Chief of staff
The title chief of staff identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the Armed Forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer, who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide-de-camp to an important individual, such as a president, or a senior military officer, or leader of a large organization.
In general, a chief of staff provides a buffer between a chief executive and that executive's direct-reporting team. The chief of staff generally works behind the scenes to solve problems, mediate disputes, and deal with issues before they are brought to the chief executive. Often chiefs of staff act as a confidante and advisor to the chief executive, acting as a sounding board for ideas. Ultimately the actual duties depend on the position and the people involved.
Civilian
Government
- Chief of Staff to the President of Brazil
- Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister
- Chief Presidential Secretary, chief of staff to the President of South Korea
- Chief of Staff, a former position in the Cabinet of the Philippines, serving under the President of the Philippines
- Moncloa Chief of Staff
- Chief of Staff to the President
- Downing Street Chief of Staff
- White House Chief of Staff
- Chief of Staff to the Vice President of the United States
- Principal Staff Officer to the Prime Minister
- Chief of staff, the most senior staff member in the office of a member of the United States Congress
Medicine (North America)
- The chief of staff in a hospital in the United States or Canada is the primary leader of all divisions and staff, including divisions that have chiefs as well, such as, leadership over chief of surgery, chief of obstetrics, chief of orthopedics, etc. as divisions that each are headed by a leader in that specialty. The chief of staff is a member of the medical staff, as opposed to the chief administrator, who is often a non-medical professional.
Military
In general
- Chief of the Defence
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- Chief of the General Staff
- Chief of the Army Staff
- Chief of the Air Staff
- Chief of the Naval Staff
- :Category:Vice chiefs of staff
In Azerbaijan
- Chief of General Staff of Azerbaijani Armed Forces - head of General Staff of Azerbaijani Armed Forces
In Canada
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- *Chief of the Air Staff
In France
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- *Chief of Staff of the French Air Force
- *Chief of Staff of the French Army
- *Chief of Staff of the French Navy
- *Chief of Staff of the French Gendarmerie
In Ghana
- Chief of Defence Staff
- *Chief of the Army Staff
- *Chief of the Navy Staff
- *Chief of the Air Force Staff
In Greece
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- *Chief of Staff of the Hellenic Air Force
- *Chief of Staff of the Hellenic Army
- *Chief of Staff of the Hellenic Navy
In India
- Chief of Defence Staff
- *Chief of Staff of the Indian Army
- *Chief of Staff of the Indian Navy
- *Chief of Staff of the Indian Air Force
In Indonesia
- Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Army
- Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy
- Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Air Force
In Ireland
- Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces
In Israel
- Chief of the Israeli General Staff
In Italy
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- *Chief of the Army Staff
- *Chief of the Navy Staff
- *Chief of the Air Force Staff
In Pakistan
- Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, headed by the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
- *Chief of Army Staff
- *Chief of Air Staff
- *Chief of Naval Staff
- *Commandant of Pakistan Marines
- *Commandant of Pakistan Coast Guard
In the Philippines
- Chief of Staff, Armed Forces of the Philippines - exercises command and control over all elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines
In Portugal
- Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces - operational commander of the Portuguese Armed Forces
- * Chief of Staff of the Navy - commander of the Portuguese Navy
- * Chief of Staff of the Army - commander of the Portuguese Army
- * Chief of Staff of the Air Force - commander of the Portuguese Air Force
In Spain
- Chief of the Defence Staff
- * Chief of Staff of the Army
- * Chief of Staff of the Navy
- * Chief of Staff of the Air Force
In Sri Lanka
- Chief of the Defence Staff - the most senior appointment in the Sri Lankan Armed Forces.
- * Chief of Staff of the Army - deputy commander of the Sri Lankan Army
- * Chief of Staff of the Navy - deputy commander of the Sri Lankan Navy
- * Chief of Staff of the Air Force - deputy commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force
In the United Kingdom
- Chief of the Defence Staff - the professional head of the British Armed Forces.
- *Chief of the Naval Staff, more commonly called the First Sea Lord
- *Chief of the General Staff, formerly the Chief of the Imperial General Staff
- *Chief of the Air Staff
In the United States
- Joint Chiefs of Staff, headed by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- * Chief of Staff of the United States Army
- ** An Army general serving as the senior ranking officer within the United States Army, but subordinate to any Army O-10 serving as CJCS or Vice CJCS
- * Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force
- ** An Air Force general serving as the senior ranking officer within the United States Air Force, but subordinate to any USAF O-10 serving as CJCS or Vice CJCS
- In unified combatant commands, headed by a general or Navy admiral
- * A major general or Navy or Coast Guard rear admiral overseeing the command's directorates
- In military commands headed by a lieutenant general, vice admiral, major general or rear admiral, or brigadier general or rear admiral, lower half
- * A colonel or Navy or Coast Guard captain overseeing the entire general officer's/flag officer's command staff; in some cases may also be referred to as an executive assistant or executive officer
- ** In some commands and organizations, two officers in pay grade O-6 may be assigned as chief of staff and executive assistant, respectively.