What does a fire officer do?
Fire officer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real fire officer resumes:
- Achieve advance levels of Fire/EMS management certification.
- Inspect new and operating facilities for NFPA fire code regulation and compliance.
- Ensure NFPA and OSHA codes are kept current to ensure facility compliance with industry standards.
- Research, develop, and present numerous proposals for high-level HAZMAT equipment for local and countywide use.
- Administer first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation to those injure.
- Identify and propose portable firefighting equipment requirements on institutions and public structures.
- Supervise raw battlefield intelligence collection, analysis, and develop recommendations for future lethal and non-lethal combat operations.
- Update critical standardization documents that establish the unit's procedures for conducting team certifications and operations in combat environments.
- Determine ladder requirements, direct ladder placement, deploy personnel on ladders, and monitor ladder operations to ensure safety.
- Administer first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation to those injure.
Fire officer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Fire Officers are proficient in Incident Command, Fire Safety, and Medical Emergencies. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Detail oriented, and Physical strength.
We break down the percentage of Fire Officers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Incident Command, 14%
Established incident command and coordinated with other base force protection and emergency response organizations.
- Fire Safety, 12%
Performed fire prevention/fire safety inspections prior to issuing permits.
- Medical Emergencies, 10%
Respond to emergencies for confined space rescue, fire emergencies, toxic gas emergencies, medical emergencies.
- Combat, 6%
Updated critical standardization documents that established the unit's procedures for conducting team certifications and operations in combat environments.
- CPR, 6%
Helped return the heartbeat of an elderly gentleman after using CPR.
- Personnel Management, 6%
Performed supervisory personnel management responsibilities.
Most fire officers use their skills in "incident command," "fire safety," and "medical emergencies" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential fire officer responsibilities here:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a fire officer to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "fire inspectors must clearly explain fire code violations to building and property managers." Fire officers often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "supervised and responsible for the maintenance of five vehicles, laser equipment and communications equipment worth over $750,000. "
Detail oriented. Another essential skill to perform fire officer duties is detail oriented. Fire officers responsibilities require that "fire inspectors must notice minutiae when inspecting sites for code violations or fire risks or for investigating the cause of a fire." Fire officers also use detail oriented in their role according to a real resume snippet: "prepare written reports that details specifics of fire scenes for upper management audit. "
Physical strength. This is an important skill for fire officers to perform their duties. For an example of how fire officer responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "fire investigators may have to move debris at the site of a fire in order to get a more accurate understanding of the scene." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a fire officer: "provided for the physical fitness, professional training, and overall well-being of all marines in the platoon. ".
The three companies that hire the most fire officers are:
- Allied Universal
5 fire officers jobs
- City of Greenville, NC1 fire officers jobs
- City of Dallas Employees1 fire officers jobs
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Compare different fire officers
Fire officer vs. Company commander
In the military, a company commander serves as the commanding officer to a unit of soldiers. They are primarily in charge of overseeing every soldiers' performance and the overall company's daily progress, taking responsibility for every activity and outcome. As a company commander, they have to set goals and schedules, establish discipline and order among every member, delegate tasks and responsibilities, and ensure their welfare. Moreover, they facilitate training to sharpen the company's skills in different fields.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, fire officer responsibilities require skills like "incident command," "fire safety," "medical emergencies," and "cpr." Meanwhile a typical company commander has skills in areas such as "logistical support," "property accountability," "training programs," and "human resources." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Company commanders tend to reach higher levels of education than fire officers. In fact, company commanders are 6.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Fire officer vs. Battalion chief
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, fire officer responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "incident command," "fire safety," "medical emergencies," and "hazardous materials." Meanwhile, a battalion chief has duties that require skills in areas such as "personnel issues," "emergency response," "incident command system," and "fire protection." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
In general, battalion chiefs achieve similar levels of education than fire officers. They're 1.8% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Fire officer vs. Station captain
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a fire officer is likely to be skilled in "medical emergencies," "combat," "cpr," and "personnel management," while a typical station captain is skilled in "emergency response," "occupational safety," "fire protection," and "haz-mat."
Most station captains achieve a similar degree level compared to fire officers. For example, they're 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Fire officer vs. Station chief
Even though a few skill sets overlap between fire officers and station chiefs, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a fire officer might have more use for skills like "incident command," "fire safety," "medical emergencies," and "combat." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of station chiefs require skills like "emergency incidents," "faa," "training programs," and "airfield operations. "
In general, station chiefs hold similar degree levels compared to fire officers. Station chiefs are 2.9% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 4.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of fire officer
Updated January 8, 2025
