U.S. Office of Personnel Management - Ensuring the Federal Government has an effective civilian workforce

LEAD provides a complete leadership development curriculum for current and aspiring government leaders. LEAD is designed to recognize the developmental efforts of government employees by providing official recognition of achievement at a given level of leadership. Each leadership level requires the participant to complete five seminars within three years. (Please see the LEAD table below)

The four levels of leadership in the LEAD Certificate Program are:

• Project/Team Lead
• Supervisor
• Manager
• Executive (SES level)

LEAD brochure [701 KB]

Outcomes of the LEAD Certificate Program:

• Documents and honors those that put in the effort to be a better leader
• Ensures all leadership training is directly relevant to Government application
• Clarifies which leadership training is most critical for success; it provides a "short list" for use by employees and training managers to help focus employee development

What are the rules for the LEAD Certificate Program?

1. LEAD Certificates are issued for a specific level of leadership.
2. For a given level, you must complete the required number of seminars in EACH column of the table below, which will result in a total of 5 seminars to be completed for each LEAD Certificate level.
3. The last of the 5 seminars must be completed within 3 years of the start date of the first seminar taken.
4. It is recommended, but not required, to complete the Assessment and Core seminars first, before taking the Policy and Skill categories.
5. You may earn a LEAD Certificate for a level of leadership, even if you are not at that level, but we strongly recommend checking with your training manager to see whether your agency has any specific rules regarding taking seminars for a higher level than your current position.

How do I get a LEAD Certificate?

1. The LEAD Certificate Program is a self-paced program, which means OPM is not formally involved until you complete the 5 required seminars for a given level of Leadership. This also means you register for each course individually as you progress through the seminars.
2. Within 90 days of completing the last of the five seminars at a given level, you must submit a scanned copy of all completed OPM course certificates to validate completion within the three year period to the OPM LEAD Certificate Program Coordinator.
3. Once validated, you will have 90 days to submit a 3-5 page capstone paper, detailing lessons learned and describing at least one example of application back on the job. The paper will be reviewed for Pass/Fail by an OPM Program Director/Faculty Member.
4. Once a “Pass” rating on the capstone paper is attained, you will receive a LEAD Certificate.

The table below lists the recommended seminars for each certificate level. For your convenience each seminar listed is a hyperlink directly to the seminar page which identifies course description, dates, locations, and costs.

Summary of Training to Complete a LEAD Certificate by Level of Leadership	Required Training for a LEAD Certificate at a Given Leadership Level**
Leadership Level	Assessment	Core Development	Policy Awareness	Skill Immersion
Project / Team Lead (No performance appraisal responsibility)	Leadership Assessment Program -- Level 1 (Simulation assessment of leadership potential)	Leadership Potential Seminar10 days	None Required	Take 3 of 5 Developing High Performing Teams Facilitative Leadership Leadership Skills for Non-Supervisors/Non-Managers Project Management Principles Team Building and Team Leadership
Supervisor (First line supervisor-conducts staff performance appraisals)	Leadership Assessment Program -- Level 2 (Multi-instrument assessment of current leadership effectiveness and preferences)	Supervisory Leadership Seminar9 days (Requires taking both weeks 1 and 2 of the SLS)	None Required	Take 3 of 7 Conflict Resolution Skills4 days Coaching and Mentoring for Excellence4 days Leadership for Information Technology Leading with the Written Word4 days Women's Leadership Seminar Supervising and Managing a Virtual Workforce3 days Grassroots Leadership3 days
Manager (Conducts performance appraisals for one or more supervisors)	Leadership Assessment Program -- Level 2 (Multi-instrument assessment of current leadership effectiveness and preferences)	Take 1 of 2 Seminar for New Managers10 days (Take if within 1 year of becoming a manager) Management Development Seminar10 days (Take if you have been a manager for 2 or more years)	Take 1 of 5 Dynamics of Public Policy10 days Environmental Policy Issues10 days Federal Regulatory Policy4 days Federal Budgetary Policies and Processes10 days Science, Technology and Public Policy10 days	Take 2 of 4 Bridging Organizational Cultures Developing Customer-Focused Organizations Communicating Face to Face Strategic Management of Human Capital3 days
Executive (Senior Executive Service or equivalent senior manager level)	Senior Executive Assessment Program (Behaviorally-based assessment of potential for SES, assessment of readiness to go through SES Selection process, and realistic job preview of SES job)	Take 1 of 2 Executive Development Seminar10 days Leadership for a Democratic Society27 days	Take 1 of 5 Dynamics of Public Policy10 days Environmental Policy Issues10 days Federal Regulatory Policy4 days Federal Budgetary Policies and Processes10 days Science, Technology and Public Policy10 days	Take 2 of 9 Collaborating Across Organizational Boundaries2 days Communicating to the Media, Public and Congress Creating Breakthroughs: Innovating in Government2 days Crisis Leadership Workshop Developing and Communicating Your Leadership Competencies Executive Communication Skills Leading Through Constructive Conflict3 days Leadership for a Global Society Resiliency Advantage3 days

**NOTE: The number of days of each seminar is indicated by a superscript number at the end of the title. If there is not a superscript, then the seminar is 5 days (1 week) long. Many courses are available for college credit. Not all courses are offered each year.

Definitions of Terms

• Assessment
  • A seminar that provides assessment of current leadership effectiveness and/or potential customized for each level of leadership. OPM uses a simulation assessment for the Team Lead level; an instrument-based assessment (e.g. 360, MBTI) for the Supervisor and Manager levels; and a behavioral assessment for the Executive level
• Core
  • A seminar that provides an overview for the key competencies considered critical to succeed at each level of leadership, as well as opportunities to develop those competencies
• Policy Awareness
• A seminar that provides essential policy knowledge that cuts across almost all Manager and Executive level positions such as budget and finance
• Skill Immersion
• A seminar that provides deep development on a specific skill or ability so that the participant can use it immediately upon returning to their agency

Most seminars are offered at either the Eastern Management Development Center (EMDC) in Shepherdstown, WVA; the Western Management Development Center (WMDC) in Aurora, CO or the Federal Executive Institute in Charlottesville, VA.

For more information please contact the CLCS Certificate Program Coordinator: Claire Thurston at LEAD@opm.gov or 303-671-1136. For current seminar dates and prices go to www.leadership.opm.gov or select the seminar name in the LEAD table above.

For more information: Follow the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) link