What does an investigator do?
Criminal investigators play an essential role in criminal justice and law enforcement. Their job entails solving open cases that may take them weeks or even months to accomplish. Collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses, and arresting suspects are among their many tasks. They work at every level of criminal justice and law enforcement. For criminal investigators to succeed in their profession, they should have sound judgment, strong communication skills, ethical standards, physical fitness, and empathy. They also benefit from strong job prospects, in addition to an exciting and rewarding job.
Investigator responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real investigator resumes:
- Participate in and lead the controlled purchase of illegal narcotics and firearms to apprehend suspects.
- Manage all business reporting to include; payroll, taxes, client billing, account reconciliations and compliance reports.
- Manage corporate-wide document production relative to complex litigation cases.
- Receive multiple letters of commendation for effective investigations that lead to successful prosecutions.
- Collaborate with federal agencies, including the FBI, DEA, ATF and IRS.
- Write a detail case report, and attach all supporting documentation necessary to write up SAR's where necessary per BSA.
- Conduct criminal investigations including robbery, homicide and white-collar crimes.
- Prepare HIPPA compliant requests for medical and insurance records.
- Investigate assign property crimes- burglary, theft, etc.
- Perform real time review of documentation and internal QA audits.
- Route the investigation to QA personnel for review and approval.
- Assign as photographer, but also train to sketch and collect/preserve evidence.
- Sketch and photograph documentation of the crime scenes, as well as collect evidence.
- Conduct investigations into complaints of street level narcotics and firearms sales in precincts of assignment.
- Assure completeness in terms of root causes, actions taken and preventative measures (CAPA).
Investigator skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of Investigators are proficient in Law Enforcement Agencies, Management System, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Resourcefulness, Communication skills, and Empathy.
We break down the percentage of Investigators that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Law Enforcement Agencies, 7%
Collaborated with Federal/State law enforcement agencies/media/community.
- Management System, 6%
Documented and reported investigation findings in the Case Management System and prepared reports to management as required.
- Customer Service, 5%
Analyzed regulations, instructions, and procedures concerning all administrative issues and requirements to include budgeting, contracting and customer service.
- Criminal Justice, 5%
Utilize National Crime Information Center, Nevada Criminal Justice Information System and local criminal data basis to obtain criminal history.
- Senior Level Management, 4%
Review and edit investigator reports prior to submission to senior level management officials.
- Child Abuse, 4%
Responded quickly in crisis situations involving children in an abusive/neglectful situation; investigated referrals/complaints relative to alleged child abuse and/or neglect.
"law enforcement agencies," "management system," and "customer service" are among the most common skills that investigators use at work. You can find even more investigator responsibilities below, including:
Resourcefulness. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an investigator to have is resourcefulness. Their role and responsibilities require that "private detectives and investigators must work persistently with whatever leads they have, no matter how limited, to determine the next step toward their goal." Investigators often use resourcefulness in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "applied resourcefulness, initiative and on-the-spot inference to develop new avenues for further fact-finding. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling investigator duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "private detectives and investigators must listen carefully and ask appropriate questions when interviewing a person of interest." According to an investigator resume, here's how investigators can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "provided additional communication with law enforcement on possible fraudulentinsurance claims. "
The three companies that hire the most investigators are:
- Highmark90 investigators jobs
- Glaxosmithkline61 investigators jobs
- Meta58 investigators jobs
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Compare different investigators
Investigator vs. Private detective
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, investigator responsibilities require skills like "management system," "customer service," "criminal justice," and "senior level management." Meanwhile a typical private detective has skills in areas such as "loss prevention," "workers compensation," "computer database," and "child custody." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
The education levels that private detectives earn slightly differ from investigators. In particular, private detectives are 7.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an investigator. Additionally, they're 2.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Investigator vs. Asset protection detective
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, investigator responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "management system," "customer service," "criminal justice," and "senior level management." Meanwhile, an asset protection detective has duties that require skills in areas such as "patrol," "safety procedures," "strong customer service," and "internal theft." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Asset protection detectives tend to reach lower levels of education than investigators. In fact, they're 8.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for investigators in the next 3-5 years?
John Lajoie CLI
National Director, President of Lajoie Investigations, Inc, of MA, NALI - National Association of Legal Investigators
Investigator vs. Skip tracer
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an investigator is likely to be skilled in "law enforcement agencies," "management system," "customer service," and "criminal justice," while a typical skip tracer is skilled in "debt collection," "outbound calls," "skip trace," and "delinquent accounts."
Skip tracers typically earn lower educational levels compared to investigators. Specifically, they're 9.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 4.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Investigator vs. Bail agent
Types of investigator
Updated January 8, 2025
