The security sector provides a range of career paths with plenty of opportunities to specialise. But navigating a career as a young person is tricky. What advice is available for young professionals?

These days, ‘young’ and ‘female’ are two attributes one would not expect to see in a typical security sector job holder. Over the past few years of working in the security sector, one pertinent thing has cried out to me: there is a noticeable absence of young people in the industry.

There are several explanations for this. The industry is popular amongst second or third career ex-service professionals, who tend to be older men for obvious reasons. Whilst there is a raft of Head of Security jobs advertised, there aren’t a huge number of entry positions or opportunities to join the sector directly, and a limited number of companies that provide security services. Lastly, there are limited feeds from education into the security industry, with only a handful of specialist degrees.

Yet the security industry can provide an incredibly diverse career path with plenty of opportunities to specialise in specific areas. My still relatively short career so far has taken me through politics, crisis management, intelligence and crisis response. It is vital to better promote the industry amongst budding young professionals trying to get their first step on the ladder. It can be disheartening to be young in this industry at times but things are changing and they have to change if the industry is to thrive. After all, it is a fast growing industry with the capacity to create many thousands of jobs.

Most youngsters don’t grow up wanting to join the security industry; it was different for me, I always wanted to work in hostage negotiation. After starting my career in politics, my first role in the industry was in counter-terrorism, monitoring the terrorism threat to the UK and analysing implications to business. There were no suitable junior roles advertised at the time, so I contacted the company’s CEO directly and was fortunate to spend nearly four years developing my professional skills in crisis management and business continuity. I achieved the Certificate of the Business Continuity Institute (CBCI) qualification to prove my credentials and was responsible for the company’s Business Continuity Policy, Plan and exercises.

I further broadened my role into crisis management and intelligence, working for the Mayor of London in the newly formed ‘London Situational Awareness Team’ – a 24/7 team responsible for the first response to any security event in London, most notably for me during the attack at Fishmongers’ Hall in London. But, like many young, female professionals in the industry, the proverbial glass-ceiling was fast approaching in intelligence and there were few opportunities to progress upwards. My real passion remained to join the hostage negotiation world and yet the same messages were relayed to me time and time again: that it wasn’t a job well suited to women or young people and that perhaps I should look at joining the police or military. Not wanting to do either, my next move was into consulting to carry out security risk assessments for corporates and advise them on their security and crisis management arrangements.

But with passion and persistence and constantly pushing boundaries, the opportunity to work in the world of hostage negotiation presented itself and I now work in Crisis Response at S-RM. Our team prevents and responds to kidnap, ransom and extortion incidents and wider crises, working with a team of experienced and dedicated crisis response consultants. Very few people in today’s workplace get to do the job they love, and I feel I’ve reached a place where I’ve wanted to be for over a decade.

Not everyone’s journey is as smooth, and navigating the security sector as a young person is tricky. If I could offer any advice to my younger self or to any other young professional in the industry today, it would be:

1. Professional development is key – Without exams and professional qualifications, progress will not be easy. Additional training courses in your specific chosen areas are essential, will improve your credibility and keep you on the right path.
2. Leverage your network – Networking can sound daunting; it doesn’t have to be, but it is essential. Send someone a speculative email as I did or ask for a one-on-one coffee meeting to learn about their role. Everyone I have met in the industry has been more than happy to help and share their wisdom. The bigger the network of informal contacts the better.
3. Be picky about who you work for – You will need companies that provide upward development. There are so many companies out there looking for young people to simply fill junior roles. Make sure you choose to work for a company that shares your values, treats you well, cares about your professional development and allows you to expand in areas which interest you.
4. Have confidence in yourself – Constantly upgrade yourself. Having the relevant training up your sleeve will help significantly, but if you love what you do, you’re probably doing a great job. Do not be disheartened by tasteless perceptions or comments from people around you.
5. For young women in the security industry, have resilience! – It can sometimes be tough to be a (young) woman in the security industry. Have resilience and push through – the industry needs you, more than it knows at present.

Supporting other young professionals is important and it is time to help the industry develop and grow. I have recently been appointed to co-chair the Young Members Group of The Security Institute, which supports the Institute’s advocacy for the inclusion and celebration of young people in the sector.

Through events and professional development, we hope to provide under-35 -year-olds working in security with all the opportunities and support they need to succeed.

Please feel free to get in touch if you would like to hear more!

Camilla Scrimgeour ASyI

c.scrimgeour@s-rminform.com

www.security-institute.org

Read more articles on Career Advice

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 Are you doing the job you want?  Seize the opportunities afforded by the pandemic and develop a career strategy that will give you a sense of autonomy and ownership of your future.

“Never let a good crisis go to waste” – famously uttered by Winston Churchill, just after the Second World War – rings true to this day. Just as the war did, the COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly thrown the world into a state of crisis. We do not fully know, nor can we fully control, the outcome.  Yet, we are slowly starting to adapt to this new normal and its challenges.

Upholding security

One major challenge in times of crisis is to uphold security on every level: individual, organisational and societal. The private security industry shoulders some of these responsibilities and a global pandemic adds emphasis to the role played by the private security industry in general, and its individuals in particular.

Maintain your skills and knowledge

So, what can the individuals working in the private security sector do to not let this crisis go to waste?  From a career perspective there are many opportunities to not only maintain but also develop, with the knowledge that increased demand for security services also toughens competition.  It is, therefore, important to maintain whatever knowledge, skills and behaviours that you have acquired in the position that you are in.  From there, the next step is obviously to capitalise on the crisis- induced opportunities and develop your career further.

Create a career strategy

If you are looking for career development that is personally rewarding, that makes you better at what you do, and that provides purpose, doing something that has meaning and is important: create a career development strategy. This will give you a sense of where you are, where you want to go, and the opportunities and challenges you may face. A well-crafted strategy will allow you to focus on your aspirations and keep you on track, the latter facilitated by integrating SMART targets to your strategy. Throughout your career there are many choices. Some lead to achievements, others to setbacks.  Having a clear strategy will not only help you make better decisions, but also allow you to recover more quickly when things do not go as planned.

Using a pre-set strategy

Now, designing a suitable strategy, let alone implementing it, can pose a significant challenge. One solution can be to go for one of the pre-existing strategies for career development, embodied through a number of different industry certifications. These will not only provide you with new skills and knowledge but will also be a recognition of your acumen within the industry. Further, the seal of quality conveyed by many certifications is increasingly becoming a requirement for advancement. The benefits of following such a pre-set path is that you come out of it with solidified competencies and a strengthened position in terms of career opportunities within the security sector.

Some examples

If you are working within infosec and want to expand your responsibilities and move towards managemen, the Certified Information Security Manager [CISM] certification provided by ISACA may be the right route for you.

Moreover, if security management is what you strive for and you already have a few years of experience, then the Certified Protection Professional [CPP] by ASIS may often be the gold standard. Conversely, if you are new to the industry, obtaining the Basic Private Security Officer certification followed by becoming a Certified Protection Officer, both provided by the International Foundation for Protection Officers [IFPO], can be an excellent starting point.

Weighing the options

The examples mentioned are by far not the only ones out there and choosing the most appropriate require some consideration. Think about the ideal career scenario, and then do some research into what qualifications would facilitate reaching that. Reflect on your personal attributes, including current skills, experience, knowledge and qualifications. Include everything from both your job and your outside interests. Then discuss these with your friends and colleagues for their views. As things become more clear, start developing your career development strategy, outlining a plan to achieve this scenario. This should include your overall aims and objectives, the goals and milestones along the way. Then devise the steps you need to take in the short, medium and long term.

Reach out

In the UK there are several industry organisations that can offer advice and support to your career development strategy. There are local actors, including the Security Institute and Guild of Security Industry Professionals. Some of the major global organisations, such as ASIS International and ISACA, have local chapters in the UK. Recently,  the IFPO also opened a local chapter in the UK, dedicated to enhancing the career potential of security practitioners. Reach out to any of these and you will get help to realise your ambitions in a strategy for career development.

Start now

As everyone in the security industry should know, ‘preparatus supervivet’ (the prepared survive), and in terms of preparedness to advance your career, doing nothing will get you nowhere. Use this moment in time to develop a career strategy that will give you a sense of autonomy and ownership of your future. If you already do – great, if you do not – start grafting, and remember that if the best day to start was yesterday, the second best is today.

Dr Peter Stiernstedt CPP, CISM

Disclosure: While the author is a member of the IFPO UK Advisory board, any and all views and opinions presented are proprietary and do not officially represent any organisation or affiliation.

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Employment, salaries and inflation statistics

The UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) reports that in Q1 2019 UK wage inflation was 3.4%, whilst Consumer Price Index annual inflation (CPI) averaged 1.8 %. In general, mid-management salaries and bonuses increased by 5.4%.

According to Eurostat, the average mid-management salary in the UK was £84,500, the fourth highest in Europe, with Swiss workers at No 1, followed by Germany and Luxembourg. The numbers in employment in the UK, 32.7 million, increased by 300,000 over the past 12 months. Those classified as inactive (people who chose not to work) was just under 7 million. The official UK jobless rate reduced to 3.8 % (1.3 million, the lowest percentage since 1974, whilst UK population has grown by 10 million between 1974 and 2019.

From January to March 2019, there were an estimated 852,000 vacancies in the UK, 32,000 more than a year earlier. These are primarily in the health care sector, 15.6 %, followed by the hospitality and food sector. In the security technology sector, SSR estimates there is a vacancy rate of 1.2 jobs per 100 workers. Many of these are being created in value enhanced roles, implementing and connecting technology, mirroring the surging telecommunications sector.

Skills Shortages

The monthly SSR/Pertemps sponsored CBI Report on Jobs has highlighted skills shortages across the UK which are affecting corporations. The UK is still attracting talented Europeans, but the pool of talent has diminished in the past two years. Home-grown graduates are entering the UK jobs market and being attracted to sectors such as “FinTech”, the application of technology to improve financial activities. FinTechs in general are disrupters, changing process to introduce new applications, processes and products. Anti-money laundering and fraud prevention are typically areas that benefit from this technology.

Convergence has benefits and perils

Convergence has immediate effects: reduced costs across almost all industries; merging mechanical engineering and wet services, physical security and IT. The logic is sound until the CEO’s greatest nightmare – losing data to a hacktivist; the Board non-executive being associated with an organisation in which the preventable death of an employee results in a corporate manslaughter charge; or the COO paying a ransom demand when the firm’s driver booking platform was hacked pre their initial stock exchange listing.

The elements of those corporate crises need a rehearsed solution, and for some firms that experience is not available, as the person at the top does not have the mental agility to keep all the plates spinning or depth of experience within the lean corporation.

We have seen within the Boards of the 1,000 largest corporations in Europe over the past twelve months, an understanding that they cannot be passive in regards to resilience. Shareholder and regulatory authorities will not forgive mistakes, and fines will be levied for persistent miscreants.

Being fined 4% of your global revenues under GDPR has increased the salaries for those that work in the security risk function in the UK who have embraced GDPR, becoming the ‘go-to’ experts. As looks likely, Facebook may be fined €50bn in the EU for data sharing in Mexico to a third party.

Non-compliant anti-regulatory behaviour can be deep rooted into everyday business practice, only exposed by whistleblowers or hackers. It also highlights the three major differences in data management: China, where they seek to control data; the EU, which seeks to protect personal data; and the Americas, where data has traditionally been there to be commercialised.

We are seeing these concepts clashing by way of fines which will dwarf the banking regulator fines and compensation levied collectively at the twenty largest banks since 2008 of €321bn, the top four UK banks paying €50bn in fines and compensation. Since 2008 the same large banks have made €1 trillion in profit.

Getting a salary increase

This year’s salary survey reveals that 44% of participants increased their salary through annual review, 20% by changing their jobs (down from 22% in 2018),18% though increased responsibility and 7.9% through formal job revaluation. On the whole, applicants seeking to change jobs was less than 45%, whilst in 2010-2012 that figure was over 59% of those in the job market.

In general, physical security remains cost controlled for many end-user clients. Empathetic gapping is emerging: this occurs where the business wants to devolve non-essential activities, usually to traditional outsourcers, but compliance risks have to be managed by a corporate person.

The risk management function is increasingly attractive as a profession, as there is a high level of qualifications that can be achieved which attracts the Millennial workforce who seek a greater diversity of work experience.

Investments in global security operations centres (GSOC) in 2018-19 led to ten major investment programmes.

The diversity of monitoring undertaken (people, assets, regulatory requirements) requires a different skill-set when recruiting project teams where a diversity of experience is in short supply. India and Asia have seen significant investment, but senior management are having to be deployed from other countries to train and mentor local, highly educated applicants. Total packages for a twelve-month deployment are in the region of £200,000 p.a.

Diversity

Diversity is a major factor that companies wish to address in their security teams. With a dominant male presence, many security departments do not reflect their corporation’s broader diversity make-up. Across Europe this is very noticeable, with global corporations undertaking detailed attraction projects to understand how they can address this imbalance, which can have a demonstrable effect on performance.

Risk and Resilience roles are being highly rewarded

At a senior level in 2018 and continuing into 2019, salaries have increased for CSO / Risk and Resilience Directors, whilst opportunities have decreased. For over ten years, security structures costs have been tightly controlled, which has led to Security Directors cultivating and investing in home-grown talent and themselves. At a time when new resilience threats were developing, that training investment has been at the cutting edge of threat management. Overall, if you are a global business your spend has increased, as you have convinced the marketing director that having an operational intelligence gathering capability, scalable across your geographical footprint, could help predict disruptive trends; that the FD would benefit from a new cost control system that helpfully monitored employee travel; that HR and Legal Counsel would meet their obligation of employee due care should they invest in a crisis bridge and employee  contact centre.

Messaging to the top

The top quartile of Security Directors have always been game changers and mobilisers, diffident to the approach of “we have always done it like this”. They have developed a culture of “develop and exceed”. Typically, in the area of cyber incidents there is a need to de-mystify and categorise the nature of the threats, when nearly 30% of CEOs consider their organisations could be attacked in the next twelve months. That affords them great influence and messages to the Board.

Across the 2019 survey, building up from 2018, roles / people engaging in cyber resilience are experiencing the most significant salary increases. £30–40,000 top-up increase for taking over the leadership and management of cyber incidents, making it a hostile environment for attackers to operate within; entry level analysts, with a coding capability, £35–45,000 starting salary, white hats / hunters £60–70,000 p.a; for managing a team, £90–110,000 p.a; and your salary in today’s candidate-driven market may be reviewed every six months.

Arguably, in this changing world where the tech giants of today have replaced Coca-Cola, GE and IBM in the top five most valued brands in the world, politicians are calling for them to be broken up as they are too powerful because they own the access to our data. Yet they have all, at the senior manager level, employed consistently the word ‘Trust’. Trust is now considered an important and tangible asset by businesses today – so that has to be a good thing for the risk and resilience professional.

For full details of UK Salary Survey, you can view the online edition of City Security magazine here.

Peter French MBE

SSR Personnel

www.ssr-personnel.com

The post Annual salary survey for the security sector appeared first on City Security Magazine.

Do you know what’s keeping your boss awake at night?

If not, you are going to struggle to get your share of the resources you need to do your job, whether that be more people, new technology, or even recognition and a pay rise.

Find out how to ensure you are seen as a business enabler.

Speaking the right language

In an age of limited time and budgets, social media chaos, mountains of data and the need for immediate answers, do you speak the same language as your boss?

Making sure you remain relevant to the business you work in with your security and/or investigations duties is more important than ever.  If you can’t relate your work to what makes your organisation successful, then ultimately you will fail.

It’s either about saving money or making money. Can you really say you contribute to either and back it up with facts and figures?

There may be hundreds of people in your business who are all after the same pot of money and resources needed to get their project done.

How to get your share

One of the answers is to make sure you spend time with the various business stakeholders and really understand what is driving their agenda.

For example, let’s say you work in retail loss prevention:

• How could you link your security duties to the success of new store openings or product launches?
• How could your local security services support the in-store customer journey?
• What services could your team offer and how could you align them so that you become part of the planning process and the success of business operations?
• What sort of security/risk information would be useful to the store operations planning team?
• What format do they need the information in and when is it needed?

You are far more likely to get recognition funding for your projects if you can link your services to these points.

Invest time learning about the business

To do this, you need to really invest time into getting to know your business’s overall goals. Spend time with key people in the organisation, ask lots of questions and become well informed. It may take you slightly outside your comfort zone, but it’s really important to listen to the language used and emulate it.

The results of simply listening to others and then using the right language can be truly amazing. Your work will become part of the jigsaw that makes the business a success, not just an underfunded support role that people don’t really appreciate or understand.

The future of integrated security

Corin Dennison, director – global profit protection at Adidas, has worked hard to ensure his team is viewed as a ‘business enabler’ and has this to say on the subject: “The future of integrated security lies within the ability of the function to become a true business partner, not simply a ‘necessary’ cost centre.

“Leveraging solutions such as CCTV and case management to serve as business enablers, as opposed to ‘security serving’, demonstrates the foresight of security leaders to be actively commercial and aligned to your business objectives.”

Mick Creedon, who spent ten years as the chief constable of the Derbyshire Constabulary, had to face the same dilemmas over resources, finances and priorities in the public sector and in an organisation where the safety of citizens and attacking criminality framed the business objectives.

He adds: “With over 4,000 staff and officers, I had a constant stream of funding requests.  The ones I got behind were those that clearly aligned specifically with mine and the force’s objectives and that were articulated in a way that supported these fundamentals.

“The policing mission is wider than ever before, with challenges from technology, terrorism, globalism, organised crime and rightly, a retained focus on local priorities. Any decision making process had to constantly balance risk and threat against declining resources and increased expectation from the public, courts, media and politicians. In any decision making, there had to be a clear focus on ‘what needed doing’, an understanding of the need, the plan, the resources and the timescale.

“Policing is no different to the commercial world in many ways and moving forward we will all have the same challenges, demands, resource limitations and the requirement to involve staff who truly understand the business.”

Take the first step

In your security role, you should have access to mountains of very valuable data about what is going on in your business at its various locations, its products and its employees and customers that would be useful to many different stakeholders.

You need to take the first step. Establish who the key decision makers are in your business and ensure that everything you do aligns with the company’s values and business aims.

Spend time speaking to people and researching best practice to find out what data is useful, in what format and then share it with the right people.

You may also wish to work with industry specialists and software developers who can help you to speak the right language, keep you informed and get what you deserve.

Mark Whittlesea

Product manager – smartcase at Altia-ABM

See related articles in our Security Careers section.

• Self-evaluation to develop your career
• Developing your career in security by raising your profile
• Are you a security professional?

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~ UK Workers claim approachability as the top CEO trait, yet 55% have never met their leader ~

~ Richard Branson the ideal boss, as workers desire a “global missionary” CEO ~

~ Old school leaders that are out of touch with employees despised as workers demand flexible work (82%) and pay (51%) ~

Key Findings in what brings employee satisfaction for law enforcement and security staff

• The top characteristic people expect from their CEO is that they’re willing to invest in change and innovation (33%); workers also expect their leaders to have integrity (31%) and to be a good communicator (31%)

• 33% of employees despise it when their CEO is out of touch with employees, with other hated traits being that their leader is unwilling to change or innovate (30%) or that they’re egotistical (27%)

• Strikingly, 78% of people law enforcement and security would rather be lead by a woman, in contrast to other sectors which on average don’t have a preference for the gender of their boss

• When asked to pick their ideal famous CEO, contrasting with the average, the majority (27%) chose a “marketing genius” like Steve Jobs. ‘Conscious capitalists’ like Bill Gates received the lowest (3%) rating

• Aside from flexible working and pay, the top benefits that staff expect from leaders are: generous maternity and paternity leave (42%) and holiday allowances (45%)

Research into the UK worker’s ideal CEO from Wagestream, the financial wellbeing experts, has revealed a disparity between what people expect from business leaders and the reality of how bosses are operating. The majority (40%) of workers see approachability as the best trait a CEO can have, yet over half (55%) have never met their boss.

The major conclusion of the research is that business leaders need to be listening to and acting on the needs of their workforce in order to retain and recruit talent, as workers also cited that CEO reputation (70%) is as important a consideration as employee satisfaction (75%) when looking for a new job.

Approachability is an important part of this, but increasingly the workforce is also expecting management to provide a flexible workplace culture and to take an interest in staff mental (76%), physical (72%) and financial (50%) wellness. 81.5% of employees believe it is important that leaders offer flexible work and 51% are now also expecting a flexible income.

Wagestream surveyed 800 working people across eight industries to understand what the workforce wants from their business leaders.

Responding to the findings, Wagestream’s CEO and co-founder Peter Briffett, said: “If CEOs want the backing of their workforce, they can’t afford to be helicoptering in and out of the day-to-day business, they need to be properly involved with their employees and take a genuine interest in their mental, physical and financial wellbeing.”

“It’s clear that the highest rated CEOs are the ones who are approachable, have integrity, understand their employees work and trust them with flexibility, whether that’s in the form of when and where they work, or how they receive their salary.”

Furthermore, Lucie Russell, Director of the Fair by Design, a campaign and venture fund working to eradicate the extra costs of being poor, said, “As this research illustrates, a good leader in 2019 will embrace flexibility to make life less stressful for their staff. Matching that with tools and resources offered by employers to help people manage their money in ways they’re comfortable with, where that opportunity hasn’t been previously available, can make a huge difference to people’s lives.”

Wagestream have collated the findings, alongside advice for leaders on how to become a better CEO in the eyes of the workforce, in a whitepaper, “What makes a great CEO?” which you can find here: http://www.wagestream.co.uk/ceowhitepaper

You can find out more about Wagestream and the “Get-Paid-as-you-Go” revolution here: https://wagestream.co.uk/

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The security world may run on technical innovation, but the need to provide solutions that focus on people, whether as employees or customers, is still paramount.

Gemma Quirke, Managing Director Security for Wilson James explains how these security customer service skills these can be developed.

In an increasingly technology driven security industry, ‘softer skills’ that focus on the customer experience and journey may not grab big headlines, but they are the key to winning and keeping new business.

Security customer service skills are not ‘nice to haves’, they are talents that set any service provider apart, no matter what field or industry. An employee who knows how to engage with members of the public, visitors and clients in a professional manner is an asset to any organisation. In the security sector, this aptitude can be the difference between a ‘job’ and a long-term career.

The difficulty can be in providing training often considered ‘superfluous’ to many traditional manned guarding contracts.

Training for technical requirements is typically folded into service delivery, but for ‘soft skills’, especially in contracts where there is no Front of House or traditional visitor-facing role, there is often a dearth of development options. For individuals looking to build long-term careers in the security industry, this lack of opportunity to develop customer-facing skills can be the difference between career advancement and stagnation.

Security providers who fail to address this skills gap are missing an opportunity to set themselves apart, both as a desirable employer and to potential clients.

Wilson James has two internal programmes designed specifically to provide employees with accredited training opportunities with a customer service element. A key element of both these programmes is that they have been designed to be broadly accessible to participants.

This accessibility means that learning doesn’t just take place in the classroom.  It can be via online e-learning portals, it can be via coaching and mentoring identified talent, webinars, action learning sets amongst peers, gaining qualifications up to Degree and Master’s level through practical on-the-job learning.

As a security provider it is vital that we are creating careers for our employees, with clearly identified pathways; professionalising our security workforce, supported by learning and development interventions.

Clients should care about this level of training. As the saying goes, you may only get one chance at a first impression and security personnel are often the first faces a customer will see in your business or building. Ensuring they are welcomed with a professional and customer-focused manner is key to protecting not only your people and assets, but also your reputation. Security providers who fail to consider this are missing a big element of the job in the 21st century.

Gemma Quirke

Managing Director Security

Wilson James

The post Security – Customer service skills are not ‘nice to haves’ appeared first on City Security Magazine.

Rick Mounfield, CEO of the Security Institute, puts forward a plan for the pathway from army to civilian life and shares some hard-won advice for those about to embark on it.

On 11 November 2011, I received my last day’s pay after 22 years of service with the Royal Military Police. I was retiring as a Regimental Sergeant Major based in the south of England, though neither my wife nor I were from this region.

Once you decide to leave the forces family, you become very aware of all the benefits you are going to miss. Free medical, dental, gym membership even. You begin to think about where you might fit in a world that is not alien to you but certainly unfamiliar. The future workplace is an unknown and therefore daunting prospect.

I embarked on my career transition pathway, guided to the letter by a programme designed to ensure I received all the appropriate briefings, allowances and workshops that would set the foundation for my future. I feel, however, that I should have started to prepare much earlier than twelve months ahead. I was right, and if I could have gone back in time, this is what I would have done.

Four years from D Day – start getting qualified

At least four years from transition, I should have embarked on that MSc that I looked at, but decided that I did not have the time to undertake. Instead, I did it once I had left (when I was learning a new job and without the financial security I had in the Army).

Note 1. Whatever the level of academic achievement, use your enhanced learning credits and start to gather qualifications that civilian employers can quantify. Courses that augment your vocational skills and experience.

Three years from D Day – research where you want to live

Think about where you want to live. Many have settled where they grew up and found it very difficult to find a job that suits them and satisfies them. We often leave the Army due to separation from family. If you settle far from relevant jobs, you will end up living away from home through the week. We move around in the forces and we become adept at settling down and making friends wherever we go. Think hard about the priorities. Is it more important to live near family or where there is a good source of jobs with decent income? Secure your mortgage while you still have your forces income and before you sign off. You cannot get a mortgage if you are not working.

The remaining two years until D Day – network, network, network

I was once told that people buy people. Employers will select employees that they feel they can trust and that they like. A recommendation from a trusted source who knows you and the employer goes a very long way and this is the strength of the network. Start by connecting with friends that have left before you. Go to events and meetings where you can be introduced by your network to their network and swell your connections as a result.

Use your £175 Standard Learning Credit (SLC). This little-known allowance that every serviceman gets each year can be spent on a course or towards a learning event: a conference or workshop in your field. If your field will be security, you can spend your SLC on a professional membership. The Security Institute membership is applicable because we are a professional membership organisation. Annual fees with the Institute range from £120 to £170, so all levels are within range.

The Security Institute has Security Management courses at BTEC Level 3 certificate, Level 5 diploma and IQ Level 7 advanced diploma – an academic level for any ability. Our network is 2,600+ members, all of whom look out for each other. We have a job board, professional development platform and a mentoring scheme that are all provided at no extra cost for the sole aim of facilitating professional development and peer-to-peer networking. Once you leave your rank behind, our post nominals will let prospective employers know that you have been screened, peer- reviewed against your academic and vocational qualifications and most of all, it says that you have signed up to continuously professionally develop. You are not the one who will sit back on their past accolades.

In Summary

Don’t try and transition on your own. Seek help from those that have left before you. Every one of us has felt the anxiety and uncertainty of transitioning to civilian life. Prove to others that you are willing to be peer-reviewed and be proud of what you have achieved, without being arrogant about it. Whatever you are thinking of doing, start earlier than you think you need to. The years pass quickly, and you will have better results if your academic qualifications and network are established before your last pay day. The security industry is full of opportunity: don’t sell yourself short. Make yourself aware of opportunities in the periphery of your current skillset. Good luck!

Rick Mounfield

Chief Executive, Security Institute

www.security-institute.org

The post The transition to civvy street – a path well-trodden but not so well advertised appeared first on City Security Magazine.

Developing the softer skills at ASIS Women in Security and Young Professionals Group Event

During their careers, security professionals will face the challenges of both building their role within an organisation and justifying the importance of their function to business leaders. While many professionals invest time and effort in developing their technical skills, fewer spend time to develop the non-core and softer skills that are vital in both their role and wider career development. In response to these challenges, ASIS UK Chapter 208 gathered together a panel to provide ideas around the core skills of influencing, developing self-confidence, promoting the security function and learning from role models. Below is a summary of the event.

The power of influencing

Betsy Reed, an experienced lobbyist in the field of sustainability, introduced the importance of developing influencing skills. In any role, there will be times when you need to build bridges between different parts of the organisation and with other organisations: nobody can succeed alone, we all need alliances to change systems or culture. This means key components of influencing are to build relationships with the right people and to understand their needs. Additionally, she explained that the robustness or validity of your idea is important. You need to understand its value, so it is critical to do your homework, lay the groundwork and have the right data at your fingertips.

Betsy summarised the five key steps to her approach to achieving influencing success:

1. Ask yourself exactly what do you want to achieve? What are your objectives? It’s important to clearly articulate this, even if it just means jotting down a few notes to self.
2. Identify the people you need to influence. Develop an in-depth understanding of them. Carry out some research. What are their interests? What do they like or hate? What kind of language works best with them?
3. Think about what they need to get from you. Help those you want to influence to achieve their goals, as well as yours. What do they need? Put yourself in their shoes; what can you give them? Influencing is about people motivation. Some people just want to make their mark. You need to get people on board, to feel ownership. It’s best to solve this together, to demonstrate that you care about what they care about.
4. Research how you can reach the people you want to influence. Think carefully about what will work best. Are there particular media channels to use, like LinkedIn? Do they prefer face-to-face or email? Should you try phoning them?
5. Decide how you bridge the gap between the current situation of those you want to influence and where you’d like it to be. Bring together all your planning to focus on who holds the keys to your goal and the best ways to approach them.

Developing self-confidence

It was acknowledged that self-confidence does not come naturally to all and the panel discussed the different ways they have developed this attribute. A key step for some was to get qualified in a security related area. However, it was agreed that qualifications are not essential and that experience in dealing with a wide range of situations can bring confidence.

It is important to develop a reputation of being approachable and to build trust in your knowledge and approach. As you become known as the expert in your field and your colleagues turn to you for advice and information, your own confidence will grow.

The panel also pointed out that while it is a good idea to be proud of your role and the security function, try to not keep moaning about the challenges!

Promoting the security function

A key challenge for those in security is to extol its value to the organisation as a whole.

Quite often, security is just seen as a cost and as the function that stops thing getting done. So, it is vital to speak the language of the business, interpret what you do and its impact on the bottom line and the value that you bring. Look at the security system as part of technology of the business and how it can bring Return on Investment.

In the current climate, there is frustration around shrinking budgets, especially where there are legacy systems that are expensive to change. Often, organisations want a “Rolls Royce” security set-up, but cannot necessarily afford it. This means security professionals must be transparent about what is possible and clear about the impact of decisions based solely on budget.

The panel closed with the consensus that you need strong internal drive to succeed and the ability to build relationships and trust is crucial. This takes time, but it is well worth prioritising these softer skills to support your security role.

The panel included: Dawn Holmes, Bloomberg LP; Betsy Reed, Sustainability Management Consultant; Joanne Rice, UK Financial Crime Manager, AXA; Jade Davies, CIS Security; Linda Hausmanis,CEO at BIFM; Nicola Thompson, Northland Controls.

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The Executive Profiles annual salary survey, produced by SSR in partnership with ASIS International, uses data that is collated from more than 12,000 security professionals from across 40 business sectors. SSR separately monitors salary data. Here Peter French highlights some key findings from the survey.

A year in numbers

UK wage growth was 2.3% in 2017 according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) while the Consumer Price Index annual inflation (CPI) averaged 3%. The numbers in employment fell slightly for the first time in two years, down to 32 million. Those classified as inactive (people who chose not to work) totalled just under 7 million. The official UK jobless rate was steady at 4.3% (1.42 million).

ONS reports that in the first quarter of 2018, wage inflation was 2.7% against CPI of 2.5%, which has increased the take home pay of most employees for the first time post the BREXIT referendum. Bonuses increased on average by 6.5%. This masks a great differential across sectors, with the financial sector still leading on cash bonuses, but bonus, when including share awards, is far higher in the technical manufacturing and e-commerce sectors.

Executive Profiles Annual Salary Review – Key Findings

72% of respondents have a regional responsibility in management disciplines in over 40 UK sectors, allowing management level data to be reviewed.

Over 25% of respondents in the UK and Europe believe that Brexit will affect their jobs for a range of reasons, including economic uncertainty, relocation of HQ, cost reduction, reduced opportunities for personal development.

Just over 50% of respondents stated that they feel undervalued, their contribution not rewarded by their employer. The national average of those dissatisfied with their job is over 65%.

How do you get a pay rise?

For 45% of respondents, this was due to an annual pay increase. 18% of people changed their jobs, achieving an average 22% pay rise. Over 23% of respondents stated that they had a pay rise because they had increased their responsibilities inside the organisation or had a formal job evaluation. This reflects a greater degree of functional crossover that is being asked for by many employers. For instance, who ended up with GDPR? Formal upgrading of responsibilities usually resulted in the role being re-graded, so the title may change from Manager to VP, Head of Function or Executive Director, so benefits are enhanced as well as pay, pension contribution, share allocation and travel allowance. One benefit that Millennials are increasingly asking for is to purchase increased holiday allowance, noticeable for those applying for cyber roles.

Management salaries in 2017

The average UK middle management salary in 2017 was £95,000, according to Eurostat: the 4th highest in the EU, which will apply equally to a broad spectrum of corporate roles in the security profession. At the Chief Security Officer level, where they are part of the long-term Incentive plan, annual returns are growing at more than 25% of total compensation.

Revaluation of roles in line with increase in cyber incidents

The survey asked what specific reasons had increased your remuneration or led to a revaluation of your role. A high proportion was due to the increasing volume of cyber incidents facilitated through insider criminality, ransomware attacks and phishing. The range of occurrences seems to highlight how organisations have a lack of preparedness for cyber vulnerabilities and the lack of cybercrime reporting. Over 52% of European companies reported last year that they were unprepared for a cyber attack; even more have no insider threat programme, which ideally should be led by the physical security departments.

Investigating the procurement department saved one company £20 million a year after the Head of Security checked the website of a recently appointed supplier, their directors and their relationships within his own organisation.

Threats to employment

Over the last three years, the e-commerce sector has been remixing business norm, such as changing the way we travel from one place to another. For example, Tesla model X, rockets for NASA, driverless cars and Uber bikes. Changes in the transport sector started with automotive and airline mergers post Y2K and then again around 2008. Technology is a disrupting force, even as a relatively new sector, because of the effect it can have on traditional sectors.

Speculation for 2018 is asking will General Electric break itself up, creating three major parts, and one or more of the tech giants bid for the innovation part, releasing billions of return for shareholders. The old core sectors of the economy are concentrating; they are more global. There is not one UK commercial sector unaffected by M&A activity.

The impact on the jobs market for the security sector has been a huge squeeze on traditional roles, and the loss of many management jobs as e-commerce organisations are redefining security parameters and looking for individuals who can work in a day one environment.  Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, has made the idea that it’s always ‘Day 1’ at the company a sort of mantra meant to convey that the company will never stop being a start-up (even after 24 years): ‘Speed matters in business – plus a high-velocity decision making environment is more fun too.’

Whilst new jobs are being generated, these will certainly be more cross functional, in an increasingly matrix management structure.

Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality are key factors in job opportunities for workplace enhancement and will open up opportunities for protectors of secure environments for both people and secrets. The Millennial citizen has the mindset that if we share information, a host of developers will innovate and add value to its use. One of the predictions for 2025 is that there will be the ability to have your thoughts downloaded and stored, and from time to time you sync the stored and real time thoughts. This could be a way of reducing the effects of dementia. Who will protect this market?

Peter French MBE CPP FSyl

SSR® Personnel

www.ssr-personnel.com

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At each year end we hear from security professionals who are beginning to anticipate the following year by assessing what comes next in their careers. In other words, now is the time for introspection and self-evaluation prior to the start of planning the next steps in your career.

To be successful you will need to be focused on your future profession and have a clear understanding of your values, skills and interests. You must be able to set clear goals based on your strengths so you can anticipate your next step and decide to obtain new learning and skills if required. This work, together with the establishment of a diverse communication network, will increase your chances of career success and job satisfaction. This is the foundation upon which many of the other steps depend.

Do an internal self-evaluation that includes but extends beyond the things you like to do professionally, the types of tasks and projects and elements of managing and leading you enjoy. Self-analysis is not an easy process, and I would encourage you to involve family and close friends. It is easy to be too close to this subject, so getting an outside, candid perspective will aid in your journey.

The benefit of doing this type of self-assessment in advance is that it prepares you for the upcoming job search process outlined below. Potential employers are likely to ask about your style and preferences and ask for examples, so you’re laying the groundwork to think about these things and to develop sincere and well-thought-out responses.

Beyond the tactical and operational aspects that may attract your interest in a new role, the following are areas I often see organisations evaluate to determine fit.

Intuition and Empathy

This includes your ability to see differences in people and their personalities and weaknesses. An intuitive and empathetic leader is a caring, kind relationship builder. Someone who gives the benefit of the doubt, who is trusting and who brings passion and intensity to work. On the flip side, one might be too soft and trusting, which could be a problem in the security field.

Results Orientation and Decisiveness

The ability to get people motivated, to see things through results and the political and practical orientation that works to meet those objectives. How comfortable are you in areas that are not familiar to you? How do you gather information to make decisions and how much information do you need? Are you easily persuaded? Are you decisive and effective in making decisions?

Types of Reasoning

Do you like doing things that are routine? Are you creative in your work? Do you see your thinking as being right, as being black and white? Are you optimistic or pessimistic?

Adherence and Organisation

The ability to plan, structure and analyse ideas. Paying attention to rules, orders and logic. The ability and desire to submit to rules, policies and processes. These are all good things, but you must figure out where you are on the organisation scale. If you are really structured and comfortable in your role, you may have a hard time dealing with a corporate culture. Exactly how rigid are you?

Self-View

How do you handle rejection? How do you handle challenges? How do you view your imagination and passion?

Self-Expectations

Your personal goals and values. Do you tend to be open or stubborn, driven or exhibiting a lack of direction? Do you let events drive you?

It is important to look at your skills and preferences and match those to the kinds of job you’re looking for. An honest self-assessment will help you decide what company you want to work for, whether the position and the organisation’s expectations are a great fit past the pay cheque, and will provide the basis to move you forward.

Just as if you were designing a product, building a plant or a business, there is a need to invest considerable time to identify objectives, assess the market, evaluate materials and resources, then plan and move forward on a strategy. In short: planning, research and execution. The following are some of the key processes within each phase:

Planning

• Identify and understand your values, skills, competencies and interests.
• Identify all the elements and roles that make up your desired career aspiration.
• Determine your financial requirements compared with the roles you seek.
• Focus on mapping the above to the elements within your target professional role(s).
• Set clear goals based on your strengths, personal characteristics and circumstances.
• Always know your next steps and have backup plans.
• Obtain new learning and skills you will need. This is a continuous career-long process.
• Establish a diverse communication network, not just social media contacts.

Research

• Survey the professional environment.
• Gather relevant market information.
• Define your target market, to include industry, size, organisation culture and geography.
• Determine professional objectives both vertically and horizontally within organisations.
• Create a strategy.
• Develop your message, written materials and needed CVs.

Execution

• Develop a plan and get your message out.
• Talk with colleagues, peers and hiring managers.
• Identify and use a variety of search methods.
• Interview, cultivate offers and negotiate. This applies both internally and externally.
• Transition into new role. Investing time at the end of each year to take stock of where you are professionally in comparison to where you would like to be pays dividends.

You are better prepared to take on any career challenges the next year might bring. You also improve your chances of moving forward in a manner consistent with your expectations that meets or exceeds your professional goals.

Jerry Brennan

Chief Executive, SMR Group of Companies

www.smrgroup.com

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