Florida Security
Agencies: Why Are There So Few Real Professionals?
Please read the below report about the different aspects of
the Professional Security Industry in Florida and the Security Agencies in
Florida. After reading the report you will better understand the issues that
arise from un-professional security agencies, where the money goes, the owner
of the agencies responsibilities, managers, security officers, sales persons,
client’s expectations and much more valuable information, from an undercover
investigators perspective, that will help you draw a conclusion to this very
sensitive and important industry called the Security Industry.
As a Private Investigator and trained FBI
operative/infiltrator I, David Gletty and crew, have infiltrated many security
agencies in the state of Florida over the last several years and what I have
learned is a real eye opener when it comes to the lack of real Professional Security
agencies in Florida. I know that some will say “My security is the best” and I
would ask them “How do you know?” and “Have you ever seen them in an emergency
situation?” What I have also learned is that every security agency has the same
issues no matter how much they try to be “First Class.”
Because of the “Heightened Security Level” present in the
United States most security agencies use that fact to prey on their clients fears
and have an attitude of “Because of the fear factor the security services that
I offer sells easily.” As a client you should not let this type of attitude
from the security agency be used against you while trying to choose a
professional agency. The client needs to take charge and control the meeting
while in the presence of the salespersons and/or managers.
Your safety and security as a client depends on how much
money a security agency pays the security officers. Do you want your safety and
security to look like it will protect you or do you want your safety and
“Security Professional” to actually know how to keep you safe and secure? Do
not make the mistake of only having the “Illusion” of great safety and
security.
Most Common Issues
and Violations:
A. Sexual Conversations among the
officers concerning the clients and/or the guest of said clients and some
conversations concerned those younger than 18 years of age.
B. Unprofessional, inexperienced and
unfit security officers.
C. Many officers have no significant
experience and training.
D. Sleeping on duty and leaving post.
E. Officers carrying concealed firearms
on unarmed post.
F. Theft of property from client, guest
and security agency.
G. Distribution of Prescription drugs
and illegal narcotics.
H. Falsification of hours, reports and
witness statements.
I.
Managers are spread thin and never around.
J.
Conspiring with criminal organizations and planning criminal activities
based on the knowledge gained from working for any security or armored car
agency.
K. Sexual misconduct and unacceptable
behavior.
L. Theft of contracts and new clients
from current employer.
M. Lack of attention and concentration
while on duty.
N. Over use of cell phones and computers
for personal reasons while on duty.
O. Officers using bleach or eye
solutions to pass drug screening test. Some officers carry small containers, of
the screening agents just mentioned, on them at all times in the case of a
random drug screening.
Clients
Expectations:
When a client pays top dollar for armed and unarmed
professional security officers they have a reasonable expectation of getting
the product they were sold and not a product that resembled what they were
sold. It is the old “Bait and Switch” tactic that has been used since the first
man sold another man a product, it is still alive today.
Do not let this happen to you, be educated in the industry in
which you are buying the product. Is the protection and security of your life,
your family, employees, guest, clients, property, business and technology worth
the risk of having superior “Security Professionals” impersonated by
non-professional security officers.
It is unfortunate for the client to find out that the “Bait
and Switch” has been used on them and usually the client finds out when an
accident occurs or loss of life, loss of property, employees and clients/guest
are harmed by criminals and many other liabilities that could harm the client.
In the end it is the client’s decision to choose the type of
service they need, “The Best” or what appears to be the best and only does just
enough to get by.
The Money: Below figures represent an office
fully staffed. Figures are approximate.
A. Contracts out of local office that
require 50 security officers 40 hrs wk @ agency rate of $22 per hour per
officer = $44,000 a week billed for
the security agency.
B. 50 security officers 40 hours a week
each @ $11 per hr. = $22,000 weekly
s/o payroll
C. 1 office with 3 managers and 2
salespersons = $3,600 per week
D. Local office weekly expenses, tools,
insurance, sales commissions, marketing, worker’s comp., taxes = $9,700 per week.
E. Weekly profits from local offices
that employ 50 security officers full time = $8,700
F. The weekly cost of the office space
varies for each office. That must be subtracted also.
This is a money making industry once
you get more than 2 or 3 fully staffed offices. The profits are made “On the
Backs” of the security officers from their low pay. If the level of experience
and professionalism is not important to the client then this investigative
report does not apply to those types of clients.
The hourly rate for the “Security
Professional” must be increased if the agency wants to offer the client “The
Best” in the industry. Once all security officers have been “retooled” and
brought up to speed concerning training and education the industry will have
legitimate reasons for demanding the increased fee and clients will not have a
problem with the increased fee if there is proof that there will be a
difference in the product that is being delivered.
The Owners:
A. Large Agency: Some owners are
involved in the Public Relations and Marketing divisions, but are separated and
have no idea what is going on with the security officers division. The security
officers are “Where the Rubber Meets the Road” and are the real “Face of the
Company.”
B. Large Agency: Other owners are just
“profit owners” and have no real active part in the company other than the
title. These types of companies are usually older and well known, they have a format
and operate like an outdated machine. It works for some clients that just want
a person in a uniform.
C. Small Agency: The owner is a working
owner and because of that situation it is very stressful for the owner and
employees. They do not have the time for the personal touch. In fact most of
the working owners are usually rude and abrasive with the employees and does
not have a lot of time for the clients once the contract has been signed. There
are exceptions to what was just stated, but there are not a lot of them.
Note: During these hard economic
times officers and managers do not want head quarters and owners to know the
“real issues” that occur on every post, because of fear from losing their job.
That is what keeps the upper management and owners separated from what is
really going on with the internal workings of the company. It is sad, but for
most owners the employees are “A Dime a Dozen” and can be replaced at will.
With that type of attitude you can understand why there are so many
unprofessional security officers and such a high employee turnover rate in the
security industry.
Sales Persons: Beware of the “Bait and Switch” and the
overselling of the product.
A. Professional Salesperson: Some
agencies choose to have professional salespersons and pay them a generous base
salary with commissions from sales. It is not unusual for professional security
salespersons to make $52,000 to $75,000 a year.
B. Part-time Salesperson: Some agencies
choose to use a security officer that works part time as a salesperson. I do
not need to explain this technique, but you can see that is not a good
arrangement for a “Professional Agency.” Ask yourself if the security officer
working on your post is handling sales while providing safety and security for
yourself, your family and etc?
C. Electronic Sales Only: Other agencies
have a massive and expensive website and marketing campaign and their clients
find them on the internet when needed, call the 24 hour call center and then a
company representative will call you and put you in touch with a regional
manager. The regional manager meets the client and closes the deal. These companies
usually only provide a 24 hour call center number to their client if the client
needs to get in touch with the local office that supplies the officers on their
post after the contract is signed. This can and will be very frustrating for
the client, but it is very convenient for the security agency.
The Managers: Regional and Local
A. So few of these positions are
available and it makes the possibility of advancement from Security
Professionals impossible.
B. Because of the fact that managers
really do not “make the company money” and they are just a “necessary tool”,
there are never enough of them and the managers are always overwhelmed with so
many “issues and problems”. They never accomplish all of the task that they are
responsible for. This is where the breakdown of the company and professionalism
really begins, along with the low hourly pay for the security officers.
C. Some agencies have managers that are
working different post while they are trying to take care of the management
duties. This is a very dangerous position for a security agency to put the
client, guest and properties in.
The Officers:
So many agencies look great on their website and are trying
to look as much like law enforcement and military as possible, but the sad
truth is that they are limited by the amount of money they pay their security
officers. The average pay per hour for unarmed security officers is $8 to $10
an hour and $10 to $12 an hour for armed security officers. That pay is far
from law enforcement and military grade professionals. The client pays top
dollar for the services, but gets less than what they paid for.
I am not putting the
security officers down, but the old saying “You get what you pay for” rings
true when you want a Cadillac but get a KIA. Because of the low pay rate that
agencies offer, it shallows the pool of real “Security Professionals.”
There are so many well trained and educated Security Specialist
that you can demand the agency supply you with, but it will cost you more money
if you believe that the services you need require “Only the Best.”
Or you can get the grade of officers that just gets past the
line of client requirements when it comes to what type of security services you
need. If you take an honest survey of each security officer I guarantee that 7
out of 10 officers would say that $2 more an hour would change their whole
attitude and that they would look at their job as a career rather than a job
that just helps them survive.
The hourly rate for the “Security Professional” must be
increased if the agency wants to offer the client “The Best” in the industry.
Once all security officers have been “retooled” and brought up to speed
concerning training and education the industry will have legitimate reasons for
demanding the increased fee and clients will not have a problem with the
increased fee if there is proof that there will be a difference in the product
that is being delivered.
Basic Security
Officers VS Security Professionals:
A. Basic security officers have trouble covering
their duties every time they are on shift, a Security Professional can cover
for 2 basic security officers.
B. Security Professionals can accomplish
so many more task than your basic officer and over time you will notice that
the Security Professionals are more cost effective in many different shapes and
forms.
C. Some Security Specialist are stuck in
low paying positions and have no chance of advancement (explained in managers
section) with the un-professional agency that they are currently employed by.
The Security Professional has to wait for another higher paying position to
open up with another agency and “Boom” they are gone. These Professional
Officers are easy to notice, but they mean nothing to the agencies that pay the
“industries competitive compensation rate”.
D. High employee turnover is common in
the security industry when using unprofessional security officers.
Experienced Military
Professionals and Security Professionals:
A. Already trained by the United States
Military or Advanced Civilian Training (ACT).
B. Specialized training and education.
C. Tested under fire already.
D. Must demand the top pay in the
security industry (starting at $15 per hour) there is no excuse to be cheap
when lives and properties are at risk.
Quality/Professional
Assurance Officer: (QPA Officer)
Each Professional Security agency must have a Quality and
Professional Assurance Officer (QPA Officer) that is committed to checking on
every post and officer for violations that may hurt the contract and making
sure that every security officer is up to date on further training and
education.
This QPA officer takes a lot of pressure off of the regional
managers and the local security office managers. The QPA officer can also cover
more than 1 security office’s region, the QPA can cover the same area as the
regional manager and more.
The QPA officer will have many tools and techniques that they
can use and will in most cases be a licensed investigator and security officer.
Without giving up to much information on how the QPA officer will conduct their
operations I can say that surveillance, undercover officers and research will
be some of the methods used to find an agencies problems and fix them before
any liabilities occur for the agency and/or the client.
This is important because it seems that every post has issues
when it concerns the actions to be taken during the below emergency situations:
A. Missing child.
B. Armed criminal on post.
C. Drowning.
D. Fire.
E. First aid and C.P.R situations.
F. Terrorist act.
G. Domestic violence.
H. Power outage.
I.
Many other situations.
During the above listed situations calling “911” does not fix
the immediate problem. Security Agencies should not let the fear of “being
sued” interfere with saving the life of a drowning child or saving someone from
a fire and etc. If the Security Professionals are well trained and experienced
then the fear of “being sued” will be irrelevant during the aftermath of the
emergency situation.
The Proper Command Structure
for a Professional and well Regulated Security Agency:
A. Headquarters
B. Regional Manager
C. Quality and Professionalism Assurance
(QPA) Officer
D. Security Office Manager
E. Assistant Manager
F. Post Commander also working Security
Officer
G. Shift Commander also working Security
Officer
H. Security Officer
How Do I Know if the
Agency is Professional or Not? :
A. Ask questions:
1. What other clients does the agency
have under contract?
2. How many security officers in your
area do they have employed?
3. Who are the owners and where do they
live?
4. Who are the regional and office managers
and can I have their numbers?
5. How much will the officers on your
post get paid per hour?
6. Does the agency have documents and
certificates showing the experience and training level of the officer’s working
on your post?
B. Pay close attention to what the
security salesperson says, how they say it and do not let them control the
sales meeting.
C. Get the immediate contact numbers for
the managers and post commander, do not accept a general office contact number.
D. Meet and observe the security
officers assigned to your post.
E. Does the client have the option of
paying a higher rate for more experienced officers with credentials?
Conclusions:
A.
Because
of the fact that managers really do not “make the company money” and they are
just a “necessary tool”, there are never enough of them and the managers are
always overwhelmed with so many “issues and problems”. They never accomplish
all of the task that they are responsible for. This is where the breakdown of
the company and professionalism really begins, along with the low hourly pay
for the security officers.
B.
During
these hard economic times officers and managers do not want head quarters and
owners to know the “real issues” that occur on every post, because of fear from
losing their job. That is what keeps the upper management and owners separated
from what is really going on with the internal workings of the company. It is
sad, but for most owners the employees are “A Dime a Dozen” and can be replaced
at will. With that type of attitude you can understand why there are so many
unprofessional security officers and such a high employee turnover rate in the
security industry.
C.
95%
of the security agencies do not utilize the position of Quality and
Professionalism Assurance Officer (QPA) and the use of further education and
training as a tool to bring the security agency into the 21rst century and
offer the client real experienced and trained “Security Professionals.”
D.
The
hourly rate for the “Security Professional” must be increased if the agency
wants to offer the client “The Best” in the industry. Once all security
officers have been “retooled” and brought up to speed concerning training and
education the industry will have legitimate reasons for demanding the increased
fee and clients will not have a problem with the increased fee if there is
proof that there will be a difference in the product that is being delivered.
Closing Statement:
It is the 21rst century and security agencies have to keep up
with the times. All current security officers can be further trained and
brought up to the level of where they need to be in the 21rst century. With
that retooling the security industry will be able to charge more per hour and
pay their new retooled security officers a higher salary as real “Security
Professionals”
With that move it will bring the confidence level up for
every security officer and create a better attitude and working environment for
everyone involved in the security industry. A side effect of the process would
be being able to sell more contracts because the level of professionalism has
just rose 50% in the security agency, with documents, training and certificates
to back it up. Everything just stated is very important to the security
industry and needs to be addressed in the near future so that all security
agencies can provide their clients with the best “Security Professionals” in the
industry rather than an imitation that looks like an experienced and well
educated “Security Professional.”
A client usually finds out that their security officers are
unprofessional when there is an emergency or avoidable situation that occurs,
when that happens it is always the client that loses.
This Investigative report on the Security Industry in Florida
was written by David Gletty, with the help of associates in the field.
