Overview
Commercial real estate (CRE) asset management platforms are rapidly becoming central hubs of property operations, from tenant onboarding, lease administration, service requests, and facilities oversight to financial reporting. These platforms help property teams manage complex portfolios across multiple buildings while improving communication, visibility, and performance outcomes.
Historically, managing physical access credentials, like keycards, fobs, or manual key management, has been separate from a property’s digital operations, creating inefficiencies, security gaps, and administrative overhead. With advancements in mobile access software, such as Sentry Interactive’s SDK that offers interoperable mobile credentials that work with third-party platforms and don’t require reader hardware to work. Just a passive NFC smart access tile that can be applied next to a door. By integrating this software, that doesn’t incur extra integration costs, CRE platforms can now extend their capabilities to provision secure NFC mobile credentials for physical access directly through their asset management platform interface.
This integration synchronizes property access with lease data, tenant profiles, and staffing workflows, improving convenience for end users and automating what used to be manual, error-prone processes.
How it works
A mobile access credential feature can be integrated into CRE asset management software using an SDK and APIs from a developer like Sentry Interactive. With this feature embedded in their existing asset management platform property managers and administrators can issue secure mobile credentials by sending them directly to a users’ mobile device via their email and permissions can be controlled to ensure maximum security. Users then use their smartphone to unlock authorized doors, gates, elevators, parking facilities, or shared spaces using NFC tap-to-unlock technology, QR code scan, or iOS and Android Widgets to access remotely.
Behind the scenes, the mobile credential software embeds with the property’s existing access control infrastructure, meaning no new physical readers are required, substantially saving on hardware and deployment costs. All that’s required with Sentry Interactive’s solution is to apply their powerless passive NFC Smart Access Tile next to the doors, gates, or elevators that are being activated with Sentry NFC mobile access.
Typical user journey:
- A tenant, staff member, or visitor is onboarded and assigned access permissions within the CRE asset management platform.
- A secure mobile credential is issued and provisioned directly to the user’s smartphone app.
- The user unlocks authorized locations using tap-to-unlock NFC, QR codes, or native iOS/Android access widgets.
- Real-time mobile door access logs are populated in the asset management software and synchronizes with other features like spatial analytics dashboards etc.
Benefits of integrating mobile access
Unified access experience
Mobile credentials allow tenants, employees, and temporary contractors and visitors, to access their property securely and conveniently alongside billing, room booking, service workflows, and more from one centralized platform.
Frictionless operations
Automated mobile access avoids manual provisioning and retrieval of keys/cards, simplifies turnover operations between tenants, and supports scheduled or role-based access assignments.
Operational efficiency
Commercial Real Estate (CRE) teams reduce the time and cost associated with issuing, replacing, or collecting physical credentials. Permissions update instantly when leases change or personnel roles change.
Enhanced security and control
Mobile credentials are tied to user profiles within the asset management system and controlled by property roles and permissions. Instant revocation and encryption help protect buildings and resources. Sentry Interactive’s mobile credentials are encrypted at rest and follow the highest cybersecurity compliance standards.
Better data insights
Mobile access event data can be fed back into analytics dashboards, providing insights into facility usage, tenant movement, bottlenecks, and security trends, enabling smarter property decision making.
Looking ahead
As CRE management platforms evolve, mobile access is becoming an increasingly desired feature for modern property operations. Linking physical access directly to digital workflows reduces friction, tightens security controls, and enhances tenant and staff satisfaction alike. Integrating mobile access bridges the gap between operational software and real-world property interaction – creating smarter, safer, and more convenient building experiences.
Start your journey to mobile credentials today
Extend the life of your existing access control systems while giving tenants and teams the convenience of secure mobile credentials within their existing CRE asset management platform that automate operations and improve overall user digital experience.
