What does a chief of police do?
A Chief Of Police is the title typically given to the top official in the chain of command of a police department. They plan, coordinate, supervise, and evaluate police department operations.
Chief of police responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real chief of police resumes:
- Lead, train and mentore a team of 11 senior logistics and business consultants.
- Plan, manage, develop, implement and revise the training FTO program, as needed.
- Enable senior leadership to accomplish combat objectives.
- Provide first aid and CPR to victims as necessary.
- Investigate burglary and theft crimes with extensive attention to details.
- Investigate state and federal narcotics violations on a DEA lead strike-force team.
- Create a training curriculum in addition to require annual in-service and firearms training.
- Maintain the combat readiness of 60 aircraft leading a team of 75 avionics technicians.
- Serve as a certify patrol officer, school resource officer and mountain bike patrol officer.
- Investigate burglary, fraud, and other crimes to support law enforcement and judicial evaluations.
- Collect and analyze logistics information on behalf of unit commanding officer.
- Provide informational speeches to service organizations and various groups regarding veterans' benefits and programs.
- Prepare responses to congressional, presidential, and veterans service organization inquiries on behalf of veterans.
- Develop a patrol base department into an organization with the ability to investigate any crime ranging from traffic violations to homicide.
- Research contemporary technology to transition the organization to a computerize records management system integrate with mobile laptop computers in patrol units.
Chief of police skills and personality traits
We calculated that 23% of Chiefs Of Police are proficient in Patrol, Public Safety, and Criminal Justice. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Empathy, and Good judgment.
We break down the percentage of Chiefs Of Police that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patrol, 23%
Developed a patrol based department into an organization with the ability to investigate any crime ranging from traffic violations to homicide.
- Public Safety, 13%
Directed a fifty-five-person workforce spanning four departments; Tribal Police, Security, Museum Security and Public Safety Dispatch Center.
- Criminal Justice, 9%
Initiated accreditation process with New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services
- Law Enforcement Agencies, 8%
Organized and co-chaired inter-governmental and agency forums for the benefit of local law enforcement agencies and information sharing.
- Emergency Management, 4%
Developed and implemented a school/active shooter manual including an emergency management plan for various high risk scenarios.
- Police Services, 3%
Directed, planned, organized and provided administrative direction and oversight for police services, security and law enforcement programs.
"patrol," "public safety," and "criminal justice" are among the most common skills that chiefs of police use at work. You can find even more chief of police responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for a chief of police to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "police and detectives must be able to speak with people and to express details in writing about an incident." Additionally, a chief of police resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "implement wireless communication and mobile data terminals in police units with the assistance of the oklahoma criminal justice resource center. "
Empathy. Another essential skill to perform chief of police duties is empathy. Chiefs of police responsibilities require that "police officers need to understand the perspectives of a variety of people in their jurisdiction and be willing to help the public." Chiefs of police also use empathy in their role according to a real resume snippet: "maintain a strong understanding of federal, state and local laws, as well as department policy and procedures. "
Good judgment. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of chiefs of police is good judgment. This skill is critical to many everyday chief of police duties, as "police and detectives must be able to determine the best way to solve an array of problems." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "cultivated good community relations, appearing before civic, fraternal and other community groups. "
Leadership skills. A big part of what chiefs of police do relies on "leadership skills." You can see how essential it is to chief of police responsibilities because "police officers must be comfortable with being a highly visible member of their community, as the public looks to them for help in emergencies." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical chief of police tasks: "promoted to chief of police to provide law enforcement leadership for this exclusive 326-resident community located in central michigan. "
Physical strength. Another common skill required for chief of police responsibilities is "physical strength." This skill comes up in the duties of chiefs of police all the time, as "police officers must be strong enough to physically apprehend suspects and to assist people in precarious situations." An excerpt from a real chief of police resume shows how this skill is central to what a chief of police does: "strengthened department performance by: ensuring department complied with the criminal justice information system. "
The three companies that hire the most chief of polices are:
- State of Georgia: Teachers Retirement System of Georgia2 chiefs of police jobs
- Finger Lakes Community College2 chiefs of police jobs
- City of Pasadena2 chiefs of police jobs
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Compare different chiefs of police
Chief of police vs. Sergeant first class
A platoon sergeant is responsible for monitoring the platoon on its daily operations, including their training and activities, evaluating their performance, and enforcing disciplinary actions to maintain the order of the group. Platoon sergeants work closely with a platoon commander, advising high-end strategic procedures to support the troops, including defense training and weapon tactics. They also coordinate with different units, especially on deploying the platoon for assignments and security duties to maintain the peace of the vicinity.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a chief of police are more likely to require skills like "patrol," "public safety," "criminal justice," and "law enforcement agencies." On the other hand, a job as a sergeant first class requires skills like "us army," "combat," "platoon," and "logistical support." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Sergeant first classes tend to reach similar levels of education than chiefs of police. In fact, sergeant first classes are 3.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.6% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Chief of police vs. Platoon sergeant
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, chief of police responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "patrol," "public safety," "criminal justice," and "law enforcement agencies." Meanwhile, a platoon sergeant has duties that require skills in areas such as "safety procedures," "combat," "weapons systems," and "nco." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
In general, platoon sergeants achieve lower levels of education than chiefs of police. They're 6.5% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 1.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Chief of police vs. Deputy commander
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a chief of police is likely to be skilled in "patrol," "public safety," "criminal justice," and "law enforcement agencies," while a typical deputy commander is skilled in "logistics support," "oversight," "combat support," and "human resources."
Most deputy commanders achieve a higher degree level compared to chiefs of police. For example, they're 13.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Chief of police vs. Co-captain
Types of chief of police
Updated January 8, 2025
