2024-27 Strategic Plan

Development

In February 2023, the CPSE Board established a three-member strategic plan vendor selection subcommittee. That subcommittee oversaw the issuance of a Request for Proposals, the review of 14 submittals, the interview of finalists, and the selection of Blue Sky Partners by June 2023.

Blue Sky Partners recommended a series of feedback activities including:

Surveys which were sent to customers, staff, contractors, volunteers, and partner organizations,
In-person and virtual listening sessions, and
In-person SOAR (Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results) sessions with both commissions.

A Survey Summary Report and Themes Report were developed based on the numerous feedback activities and through meetings with a Strategic Planning Committee. These reports were the basis of a day-long facilitation in December 2023. Four strategic priorities were identified during this meeting as well as the need to refine CPSE’s vision statement.

Throughout January 2024, five working groups comprising CPSE Board members, commission leadership, staff, and contractors met virtually using Miro to capture thoughts that would serve as the basis of the plan.

Execution

In February 2024, CPSE issued our 2024-2027 Strategic Plan that was debuted during the CPSE Excellence Conference. CPSE also introduced our new Vision Statement “Be the catalyst for advancement of the fire and emergency service to create safe and resilient communities”.

The table below outlines the four strategic priorities, a strategy statement for each of those priorities, and a summary of the strategies for each priority area. The full listing of strategies can be found in the plan.

Strategic Priority	Strategy Statement	Summary
	Strategically grow the Accreditation and Credentialing programs while maintaining the excellence of both programs.	Increase the number of accredited agencies and credentialed individuals. Implement standard of excellence policies and metrics for smart growth to maintain industry relevance. Grow CPSE support programs to best meet customer needs.
	Invest in the people of CPSE, with a focus on volunteer, contractor, staff and Next Gen engagement and recognition.	Cultivate volunteer satisfaction and motivation. Foster positive contractor engagement. Create a supportive work environment for staff. Foster a diverse and inclusive culture at CPSE that will attract Next Gen.
	Enhance marketing of CPSE’s programs, streamline internal communications, and raise public awareness of CPSE’s impact with the goal of increasing brand recognition within the industry, ensuring consistency in messaging, and ultimately underscoring CPSE’s value to the public.	Improve internal communication for better understanding. Create awareness and strong brand recognition of CPSE offerings. Clearly articulate the ROI that CPSE brings. Foster expectations by communities that departments be accredited and their personnel be credentialed.
	Review internal and customer-facing operations systematically to optimize organizational efficiency and effectiveness.	Enhance technology for efficiency and user experience. Establish consistency and clarity in accreditation and credentialing processes. Ensure consistency among Peer Assessor and Peer Reviewers. Improve accessibility and equity in assignment processes.

Implementation

February 2024, CPSE introduced our new Vision Statement “Be the catalyst for advancement of the fire and emergency service to create safe and resilient communities”
Quarter 2 2024, CPSE staff will identify tactics, metrics, and resources needed to implement the strategic plan
Quarter 3 2024, CPSE staff will determine which strategies are near, short, or long term
December 2024, CPSE staff will present a multi-year reinvestment plan to the CPSE Board
March 2025, we will share our first annual update on strategic plan implementation