Fire suppression chief financial officer job description
A fire suppression chief financial officer keeps two money streams apart: monthly pay applications on install jobs, and many small inspection, repair and emergency bills to building owners. The CFO puts the right tax on each kind of work and charges design time to the jobs, then tells the CEO whether low inspection prices pay off in repairs.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, plumbing, HVAC and sprinkler contractors · BLS, May 2025
Annual pay: 10th percentile $70,780, middle half $93,740 to $271,790, 90th percentile $421,320. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Reports to
Chief Executive Officer
Department
Finance / Administration
Schedule
Weekdays 8 to 5, longer at closes · Office hours, longer days at month, quarter and year-end closes, a few trips to meetings, and on call near key reviews
Also called
Vice president of finance · Director of finance · Finance director · Controller and CFO
Fire suppression chief financial officer job description template
This is our Role Blueprint, word for word. Replace the highlighted fields and adjust the example targets and pay to fit your company.
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for our fire suppression division plays a strategic role in overseeing the financial health of the company. This leadership position is responsible for managing finances, budgeting, and financial strategy to drive sustainable growth and operational excellence while ensuring robust support to our fire suppression services.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee all financial operations including budgeting, forecasting, and capital expenditure planning.
Develop and implement effective financial strategies to support company growth and improve profitability.
Collaborate with department heads to ensure financial alignment and resource optimization.
Review, analyze, and report on financial performance to inform business decisions.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Monitor daily financial transactions and ensure accurate accounting records are maintained.
Conduct regular financial reviews and adjust budgets in response to business needs and market trends.
Liaise with external partners, auditors, and regulatory bodies to ensure compliance with financial regulations.
Provide strategic advice to senior management regarding financial performance and risk management.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue growth: Achieve a minimum of 10% year-over-year increase in revenue.
Budget adherence: Maintain operating expenses within 95% of the approved budget.
Gross margin: Improve gross margin by at least 5% within the fiscal year.
Net profit: Attain a minimum net profit margin of 15% annually.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, or a related field, with a CPA or MBA preferred.
Minimum of 8 years of progressive financial leadership experience.
Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills with proficiency in financial forecasting and budgeting software.
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to collaborate across diverse teams.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience in the fire suppression or related home services industry.
Proven track record of managing financial operations for a mid to large-scale organization.
Familiarity with regulatory financial standards and compliance within the industry.
Demonstrated success in strategic financial planning and execution in a competitive market.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to work in a standard office environment for extended periods.
Prolonged periods of sitting and using office equipment such as computers and telephones.
Occasional travel to attend meetings, financial reviews, and industry events.
Minimal physical exertion required during daily tasks.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Occasional extended hours during month-end, quarter-end, and year-end closing periods.
Limited travel required for industry events, conferences, and stakeholder meetings.
On-call support may be needed during critical financial review periods.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Competitive salary range between $150,000 and $200,000 USD per annum.
Performance-based bonus structure tied to key financial and operational KPIs.
Comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, vision, and life insurance.
Participation in a 401(k) plan with company matching opportunities and other fringe benefits.
10. Company Culture and Overview
Our company is dedicated to building a culture of trust, innovation, and growth. We value teamwork, continuous learning, and a commitment to excellence in every aspect of our business. We empower our employees to take ownership of their roles, contribute ideas, and drive positive change. We aspire to create a supportive and inclusive environment where every individual can thrive and elevate their career.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
Install jobs tie up cash for months, inspections bring in many small bills, and the two follow different tax and cost rules. The CFO keeps them apart in the books so the CEO can see what each one earns.
One service visit, two taxes
South Dakota shows how the tax can change with the task. Its contractor's excise tax guide lists inspecting and testing among services that owe sales tax, and a state rule puts sprinkler repairs under the contractor's excise tax. When one visit mixes both, its main purpose decides. If that isn't clear, the guide lets you itemize each line under its own tax. On installs, a subcontractor owes no excise tax only if it holds the prime contractor's exemption certificate for that project. Source: South Dakota Department of Revenue: Contractor's Excise Tax Guide (July 2026).
Inspections win the building, repairs carry the margin
If you price inspections low to win buildings, the profit has to come from what inspectors find. That might be a rusted main, a dry valve that won't trip right, or heads that are painted or too old. Track profit by building, across the inspection and the repairs it led to, not by the inspection bill alone. A building whose owner never approves a repair is a loss you chose, so its next renewal should carry the true cost.
Design hours come before the first bill
On a design-build job, the company pays designers to lay out the system and run the hydraulic calculations. Then it waits for the fire official to approve the plans. Pipe is usually cut, and the first pay application sent, only after that. Those design hours belong in the job's cost, not in overhead, or every bid looks better than it is. The CFO also watches jobs whose drawings sit in review, since that money earns nothing until approval.
A leak can cost more than the job
A fitting that lets go during a test can soak ceilings, floors and tenant goods on several floors. The CFO works with the broker on limits and deductibles and keeps a file on every claim. Some states set a floor. In Texas, for example, a sprinkler firm keeps a liability certificate on file with the State Fire Marshal's Office that meets the office's minimums per occurrence and per policy year, with completed operations covered. An expired one puts the firm in violation and holds up renewals. Source: Texas Department of Insurance: Certificate of liability insurance requirements (State Fire Marshal's Office).
How much fire suppression chief financial officers make
The closest BLS group for fire suppression chief financial officers is chief executives. Chief executives who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $174,130 a year ($83.72 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $213,990 median for chief executives in all industries. About 760 of the 204,350 chief executives in that survey work for plumbing, HVAC and sprinkler contractors.
CFO pay here is a salary plus a bonus once the template's finance targets are hit. BLS places CFOs in its chief executive group, and that group's median in the plumbing, heating and sprinkler contracting industry falls within the template's range.
Plumbing, HVAC and sprinkler contractors
$174,130$174,130 median Middle half $93,740–$271,790 10th–90th $70,780–$421,320
All industries
$213,990$213,990 median Middle half $129,540–$356,200 10th–90th $75,700–$507,730
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Plumbing, HVAC and sprinkler contractors
$70,780
$93,740
$174,130
$271,790
$421,320
All industries
$75,700
$129,540
$213,990
$356,200
$507,730
BLS doesn’t publish pay for fire sprinkler contractors on their own. These figures cover plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has closed months where pay applications and hundreds of small service invoices land in the same books
Keeps job costs current enough to spot a losing install before it closes
Has set up sales, use or contractor's excise tax by type of work in more than one state
Can show what one building's inspection agreement earned once its repairs are counted
Has worked water damage claims with a broker and carrier through to settlement
Teach these on the job
Sprinkler terms: risers, dry valves, fire pumps and deficiencies
How designers' hours are coded to jobs
Your inspection pricing sheet and renewal terms
Which states you're registered in, and when each renewal falls due
Your field service and construction accounting systems
Install jobs usually live in construction accounting and inspections in a separate platform that bills them, so one building can show up as two customers. Have each finalist describe how they would join the two into one report per building that shows its install, inspection and repair profit.
Fire suppression chief financial officer interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Managing cash through slow pay
Three large install jobs are holding retainage, a general contractor pays in [75] days, payroll is next week, and the credit line is nearly maxed. What do you do?
A strong answer: Builds a short-term cash plan from collections, pay-application follow-up and supplier terms, then fixes the cause with better billing terms and pricing for slow payers.
Behavioral · Changing decisions with analysis
Tell me about a time your numbers changed how a fire protection company priced inspections or chose install work.
A strong answer: Gives a specific case, explains the analysis plainly, and says what the change did to margin or cash.
First agree with the CEO where design time, warranty trips and emergency calls get charged. Otherwise two people can read the same margin two ways.
Revenue growth
Report growth by customer group: general contractors on installs, and building owners on inspections and repairs. Note how much came from your top few general contractors, since losing one of them can undo a year of growth.
Budget adherence
Compare each department's monthly spending with its budget. Design is the one to watch, because revisions after plan review comments eat hours nobody priced.
Gross margin
For installs, find where margin went on each finished job: design hours, rework after a failed hydrostatic test, or a bid error. For service, flag buildings whose repairs never cover the low inspection price.
Net profit
Use the CPA's year-end statements and show net profit twice: as booked, and with owner pay set to market rates. A lender or buyer will make that change anyway, so show it first.
Career path
BookkeeperPosts job costs and service invoices and learns the chart of accounts.
ControllerTies out pay applications, inspection billing and tax filings each month.
Chief financial officerSets tax, insurance and cash plans for both sides of the business.
Should a sprinkler contractor run its own fabrication shop?
Many sprinkler contractors cut, thread and groove pipe in their own shop. Others buy it cut to length from a fabricator working off the shop drawings. Compare the cost per job both ways, counting rent, machines, the shop crew and the weeks the shop sits idle when installs slow down. A shop pays off when the backlog keeps it busy all year.
How much does a fire suppression chief financial officer make?
Chief executives who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $174,130 a year ($83.72 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $93,740 and $271,790 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
How should a sprinkler company price an inspection agreement?
Price every visit the building will need over the whole term, not just the next one. Some tests come due only every few years under the edition of NFPA 25 your area enforces, so decide whether the agreement covers them or prices them when they come up, and say which in writing. Count risers, fire pumps, dry systems and backflow tests, plus travel, waits for access and the time to write and file each report.
What does the CFO do after a water damage claim?
Report it to the carrier quickly with photos, the work order and a list of who was on site. Keep the failed fitting or part, since a defect may shift the cost to its maker. Work with operations to find the cause, such as a bad joint, a test run without the right checks, or a dry system that wasn't drained. Track claims by cause so training and pricing change.
What tax registration does a sprinkler contractor need in a new state?
Register before the first job. South Dakota, for example, wants a contractor's excise tax license from anyone who installs or repairs a fixture to real property. Contractors there must also show that license number with their building permits. Other states treat contractor taxes their own way, so check with each state's revenue office and ask your CPA before you bid.
