Outgoing Police Chief William Bratton said on Wednesday that any one of the three finalists being considered as his replacement would be a great leader for the Los Angeles Police Department.

"I'm very pleased with the three finalists," Bratton said at City Hall just before he was honored by the City Council. "All three of them are extraordinary individuals, consummate professionals."

"They're all creative, innovative, committed to improving relations with the many diverse communities in the city," he added. "The city is going to be in good hands under the stewardship of whichever one of them is privileged to be the next chief."

The Police Commission on Tuesday recommended three finalists to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa: Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell and Deputy Chiefs Charlie Beck and Michel Moore.

Villaraigosa is set to interview Beck on Wednesday, McDonnell on Thursday and Moore Friday. He could pick a nominee to become the next LAPD chief on Monday, although the mayor said he plans to take all the time he needs to make the right choice.

"The mayor has a tough decision ahead because he has three great candidates," Bratton said. "I've worked with all of them for the last seven years -- all of them are intimately involved in the reformation of the LAPD and our movement forward. They're very intimate with what has occurred. They were instrumental in how they occurred."

Bratton's last day is Saturday. He said he will be on a plane to New York City on Sunday morning, and starting his new job Monday.

Bratton is joining a private security firm, Altegrity. He said his first task will be to help the company bid successfully on federal contracts to do criminal justice work in many of the emerging democracies around the world that the State Department is seeking to assist.