Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisors

• Evaluate size, location, and condition of forest fires.
• Serve as a working leader of an engine, hand, helicopter, or prescribed fire crew of three or more firefighters.
• Maintain fire suppression equipment in good condition, checking equipment periodically to ensure that it is ready for use.
• Train workers in skills such as parachute jumping, fire suppression, aerial observation, or radio communication, in the classroom or on the job.
• Request and dispatch crews and position equipment so fires can be contained safely and effectively.
• Operate wildland fire engines or hoselays.
• Recruit or hire forest firefighting personnel.
• Maintain knowledge of forest fire laws and fire prevention techniques and tactics.
• Monitor prescribed burns to ensure that they are conducted safely and effectively.
• Schedule employee work assignments and set work priorities.
• Identify staff training and development needs to ensure that appropriate training can be arranged.
• Direct and supervise prescribed burn projects and prepare postburn reports, analyzing burn conditions and results.
• Monitor fire suppression expenditures to ensure that they are necessary and reasonable.
• Drive crew carriers to transport firefighters to fire sites.
• Inspect stations, uniforms, equipment, or recreation areas to ensure compliance with safety standards, taking corrective action as necessary.
• Regulate open burning by issuing burning permits, inspecting problem sites, issuing citations for violations of laws and ordinances, or educating the public in proper burning practices.
• Perform administrative duties, such as compiling and maintaining records, completing forms, preparing reports, or composing correspondence.
• Review and evaluate employee performance.
• Recommend equipment modifications or new equipment purchases.
• Investigate special fire issues, such as railroad fire problems, right-of-way burning, or slash disposal problems.
• Lead work crews in the maintenance of structures or access roads in forest areas.
• Educate the public about forest fire prevention by participating in activities such as exhibits or presentations or by distributing promotional materials.

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisors.

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisors.