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What does an access control officer do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read

Safety is a crucial issue for many businesses today. Many are spending thousands of dollars to ensure the safety of their properties. An access control officer is a person who provides the security of premises through the use of a combined approach of surveillance and detection. The access control officer needs to detect, deter, observe, and report suspicious characters near the property's perimeter, which may cause crime. The officer must be capable of detecting and preventing people with criminal intentions.

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Access control officer responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real access control officer resumes:

  • Manage facility access and physical security, including conducting routine patrols and CCTV monitoring.
  • Perform hourly foot patrol of the building for sign of unauthorize entry, burglary or vandalism.
  • Greet residents, know all emergency procedures, train in CPR, monitor cctv cameras, and monitor all building alarms.
  • Make id badges for new employees.
  • Patrol define areas of school campus and buildings before, during and after school to prevent/discourage school policy and other violations.
  • Perform routine interior and exterior camera scans utilizing CCTV to identify unusual occurrences.
  • Maintain alertness and notify proper authority of indications of trespassing fire and emergency.
  • Write daily activity report (DAR) and incident report (IR).
  • Demonstrate problem-solving duties every time while individual questioning or challenging security employee regarding FAA and TSA regulations.

Access control officer skills and personality traits

We calculated that 42% of Access Control Officers are proficient in Customer Service, Patrol, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Good judgment, and Observation skills.

We break down the percentage of Access Control Officers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Customer Service, 42%

    Recognized by management for exceptional customer service practices.

  • Patrol, 11%

    Patrol defined areas of school campus and buildings before, during and after school to prevent/discourage school policy and other violations.

  • CPR, 6%

    Greet residents,know all emergency procedures,trained in CPR,monitor cctv cameras,and monitor all building alarms.

  • Law Enforcement, 5%

    Notified park management and law enforcement if emergency or violations in progress.

  • Control Systems, 4%

    Monitored environmental control systems to ensure proper oxygen levels and potential toxic levels were at acceptable levels.

  • AED, 4%

    Monitor the fire panel and the AED (Automated Electrical Defibrillator) on a daily basis.

Common skills that an access control officer uses to do their job include "customer service," "patrol," and "cpr." You can find details on the most important access control officer responsibilities below.

Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an access control officer to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "security guards and surveillance officers must communicate effectively with others, even in stressful situations." Access control officers often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "provide outstanding customer service/support; projecting professionalism and communication skills at all times. "

Observation skills. access control officers are also known for observation skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to access control officer responsibilities, because "security guards and surveillance officers must be alert and aware of their surroundings, and be able to quickly recognize anything out of the ordinary." An access control officer resume example shows how observation skills is used in the workplace: "log daily observations of the environment, write reports on property damage, presence of unauthorized persons and unusual occurrences. "

All access control officer skills

The three companies that hire the most access control officers are:

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Compare different access control officers

Access control officer vs. Security

A Security's main responsibility is to keep people or an establishment safe. This responsibility is carried out by constantly patrolling a designated area and monitoring the activity within the premises. Most of the tasks involved are inspecting buildings and equipment, monitoring entry and exit points, reporting irregularities, responding to customers in distress, and other surveillance activities. The security is basically an establishment's first line of defense, this is why one must have good communication skills, keen observation and judgment, and as well as presence of mind.

We looked at the average access control officer salary and compared it with the wages of a security. Generally speaking, securities are paid $662 higher than access control officers per year.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both access control officer and security positions are skilled in customer service, patrol, and cpr.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, access control officer responsibilities require skills like "law enforcement," "control systems," "aed," and "security violations." Meanwhile a typical security has skills in areas such as "ladders," "good judgment," "stars," and "transport individuals." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Securities really shine in the start-up industry with an average salary of $31,007. Comparatively, access control officers tend to make the most money in the utilities industry with an average salary of $31,471.On average, securities reach similar levels of education than access control officers. Securities are 3.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Access control officer vs. Security guard

Security guards are responsible for maintaining and ensuring the peace and safety of the building they are assigned to. They ensure that everyone who enters the building has official business to be done in the building. They are also in charge of patrolling and monitoring activities within the area. Security guards are also tasked to immobilize anyone who seems to pose a threat to the peace and safety of the building. They are also responsible for preventing any untoward incidences or crimes that may happen in the area. Security guards must be observant and alert to be able to succeed in their roles.

A career as a security guard brings a higher average salary when compared to the average annual salary of an access control officer. In fact, security guards salary is $809 higher than the salary of access control officers per year.A few skills overlap for access control officers and security guards. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "customer service," "patrol," and "cpr. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real access control officer resumes. While access control officer responsibilities can utilize skills like "control systems," "aed," "magnetometers," and "dependability," security guards use skills like "ladders," "security services," "surveillance equipment," and "loss prevention."

Security guards earn a higher average salary than access control officers. But security guards earn the highest pay in the utilities industry, with an average salary of $30,916. Additionally, access control officers earn the highest salaries in the utilities with average pay of $31,471 annually.In general, security guards achieve similar levels of education than access control officers. They're 3.8% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Access control officer vs. Security supervisor

A security supervisor is in charge of coordinating and overseeing the security staff in a building or within a designated area. Their responsibilities focus on devising strategies, appointing personnel, and implementing protocols that would ensure the safety of an establishment, goods, and the people inside. Furthermore, they must make sure that all security devices and equipment are working correctly, create and manage schedules, monitor and evaluate every security personnel's performance, and maintain a safe environment for everyone. Should there be any incidents, it is crucial to coordinate with the police right away.

On average, security supervisors earn higher salaries than access control officers, with a $10,644 difference per year.access control officers and security supervisors both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "customer service," "patrol," and "cpr," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from access control officer resumes include skills like "law enforcement," "control systems," "aed," and "magnetometers," whereas a security supervisor is more likely to list skills in "security procedures," "security operations," "payroll," and "hr. "

Security supervisors earn the best pay in the hospitality industry, where they command an average salary of $41,279. Access control officers earn the highest pay from the utilities industry, with an average salary of $31,471.security supervisors typically earn similar educational levels compared to access control officers. Specifically, they're 1.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Access control officer vs. Security specialist

A security specialist is responsible for maintaining the security of an organization's database, ensuring that it's free from cyber threats and unusual activities. Security specialists' duties include upgrading hardware and software applications, configuring networks to improve optimization, addressing any unauthorized access on the database, troubleshooting system discrepancies, conducting security audits on the system, and improving automated processes. A security specialist must have a strong command of programming languages and system codes, as well as broad experience with technical expertise.

Security specialists average a higher salary than the annual salary of access control officers. The difference is about $18,718 per year.While both access control officers and security specialists complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like customer service, patrol, and cpr, the two careers vary in some skills.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. An access control officer uses "law enforcement," "control systems," "aed," and "magnetometers." Security specialists are more likely to have duties that require skills in "ladders," "security program," "security procedures," and "public safety. "security specialists reach similar levels of education compared to access control officers, in general. The difference is that they're 1.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of access control officer

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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