- Overall administration of the camp, including the selection of prisoners for labor or extermination
- Maintaining discipline and order within the camp
- Ensuring the security of the camp and preventing escapes
- Carrying out the orders of their superiors, which often included the mass murder of prisoners
- Commandants were also responsible for the daily operations of the camp, such as providing food, water, and shelter for the prisoners, as well as overseeing the work details and medical care.
Commandants were typically high-ranking SS officers who had a background in military or police work. They were often brutal and sadistic, and they viewed the prisoners as subhuman. Commandants were also known to use torture and violence to maintain order in the camps.