You Already Know the Job.Now You Have to Prove You Can Hold the Rank.
Every promotional cycle, incredibly capable Fire and EMS professionals walk into an assessment center and fail to show the panel who they truly are. They memorize textbooks, rehearse canned scenarios, and try to give the perfect answer. But assessors aren't looking for a textbook. They are looking for a leader they can trust.
Over the last two decades — rising from the line to Assistant Chief — I've learned that the badge doesn't make the leader. The mindset does. For 10 years I've sat on the other side of the table, scoring candidates for my own agency and regional departments across the area. I know exactly what separates a baseline "Meets Standard" from a definitive "Exceeds Standard." It isn't a trick of vocabulary or a perfectly memorized protocol. It is the quiet confidence of a candidate who understands that true leadership is rooted in service, accountability, and the ability to navigate complex human factors.
Credentials
Inside the Room.
On Both Sides of the Table.
- ◆Assistant Chief — 25 Years Fire Service
- ◆10 Years Promotional Assessment Experience
- ◆Local and Regional Assessor Experience
- ◆Entry Level Oral Board Assessor — 10 Years
- ◆Creator — The Promotional Standard Platform
Coaching Spots Are Limited.
Individual and package coaching slots fill quickly — secure your spot before your assessment window closes.
Check Availability →◆ The Assessor Advantage
What It Means to Be Coached by an Assessor
I Know What Assessors Write
For 10 years I sat on assessment panels and wrote the behavioral scores. I know the exact language, the specific indicators, and the precise moments that move a candidate from a 'Meets Standard' to an 'Exceeds Standard.' I don't guess at what assessors want — I was one.
I've Seen Every Mistake
I have watched genuinely talented candidates walk out of assessment centers frustrated and confused — scoring far below their ability because they prepared the wrong way. I built TPS Coaching Lab specifically because I kept seeing this happen to people who deserved to promote.
I Coach the Real Target
Generic leadership coaching prepares you for a conversation. Assessment center coaching prepares you for a performance under observation pressure. Those are not the same thing. I coach the real target — the behavioral indicators on the assessor's rubric.
◆ My Story
Why I Built This
My promotional journey started in 2014. SAM Officer. Then Lieutenant in 2016. Captain in 2020. Assistant Chief in 2024. Each promotion required real preparation — and I was fortunate early in my career to have an incredible coach and mentor who helped me understand the assessment center environment before I walked into my first process. I am still close with that mentor today because of the impact he had on me both personally and professionally.
That relationship changed my career. And I have never forgotten it.
I have spent the last 10 years on the other side of the process — as an assessor for my department and for regional fire departments across the area. I have scored hundreds of candidates. I have seen what works, what doesn't, and what genuinely talented firefighters and paramedics get wrong when they walk into the room unprepared.
Three years ago I started informally coaching fire and EMS professionals preparing for promotional processes. I have helped many individuals finish in a promotional position or improve their scoring position. Not because I gave them answers — but because I helped them understand the room they were walking into and develop the leadership identity and communication skills that assessors are actually trained to score.
TPS Coaching Lab is the formal version of what I have been doing informally for three years. I built The Promotional Standard platform to make assessment center preparation accessible to every candidate everywhere. I built TPS Coaching Lab for the candidates who want to work directly with someone who has been inside the room — on both sides of the table.
A long time ago someone invested in me. I would love to do the same for you.
— Assistant Chief · 25 Years Fire Service · Creator, The Promotional Standard
◆ Coaching Services
Choose Your Coaching Program
I coach you to step fully into your leadership identity. Together we strip away the assessment-center anxiety and focus on three core pillars of command — Decisive Accountability, Operational Empathy, and Organizational Thinking. I know the specific behavioral indicators and the precise moments that elevate a candidate from average to undeniable. We will bridge the gap between your operational experience and the executive communication required to secure your promotion.
One 90-minute video session
Single Session Intensive
For candidates who need targeted feedback on a specific gap or want an expert review before assessment day.
- ◆Pre-session intake form — rank, timeline, biggest gaps
- ◆Review of your TPS Practice Engine session history
- ◆90-minute live video coaching session
- ◆Post-session written summary and 2-week action plan
- ◆7-day email follow-up support
Six sessions over six weeks
Assessment Prep Package
For candidates 6–12 weeks from their assessment who want a structured week-by-week preparation system with live coaching and accountability.
- ◆Everything in Single Session
- ◆Six 60-minute weekly video sessions
- ◆Live oral board practice with real-time feedback
- ◆Written exercise review and scoring
- ◆In-basket walkthrough session
- ◆Full mock assessment in week six
- ◆Unlimited email support throughout
- ◆TPS platform access included
Custom group engagement
Department Cohort
For departments running a promotional process who want every candidate prepared at the highest level — with an assessor's perspective built in.
- ◆Custom cohort assessment and needs analysis
- ◆Group video sessions for all candidates simultaneously
- ◆Department-specific scenario development
- ◆TPS platform licenses for all participants
- ◆Individual coaching sessions for top candidates
- ◆Final group mock assessment
- ◆Post-process debrief and recommendations
◆ The Process
How Coaching Works
Book
Choose your program and complete the intake form. Tell me your rank, your timeline, your department context, and your biggest gaps.
Prepare
I review your intake and your TPS Practice Engine session history before our first session. I come prepared. You come prepared.
Develop
We work through your specific development priorities — oral board structure, role play composure, leadership philosophy, in-basket triage — whatever your gaps are.
Promote
You walk into your assessment center having done the real work. Not hoping. Knowing.
◆ For Departments & Agencies
Department and Agency Coaching
For fire chiefs, training officers, and union reps who want every candidate in their promotional process prepared at the highest level.
Department cohort coaching brings the TPS system and assessor expertise directly to your candidates as a group. Every participant gets the framework knowledge, the practice reps, and the coaching feedback that top-performing candidates use to separate themselves.
Departments that invest in candidate preparation produce better officers — and better processes. If you are running a promotional process and want every candidate walking in prepared rather than guessing — let's talk.
Department Inquiry
Tell me about your process.
◆ TPS Coaching Lab ◆
You Have the Drive.You've Put in the Years.Now Let's Refine the Execution.
I know what "Exceeds Standard" looks like from the assessor's chair — let's build a foundation of preparation that reflects the leader you truly are.