Firefighter to chief fire officer
A firefighter already meets 67% of what the chief fire officer role asks for. The move turns on 3 required skills not yet in the profile.
34.6/ 100
1 How much of what a chief fire officer is expected to do is already part of a firefighter’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the chief fire officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A chief fire officer role treats 13 of its required skills as things a firefighter already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- ensure public safety and security
- extinguish fires
- fire prevention procedures
- fire safety regulations
- fire-fighting systems
- implement fire safety management plans
What stands in the way is 3 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A chief fire officer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a firefighter background worth leading with.
- already held implement fire safety management plans management skills
- already held manage emergency care situations management skills
- already held organise fire drills management skills
- already held pyrotechnic articles legislation business, administration and law
- already held work as a team in a hazardous environment communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held apply first response assisting and caring
All 20 carried skills, including the 13 the chief fire officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 16 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn lead a team required
- still to learn manage staff required
- optional, not held assess employees' capability levels optional
- optional, not held coordinate rescue missions optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
- optional, not held plan health and safety procedures optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- still to learn first response required
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held coordinate with other emergency services optional
- optional, not held maintain operational communications optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- optional, not held operate fire extinguishers optional
- optional, not held supervise worker safety optional
- optional, not held manage security equipment optional
- optional, not held test safety strategies optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a chief fire officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 20 skills that carry over
- already held ensure public safety and security skill
- already held extinguish fires skill
- already held fire prevention procedures knowledge
- already held fire safety regulations knowledge
- already held fire-fighting systems knowledge
- already held implement fire safety management plans skill
- already held manage emergency care situations skill
- already held manage major incidents skill
- already held organise fire drills skill
- already held pyrotechnic articles legislation knowledge
- already held use different types of fire extinguishers skill
- already held use geographic information systems skill
- already held work as a team in a hazardous environment skill
- already held apply first response skill
- already held educate public on fire safety skill
- already held environmental policy knowledge
- already held hydraulics knowledge
- already held perform risk analysis skill
- already held pollution legislation knowledge
- already held select hazard control skill
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assess employees' capability levels optional
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held coordinate rescue missions optional
- optional, not held coordinate with other emergency services optional
- optional, not held maintain operational communications optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
- optional, not held manage security equipment optional
- optional, not held operate fire extinguishers optional
- optional, not held plan health and safety procedures optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held supervise worker safety optional
- optional, not held test safety strategies optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
48 held skills the chief fire officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assess contamination skill
- not needed by the target role assess impact of industrial activities skill
- not needed by the target role assess risk factors skill
- not needed by the target role assist community skill
- not needed by the target role assist people in contaminated areas skill
- not needed by the target role avoid contamination skill
- not needed by the target role climb trees skill
- not needed by the target role contain fires skill
- not needed by the target role dispose of hazardous waste skill
- not needed by the target role dock operations knowledge
- not needed by the target role drive firetruck under emergency conditions skill
- not needed by the target role ensure vessel security skill
- not needed by the target role evacuate people from buildings skill
- not needed by the target role evacuate people from heights skill
- not needed by the target role first aid knowledge
- not needed by the target role handle flammable substances skill
- not needed by the target role health and safety regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role industrial engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role industrial tools knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect industrial equipment skill
- not needed by the target role install vessel's safety equipment skill
- not needed by the target role investigate maritime accidents skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with industrial professionals skill
- not needed by the target role maintain logbooks skill
- not needed by the target role maintain safety systems skill
- not needed by the target role manage factory operations skill
- not needed by the target role manage personal professional development skill
- not needed by the target role mechanics of vessels knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor chemical process condition skill
- not needed by the target role monitor disposal of radioactive substances skill
- not needed by the target role navy operations knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate emergency equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate emergency vehicle skill
- not needed by the target role operate marine communication systems skill
- not needed by the target role operate marine machinery systems skill
- not needed by the target role perform minor repairs to equipment skill
- not needed by the target role perform preventive maintenance on fire fighting vehicles skill
- not needed by the target role perform search and rescue missions skill
- not needed by the target role prevent marine pollution skill
- not needed by the target role provide first aid skill
8 further entries not listed here
1 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn first response required
Other moves recorded from firefighter
- fire service vehicle operator 81% covered · adjacent
- pump operator 68% covered · moderate
- firefighter instructor 56% covered · moderate
- fire protection technician 55% covered · moderate
- fire inspector 49% covered · moderate
- fire commissioner 37% covered · substantial
- fire safety tester 33% covered · substantial
- emergency response worker 21% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a firefighter become a chief fire officer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A firefighter already covers 67% of what a chief fire officer is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 13 of which the chief fire officer role treats as required.
What skills does a firefighter need to become a chief fire officer?
3 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is first response.
How hard is the move from firefighter to chief fire officer?
Its learning distance is 34.6 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.