Executive Leadership Certificate Program

Overview

The Executive Leadership Certificate Program (ELCP) is the California Police Chiefs Association’s (CPCA) flagship executive development series, equipping current and aspiring police executives with the knowledge, skills, strategic perspectives, and connections to advance and exemplify effective changemaking that shapes the future of policing. Designed for chiefs and command staff at every career stage, ELCP strengthens executive mindset and presence while empowering participants to put leadership into action.

Guided by a multi-sector advisory council and CPCA’s Professional Development Committee, the program blends expert presenters, collaborative curriculum design, and applied learning experiences. Through three integrated three-day courses, participants gain innovative leadership frameworks, evidence-based models, real-world insights, and a statewide network of colleagues. These resources can be applied immediately in the police executive role, enabling leaders to confidently navigate an ever-evolving landscape of challenges and opportunities.

The ELCP Advantage

• Strengthen executive effectiveness by aligning leadership identity, influence, and practices with CPCA’s Fundamental Executive Attributes and Core Competencies.

• Apply proven frameworks and strategies to lead confidently through organizational change, crisis, and evolving stakeholder expectations.

• Refine executive leadership capacity across six dimensions: setting direction, aligning the organization, mobilizing leaders, engaging authorizing environments, connecting with stakeholders, and managing personal effectiveness.

• Gain insights from experienced presenters who connect evidence-based leadership concepts with the realities of policing and public service.

• Connect with a trusted statewide network of colleagues and thought partners to support professional growth, collaboration, and collective leadership capacity.

• Receive formal recognition of your achievement and commitment to continual development with the CPCA Executive Leadership Certificate.

Who Should Attend

• Police chiefs and command staff, regardless of CPCA membership status, seeking to enhance their executive presence, sharpen decision-making, and strengthen organizational leadership.

• Experienced executives who want to broaden perspectives and reinvigorate innovative leadership strategies to confidently navigate complex challenges.

• Aspiring leaders preparing for greater responsibility and advancement into executive roles in policing.

• Forward-thinking changemakers committed to collaboration, excellence, and shaping the future of policing.
  
  

To register, please visit our Event Calendar to view upcoming offerings

Meet the Certificate Courses

Principles of Executive Leadership in Policing (PELP)

PELP invites police executives to reflect and elevate their leadership identity and practices by focusing on the fundamental attributes and core competencies essential to the chief executive role. The session introduces strategic frameworks, executive-level perspectives, and tools for navigating the evolving demands of leading a police organization.

Through the CPCA “COPS” Leadership Framework, participants explore the pillars of Curiosity, Onboarding, People, and Storytelling, and gain practical tools for leading with cognitive agility, emotional awareness, and intentional practice. The course examines wellness, technology, data-informed strategies, and collaborative design to shape the future direction of an agency.

Critical Leadership Issues in Policing (CLIP)

CLIP develops the strategic judgment, perspective, and confidence required to navigate the complex legal, operational, and organizational challenges in policing. The session blends expert instruction, case-based learning, and facilitated dialogue to examine current and emerging issues from a police executive perspective. 

Participants integrate the concepts of constitutional purpose, critical thinking, and strategic decision-making under pressure to examine executive leadership domains including risk, ambiguity, administrative discipline, political dynamics, labor relations, and community concerns, while applying principled leadership practices to lead policing organizations with clarity and confidence.

Executive Stewardship in Policing (ESP)

ESP is the ELCP capstone session, emphasizing the legacy responsibilities of police executives as stewards of organizational culture, community trust, and internal accountability. This session engages leaders in fostering ethical agency climates, understanding generational influences on the workforce, sworn and non-sworn dynamics, community engagement, and navigating issues of race and legitimacy in policing.

Through a focus on values-driven leadership, communication, critical thinking, effective followership, and public engagement, participants examine how to remain centered and effective in meeting the demands of agency stewardship during day-to-day operations, and in the extreme conditions of a crisis.

Please visit our Course Catalog and Instructors pages for more details about each course and the program faculty.

Getting Your Certificate

To receive your Executive Leadership Certificate, you must complete all of the courses listed above within a 3-year window. You may take them in any order; however, it is recommended to take them in the order listed below. When you sign up for your final course, you'll check a box to let us know on your registration form, and we will prepare your certificate to be awarded in person upon completion of the course.

Recommended Course Order:

1. Principles of Executive Leadership in Policing (PELP)*
2. Critical Leadership Issues in Policing (CLIP)*
3. Executive Stewardship in Policing (ESP)

To register, please visit our Event Calendar to view upcoming offerings.

*FELP has been updated to PELP, and CCPE has been updated to CLIP. If you took either course under the previous name, it will still count towards your certificate!