How to hire a community services officer

How to hire a community services officer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step community services officer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a community services officer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new community services officer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a community services officer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your community services officer job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a community services officer for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A community services officer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, community services officers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of community services officers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Community Services Officer	Description	Hourly rate
   Community Services Officer	Police officers protect lives and property. Detectives and criminal investigators, who are sometimes called agents or special agents, gather facts and collect evidence of possible crimes.	$12-25
   Loss Prevention Agent	A loss prevention agent is responsible for averting theft and securing a retail store or similar establishment. They are primarily in charge of monitoring surveillance cameras and roaming around the premises while dressed in civilian clothing, all to observe the surroundings and spot any suspicious behavior... Show more	$10-29
   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... Show more	$12-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patrol
   • Public Safety
   • Traffic Control
   • Parking Enforcement
   • Criminal Justice
   • Animal Control
   • Police Reports
   • Emergency Situations
   • Crime Scenes
   • Office Equipment
   • Law Enforcement Agencies
   • Subpoenas
   • Incident Reports
   • City Ordinances

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Develop and manage firearms training programs, including weapons selection and qualification standards.
   • Monitor alarms & CCTV, patrol campus, secure buildings, dorms and offer safety escorts to students & faculty.
   • Apply first aid and CPR.
   • Monitor and control CCTV's.
   • Assist law enforcement officers in looking up information on the NCIC.
   • Train in first aid and defensive driving, certify in CPR and EAD.

   More community services officer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your community services officer job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A community services officer salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, community services officers' average salary in louisiana is 58% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level community services officers earn 49% less than senior-level community services officers.
   • Certifications. A community services officer with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a community services officer's salary.

   Average community services officer salary

   $38,039yearly

   $18.29 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level community services officer salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 23, 2026

   Average community services officer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$66,622	$32
   2	Oregon	$58,491	$28
   3	New York	$56,942	$27
   4	California	$49,501	$24
   5	Minnesota	$47,687	$23
   6	Massachusetts	$47,622	$23
   7	Colorado	$47,356	$23
   8	Iowa	$47,312	$23
   9	District of Columbia	$46,277	$22
   10	Wyoming	$45,910	$22
   11	Michigan	$42,956	$21
   12	Illinois	$41,970	$20
   13	Idaho	$40,134	$19
   14	Arizona	$39,012	$19
   15	Wisconsin	$38,308	$18
   16	Texas	$35,929	$17
   17	New Mexico	$34,514	$17
   18	Georgia	$31,596	$15
   19	Florida	$31,567	$15
   20	Kansas	$31,274	$15

   Average community services officer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	City of Los Angeles	$53,265	$25.61	2
   2	City of Seattle	$53,047	$25.50	3
   3	Gettysburg College	$52,898	$25.43	1
   4	Citi	$52,788	$25.38	44
   5	City and County of Denver Government	$51,211	$24.62	3
   6	Delaware State Government	$49,762	$23.92	6
   7	California State University, Fullerton	$49,714	$23.90	1
   8	Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority	$49,613	$23.85
   9	University of Nevada, Reno	$49,407	$23.75	8
   10	Baltimore Metropolitan Council	$47,865	$23.01	2
   11	Syracuse University	$47,693	$22.93	4
   12	City of Rocklin	$47,378	$22.78
   13	City of Reno	$47,215	$22.70	2
   14	Barnstable, Massachusetts	$47,162	$22.67
   15	City of Roseville Michigan	$47,096	$22.64
   16	Heifer International	$46,942	$22.57
   17	1 8 3 Lanes	$46,907	$22.55
   18	City of Benicia	$46,902	$22.55
   19	International Rescue Committee	$46,861	$22.53	16
   20	City of Concord	$46,444	$22.33	10

4. Writing a community services officer job description

   A good community services officer job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a community services officer job description:

   Community services officer job description example

   Opportunity at a Glance
   
   Join the Village of Orland Park's award winning Police Department as aPart-Time Community Service Officer. The Police department is one of the most visible Village departments and works to keep the Orland Park community safe and oversees the enforcement of laws and ordinances.
   
   Key Responsibilities
   
   The Village of Orland Park's Police Department seeks part-time Community Services Officer(s) to provide assistance to other operational police service units through the completion of assigned tasks enabling sworn members to dedicate a greater amount of time to proactive enforcement and in-depth investigations.
   
   These non-sworn positions respond to and handle many non-emergency, non-life threatening calls for service. Routine duties include assignments of animal complaints which include apprehending and transporting wild animals, providing relief to school crossing guards, and assisting the Crime Prevention/Community Relations Unit in administrative tasks and material distribution. These positions also assists the general public with requests for service, which do not require a sworn officer to respond to including providing traffic and crowd control assistance at traffic crash scenes, social functions, and crime scenes as directed, performing Patrol function to observe Village Code violations and provides the enforcement function for specific violations that are under this authority and issues warnings and/or the appropriate citations for violations.
   
   Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills
   
   This position requires a high school diploma or GED certificate. College coursework in criminal justice or related field and two years of related experience is preferred. Must have the ability to work traffic control, communicate over a police radio, and utilize a computer.
   
   Must be available Monday - Sunday. Hours vary and include day, afternoon/evening, and midnight hours. Must be available weekends and holidays. Approximately 29 hours per week based on need. Must specify availability when applying.
   
   Compensation & Benefits
   
   This position is eligible for IMRF (Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund) benefits. $22.12/hour is starting rate of pay
   
   
   Employment TypePart-Time (20-29 hours)
   
   Job LocationUS-IL-Orland Park
   
   IMRF EligibileIMRF Eligible
   
   CategoryProtective Services and Dispatch Operations
   
   Salary$22.12 starting rate of pay

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right community services officer for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your community services officer job on Zippia to find and recruit community services officer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit community services officers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new community services officer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the community services officer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a community services officer?