Intelligence officer to police commissioner
An intelligence officer already meets 34% of what the police commissioner role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
64.7/ 100
1 How much of what a police commissioner is expected to do is already part of an intelligence officer’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 police commissioner role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A police commissioner role treats 7 of its required skills as things an intelligence officer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- develop investigation strategy
- ensure compliance with policies
- ensure information security
- investigation research methods
- law enforcement
- maintain operational communications
What stands in the way is 11 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 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A police commissioner role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an intelligence officer background worth leading with.
- already held develop investigation strategy information skills
- already held handle case evidence communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held investigation research methods services
- already held ensure information security assisting and caring
- already held ensure compliance with policies management skills
- already held law enforcement services
All 9 carried skills, including the 7 the police commissioner role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 23 missing skills fall into 7 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 manage security clearance required
- still to learn evaluate employees required
- still to learn manage budgets required
- still to learn manage staff required
- still to learn set organisational policies required
- optional, not held coordinate patrols optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- still to learn form operational strategies for law enforcement required
- still to learn apply health and safety standards required
- still to learn ensure law application required
- optional, not held apply first response optional
- optional, not held ensure compliance with types of weapons optional
- still to learn write work-related reports required
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held instruct public optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- still to learn advise on risk management required
- optional, not held investigate forgery cases optional
- optional, not held lead police investigations optional
- optional, not held perform drug investigations optional
- still to learn criminology required
- optional, not held criminal law optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a police commissioner role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 form operational strategies for law enforcement practise this
- 02 manage security clearance practise this
- 03 advise on risk management practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held develop investigation strategy skill
- already held ensure compliance with policies skill
- already held ensure information security skill
- already held investigation research methods knowledge
- already held law enforcement knowledge
- already held maintain operational communications skill
- already held undertake inspections skill
- already held conduct research interview skill
- already held handle case evidence skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held first response optional
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held first response optional
- optional, not held investigate forgery cases optional
- optional, not held lead police investigations optional
- optional, not held perform drug investigations optional
- optional, not held apply first response optional
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held coordinate patrols optional
- optional, not held criminal law optional
- optional, not held ensure compliance with types of weapons optional
- optional, not held instruct public optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
20 held skills the police commissioner role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply information security policies skill
- not needed by the target role apply knowledge of human behaviour skill
- not needed by the target role check official documents skill
- not needed by the target role conduct threat intelligence skill
- not needed by the target role constitutional law knowledge
- not needed by the target role document evidence skill
- not needed by the target role ensure adherence to the constitution skill
- not needed by the target role examine crime scenes skill
- not needed by the target role handle surveillance equipment skill
- not needed by the target role hear witness accounts skill
- not needed by the target role identify security threats skill
- not needed by the target role international security studies knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain professional records skill
- not needed by the target role operational research knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform covert investigations skill
- not needed by the target role present evidence skill
- not needed by the target role promote human rights skill
- not needed by the target role surveillance methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role use different communication channels skill
- not needed by the target role write situation reports skill
3 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 criminology required
- optional, not held first response optional
- optional, not held criminal law optional
Common questions about this move
Can an intelligence officer become a police commissioner?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An intelligence officer already covers 34% of what a police commissioner is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 7 of which the police commissioner role treats as required.
What skills does an intelligence officer need to become a police commissioner?
11 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is form operational strategies for law enforcement.
How hard is the move from intelligence officer to police commissioner?
Its learning distance is 64.7 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.