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A guardian can physically protect a property or prevent access to a person or information. They may work as security officers, personal assistants, or gatekeepers for executives, celebrities, or valuable objects. Their role is to prevent unwanted contact or access.
Once upon a time, a guardian was the person who literally guarded the gate of a property and prevented unauthorized people from entering. While many large properties and secure corporate campuses still have such a person, the term is also used to describe a person whose job involves preventing access to another person in a less physical way. This may involve screening phone calls, handling appointment requests, or even withholding information from salespeople or members of the media. Ultimately, the gatekeeper’s job is to protect a person or property from unwanted contact or to secure information from unauthorized access.
Guardians who protect a property in a physical sense are usually members of law enforcement or security and are more likely to be called guards, security officers or access control personnel. They can be placed at the entrance to a building or at the gate of a property. Interestingly, although the terms “guard” and “security booth” may be used to describe such an office located at the gate of a property, the term “guard” is still in common use.
Those who provide less physical protection may work for celebrities, royalty, or very wealthy people, often in the position of personal assistant. Personal assistants typically answer all calls that come in on their employers’ primary or published line, and only go through calls that the employer wants to receive. They can make statements to the media, answer calls, and research unknown callers or visitors, either directly or through an appointed agency. In celebrity situations, the gatekeeper’s primary goal is to prevent the media and volatile fans from reaching stardom unless the celebrity wants to be reached. In the case of the wealthy, the custodian can also protect against access by people seeking donations or investments.
Company executives also often employ guardians. In a corporate environment the job of the gatekeeper consists largely of screening vendors. The average executive, especially one in marketing or IT, gets calls every day from people trying to sell something. If the executive had to answer all those calls himself, he would never be able to do the work the company pays him to do. Gatekeepers play such a critical role in the sales process that entire sales seminars, articles, and books are devoted to learning how to get past the gatekeeper.
Occasionally, the role of a gatekeeper may be to protect inanimate objects or information. For example, a special collection librarian restricts access to valuable books, and an IT team member who issues passwords protects access to a company’s information systems. Regardless of the environment or the object to be guarded, all guardians have one thing in common: no one can reach the protected object or person without passing through the guardian.
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