Four graded levels. Classroom and field. Built for the people who run incidents, by people who have.
That is the report time, every level, every day. If you would rather not, you are not ready to lead people on an incident. If you would, we will see you there.
You have the position task book, the 300 and the 400, and a radio full of people who expect you to know what to do. What you never got was the part that decides how the incident goes: the judgment, the presence, and the decisions under fatigue and disagreement that separate a qualified leader from a good one.
The structure. The forms. The chain of authority and the terminology to move inside it. All of it necessary, none of it about the person holding the position.
The person. How to lead when your name is not on the org chart. How to decide when the people who report to you believe they know better, and sometimes do. How to argue, decide, and lead the same people the next morning. How to manage the one person you cannot delegate: yourself.
Leadership is a profession. It is taught, practiced in the field, and graded. Every level ends with a credential you earned or didn't.
Five steps from curiosity to command. Each level is a prerequisite for the next. Experienced people can apply for waivers. Prices are per seat and all-in: instruction, materials, field exercises, and the credential.
Full ladder, Basic through Command: $10,600 per person. Orientation is free with a reserved Basic seat.
ILDC is leadership development, and the standard begins before the first block of instruction. Tell your agency this before they send you.
Instruction starts at 06:30 every training day. Not present and ready is marked absent. One unexcused absence is grounds for dismissal.
There is no partial completion. Miss a field exercise and you do not receive credit for the level. You can re-enroll.
Every level has a rubric. Field performance, written work, and how you treat the people around you all count. Completing the hours is not completing the course.
Seats are sold individually. Send one person or fill a cohort; a three-person department joins the same cohort as a district that sent eight. A course runs when it reaches its minimum, and you are not charged until it does.
| Course | Dates | Site | Per seat |
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We deliver across Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon, Colorado, Utah, and the western Dakotas. An agency that fills a cohort on its own gets ten percent off the seat total and the course on its schedule and site. Ask about a cohort.
Every field day has at least two instructors and a Safety Lead. The people grading you have led people when it mattered.
Developed ILDC and the Seven Hats method. Former U.S. Army TAC Officer for Officer Candidate School; principal at ClearSight Strategy.
Leads Team Leader and Section Leader field exercises.
Leads decision-analysis and After Action Review instruction.
Runs exercise safety and scenario logistics on every field day.
If yours is not here, call. The number is at the bottom of the page and a person answers it.
Yes, unless you are granted a waiver. Wildland firefighters with ten or more years of experience are likely to be waived through Basic and Team Leader. A qualified Section Chief who completes a two-hour leadership methods refresher can enter Command directly. Request a waiver during registration; there is no charge to apply.
No. Orientation sits outside the ladder. It is ungraded, carries no certificate, and is the one day the instructors carry you. It is free if you have a Basic seat reserved, and it is the right place to start if you are not sure you want to lead.
You do not receive the credential, the record notes the outcome and the reason, and you can re-enroll. Dismissal is a finding, not a punishment.
No. The instructional lineage draws on officer development methods, but the language, cases, and standards are ICS. ICS formalizes authority; incidents get resolved through relationships. ILDC teaches you to use both.
All instruction, participant materials, field exercises, and the certificate or credential. Lodging, meals, and travel are yours or your employer's.
Your card is saved securely with Stripe when you reserve, and nothing is charged. When the course reaches its minimum enrollment we confirm it, charge the card, and send a receipt. If a course does not run, nothing is charged and you are offered the next date.
Yes. An agency that fills a cohort at the minimum size or above gets ten percent off the seat total, and we deliver on its schedule and, where practical, at its site.
Pick a level, pick a date, reserve your seat. It takes about three minutes.