effectiveness of the treatment provided following a line of duty injury. This program is designed to help chiefs, senior command staff, and human resources professionals achieve better recovery outcomes from the Workers’ Compensation system for their injured personnel.
The course will provide an organizational approach that senior leaders can use to drive the treatment process. It will cover how treatment decisions are made, including delays, denials, and approvals, and explain the legal foundations that allow leaders to exert their authority and influence. Additionally, the program will address the true economic cost of injuries, offer protocols to ensure accountability, and discuss strategies for overcoming barriers to change.
