How to hire a lieutenant

How to hire a lieutenant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step lieutenant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a lieutenant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new lieutenant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a lieutenant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a lieutenant, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A lieutenant's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, lieutenants from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of lieutenants and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Lieutenant	Description	Hourly rate
   Lieutenant	A Lieutenant plans, organizes, supervises, and coordinates the daily activities within a division of a police department. They provide staff training, ensure safe work practices, and inspect departmental equipment to ensure that deficiencies are corrected.	$19-26
   Chief Of Police	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.	$23-57
   Platoon Sergeant	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... Show more	$32-64

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Public Safety
   • Patrol
   • Direct Supervision
   • Security Procedures
   • Incident Command
   • Criminal Justice
   • Emergency Response
   • Security Operations
   • CPR
   • Law Enforcement Agencies
   • Disciplinary Actions
   • Emergency Situations
   • Correctional Facility
   • Incident Reports

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a robust fire training program meeting NFPA, DoD, AFOSH, and German fire credentials.
   • Manage respiratory and cardiac emergencies to include performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
   • Facilitate the planning, delegation of duties, and conduct all training events for ROTC personnel.
   • Coordinate the logistics throughout fully simulate combat operations in preparation to deploy to Afghanistan.
   • prepare paperwork to send to ems biller.
   • Mentore underclassmen in ROTC policies and procedures.

   More lieutenant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your lieutenant job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A lieutenant salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, lieutenants' average salary in south carolina is 50% less than in colorado.
   • Seniority. Entry-level lieutenants earn 25% less than senior-level lieutenants.
   • Certifications. A lieutenant with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a lieutenant's salary.

   Average lieutenant salary

   $47,781yearly

   $22.97 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level lieutenant salary

   $41,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 5, 2025

   Average lieutenant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Colorado	$64,563	$31
   2	California	$53,493	$26
   3	New Jersey	$48,910	$24
   4	New Mexico	$48,117	$23
   5	Texas	$47,894	$23
   6	Oregon	$45,764	$22
   7	Oklahoma	$44,988	$22
   8	Florida	$43,855	$21
   9	North Carolina	$43,360	$21
   10	Arkansas	$34,897	$17
   11	Massachusetts	$32,934	$16
   12	South Carolina	$32,192	$15

   Average lieutenant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory	$69,472	$33.40	1
   2	Stanford University	$60,984	$29.32	1
   3	California State University, Fullerton	$55,215	$26.55
   4	The Rockefeller University	$54,624	$26.26	1
   5	University of California-Berkeley	$54,079	$26.00
   6	Federal Reserve Bank	$53,377	$25.66	6
   7	Alachua County	$52,915	$25.44	1
   8	Fort Bend County	$52,688	$25.33	4
   9	NANA	$51,896	$24.95	66
   10	Broward Health	$51,836	$24.92	13
   11	RWJBarnabas Health	$51,697	$24.85	11
   12	Federal Reserve	$51,618	$24.82
   13	Day & Zimmermann	$51,582	$24.80
   14	My Florida Regional Mls	$51,277	$24.65
   15	The GEO Group	$50,855	$24.45	53
   16	paragon Co.	$50,835	$24.44	158
   17	Colorado State Express	$50,835	$24.44
   18	Pico de Gallo	$50,821	$24.43	82
   19	Children's Hospital of Philadelphia	$49,700	$23.89	4
   20	Management & Training	$49,106	$23.61	42

4. Writing a lieutenant job description

   A good lieutenant job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a lieutenant job description:

   Lieutenant job description example

   * Coordinator of Law Enforcement Services responsible for managing the daily planning and direction of law enforcement activities within department Divisions (both sworn and non-sworn), inspects the equipment and appearance of subordinate employees; instructs subordinate employees as to work assignments and procedures; directs the enforcement of state statutes; directs compliance with departmental policies, procedures and regulations; prepares and directs the creation and maintenance of necessary records and reports; evaluates the work of subordinate personnel and initiates personnel action when necessary; recommends and issues discipline; observes personnel on assignments and in the field, advising and assisting with enforcement and public relations; pursues, apprehends, and arrests law violator(s) or suspected law violator(s); assists with training of personnel; approves and processes written reports; notifies superiors of significant incidents, identifies continuing threats to the university community and coordinates Timely Warning(s) or UF Alert(s) as appropriate.
   
   * When assigned to the Training Division: Command, plan, develop, coordinate, direct, or manage all policies, operational procedures, and programs that pertain to education and training requirements for police officers as set forth by the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission (CJSTC) and laws of the State of Florida. Develop and direct all in-service training for police officers; mandatory 40-hour training programs; maintain records and notify CJSTC of every officer's mandatory 40-hour training activity; develop and direct all in-house training academy for all new police officers; direct and coordinate all specialized training and subsequent updating of police officer as required by the laws of the State of Florida, the CJSTC and court decisions; direct, develop and coordinate a Field Training Officer Program. Interview, appoint, and evaluate each FTO. Insure that each FTO is giving proper direction to the new officer(s) and evaluating them on their performance. Review and approve all FTO evaluations of new officers. Coordinate review of police academy training and supplemental training for all recruit police officers. Develop and direct all remedial training as needed. Liaison with the police academy. Develop and direct all education training of civilian personnel.
   
   * When assigned to the Special Events Division: Plans, coordinates and directs the scheduling of uniform/police/support personnel for all special events (i.e. athletic events - high school and university, concerts, festivals, etc.). Liaison with sponsoring organizations/agency; determines personnel needs; instructs subordinate officers as to work assignments and operational procedures; prepares and directs the preparation and maintenance of necessary special events reports and records; evaluates the work of subordinate personnel and initiates personnel action when necessary; observes personnel in the field and accompanies them on assignments, advising and assisting with enforcement and public relations; approves compensatory time and overtime. Coordinates operations associated with the Police Health Center Security Auxiliary; plans, coordinates and directs security services assigned to the Shands/Health Science facilities.
   
   * When assigned to the Criminal Investigations Division: Coordinate major case investigations; receive and investigate emergency reports and deploy subordinate personnel as required by circumstances; review investigative reports and determines disposition requirements; assign personnel to special plain clothes assignments as needed. Coordinate the duties and activities of personnel assigned to multi-agency investigative units. Coordinate crime analysis process for the purpose of information led policing, determine trends and make recommendations for change in organization and operating procedures to obtain the most effective results. Participate in the UF Behavioral Consultation Team, analyze information regarding threat assessments on identified persons of concern and coordinate appropriate response.
   
   * When assigned to the Community Services Division: Coordination of all community services/public relation activities and personnel. Assist with news releases for public function, radio, and television programs to promote crime prevention activities Develop and maintain the department's informational resources center (i.e. films, posters, brochures, statistics, engraving equipment, decals, etc.); relative to crime prevention methods, public safety, and community involvement; assist in the researching, writing, designing and acquiring printed materials to be made available to the public. Develop innovative programs addressing public safety and community concerns. Attend university and community meetings.
   
   * Assumes full command of all police activities and facilities in the absence of ranking commander (i.e. sick, vacation, days off, weekends, nighttime, etc.)
   
   * Oversees the inventory/maintenance of patrol vehicles, radios, uniforms, and other items related to assigned division. Initiates and approves purchase requests as needed.
   * Attends training classes and seminars.
   * Supervise the processing and maintenance of evidence and other properties in the department's custody, including maintenance of the chain-of-custody, release of evidence as directed by the courts or State Attorney, preparation of request for court order/approved destruction of seized contraband, and maintenance of all records/files related to evidence.
   * Intakes citizen complaints; monitors personnel records (sick, vacation, overtime, training/retraining, etc.).
   * Appearance and testimony in judicial proceedings; monitors appearance and testimony of subordinates in judicial proceedings.
   * Pursues, apprehends, and arrests law violators or suspected law violators.
   * Maintain liaison with other law enforcement agencies in implementing and coordinating the law enforcement program at the University of Florida.
   * Prepares and/or directs the preparation of information releases; (i.e. police activities, special events traffic and security, other related information).
   * Miscellaneous
   * Makes purchasing recommendations.
   * This position is designated as an Essential Employee. Essential employees provide vital support to the University of Florida and are subject to recall to work when deemed necessary by the Chief of Police/designee. Recall to work typically happens due to an emergency, disaster, or special event that may coincide with the official suspension of classes and/or closing of offices. Employees are subject to mandatory overtime and continuation of regular tour of duty. Employees assigned to specialty assignments are subject to on-call status and flexible schedules. Employees are required to be in the work environment.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right lieutenant for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with lieutenants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit lieutenants who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your lieutenant job on Zippia to find and recruit lieutenant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit lieutenants, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new lieutenant

   Once you've decided on a perfect lieutenant candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new lieutenant. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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