Tactical Team Leader Description

The Ohio Tactical Officers Association Tactical Team Leader course is designed to expose current and future SWAT Team Commanders, Team Leaders, crisis negotiators, supervisors, administrators, and ALL responding officers to contemporary critical incident response issues, tactics, and procedures.

This course is NOT just for the SWAT/SRT Officer, ALL first responders will benefit.

"Tactical" leadership deals with a leader's ability to make good, timely decisions with imperfect or incomplete information in moments of stress, and it's essential to the successful resolution of a critical incident.

Target Audience

  • SWAT/SRT Leadership
  • Future Team Leaders
  • Crisis Negotiators
  • Current Supervisors
  • New Supervisors
  • ALL that respond to critical incidents

Topics Include

  • Legal Update
  • Risk Mitigation
  • Record Keeping
  • Operations Manual
  • Policy & Procedures
  • Threat Assessments
  • Leadership Principals
  • Training & Equipment
  • Standards & Selection
  • Suicidal & EDP Response
  • Debriefs & After Actions
  • Civil Disturbances & Rioting
  • Critical Incident Decision Making
  • Contemporary Response Planning
  • Barricades - High-Risk Warrants - Hostage Rescue

Also Covered

  • Justifying specialized team or "SWAT" teams
  • The use of specialized teams
  • SWAT standards and professionalism
  • Contemporary SWAT issues and concerns
  • SWAT and the media
  • Discipline, and removal of SWAT team members
  • Crisis negotiations teams
  • Tactical operation centers
  • Operations planning
  • Weapons and equipment selection


The focus of this training will be on pre-incident training, planning, organizing, and the tactical decision-making process used in the resolution of high-risk operations. Also included in the curriculum is an overview of National SWAT Standards and critical incident reviews.

Practical applications will consist of scouting and planning warrants, small team planning, tactics used in the resolution of critical incidents, and reviewing tactical incidents and videos. Attendees will participate in group discussions, write operations orders and develop training plans, plus critique and evaluate tactics and decisions based on a principal-based SWAT and/or patrol response decision-making process. 

Course Classroom hours are 0800-1700hrs each day.

Attire: Business casual