2021 will be no less challenging for those employed in the security sector; for many on hourly contracts the onset of the pandemic has already pushed them into other sectors, where their skills are equally valued.
The skill sets of those employed in the profession of security are overlayed onto traits of human interaction that appeal to other industries: honesty, fairness, straightforwardness, dependability, cooperativeness, determination, courage, caring, maturity, loyalty, self-control, and empathy. They have greater value in many other customer-facing roles and will cause a shortage of quality staff in some organisations.
From our conversations with senior leaders in client organisations, many have been impressed with the agility of their security risk professionals and with their outsourced functions, that have perhaps paused frontline activities and replaced them with activities not foreseen in the contract specification.
From our perspective that has meant managing a project to provide technicians to deliver over 10,000 system upgrades in homes and businesses during the lockdown; growth in hiring protection managers in data and information sectors across the world; recruiting digital transformation champions; finding applicants with a holistic attitude to emerging risk, or the technical director that can work on a corporation’s changing needs accelerated in urgency by a factor of 10; recruiting with vendor knowledge providers to attract new client-facing skills.
As an accelerant, the pandemic has been the catalyst for change, increasing opportunities for those in the security sector for a technology revolution over the next 24 months. Whatever aspect of corporate life you are in, be that as an employee or with a vendor, you will see greater needs and demands. Whilst COVID has highlighted people’s adaptability and personal tragedies, you need a change in mindset, from the physical to plus cyber – people are intrinsic to business.
Peter French MBE CP PSyl
Managing Director,
For further views on this topic, see related articles from our Police & Partnerships, Risk Management and Security Management categories, including:
Darren Read on security in 2021 and beyond
Mike O’Neill on the new blended approach to working
Stephen Emmins from HIKVISION on how the security function is evolving
David Mundell – 2021 the year of opportunity
Neil Moscrop, CIS Security on the new roles for security officers
