Officer Development Program Overview
The Salt Lake City Fire Department Officer Development Program (ODP) is specifically designed to provide the resources and training to would-be company officers, incumbent officers, and any member of the SLCFD who wishes to broaden and enhance their understanding of company officer leadership principles and incident management techniques. Purpose-built, the SLCFD ODP is separated into four distinct phases. It is important to note that while Phase I is always open and available to all members of the SLCFD, Phases II-IV are delivered in a sequential format, at specific times, and are primarily intended for would-be and newly promoted company officers.
Designed and setup primarily as a readily available, open source of information, ODP Phase I can be accessed and utilized by any member of the SLCFD regardless of rank or position. Members can move through the self-study information at their own pace and within their own scope of interest, returning to the webpage as often as they would like to read through the information and view the videos. It is highly recommended that those planning on attending ODP Phases II-IV be familiar with the information available on the ODP Phase I webpage.
Phase II
ODP Phase II is a 40-hour, in-person training course. Attendees learn about the various roles and responsibilities of an SLCFD company officer through classroom presentations, individual and group activities, open format discussions, and role-plays, as well as computer-based fire ground scenarios using the Command Training Center. ODP Phase II is delivered on an annual basis. Participation is limited to 20 spots, with preference given to: those Captains promoted in the time since the last delivery, those on the current SLCFD Captain’s Promotional List who have not attended the class, and then by seniority.
Phase III
Building off of the theories and principles covered in ODP Phase II, Phase III places the participants in the captain position on a fire apparatus for in-person, hands-on training and scenarios. Delivered in conjunction with the SLCFD Recruit Academy, newly promoted company officers and/or those currently on the SLCFD Captain’s Promotional List are assigned to an engine or truck company staffed with recruit firefighters. Throughout ODP Phase III, participants will act as the company officer and work through real-world scenarios. These live scenarios include but are not limited to: live fire evolutions (single and multiple company alarms), emergency medical, heavy rescue, and hazardous materials response scenarios; handling day-to-day station and crew situations; delivering training, completing paperwork and online documentation; etc. Participants receive immediate feedback, coaching, counseling, and training from senior SLCFD Company Officers. Due to the nature of ODP Phase III and small student-to-instructor ratio, participation is limited to several participants at one time. This phase is delivered to match the timing of the SLCFD Recruit Academy and participants must have completed ODP Phase II.
Phase IV
ODP Phase IV is a new captain mentorship program. Newly promoted captains have the opportunity to select a non-probationary SLCFD company officer as a mentor for their first six months as a newly promoted captain. This mentor will be available for guidance, Q&A, and general advice. Mentors will be provided a list of suggested topics and are expected to communicate with their mentee at least monthly.