Hiring the Right Security Personnel
Be it a small business or a major corporation, security guards are an important asset for any company when it comes to protecting its property and assets. In 2021, the market for security services in the U.S. ballooned to $48.14 billion.
Uniformed security guards are an integral part of any security strategy as they provide a noticeable security deterrent and manage daily security work (such as registering outside guests). They can also respond to onsite security risks in a timely manner.
However, though security guards play a major role in protecting your business, you can’t rely on them alone. They need the support of an integrated security system. Below, we’ll show you how to hire a security guard and use them in combination with a security system.
How to Recruit Security Guards
A common misconception when seeking a security officer is that your business will be doing the ‘recruiting’ itself. Generally, unless your company is a security services provider, you’ll rely on a security agency to recruit and provide the guards.
To ensure that you’re getting the right personnel for the job, you should look into each company, by asking the following questions:
1. Is the security guard company in good standing?
Your security guard services company will be responsible for protecting your employees and other business assets. You should make sure that they’re trustworthy by checking their references, and ensure their experience lines up with your needs.
2. Did the company do background checks on its guards?
Since you’ll be providing these guards clearance in your company, you must ensure that they’re trustworthy. For a start, you should ensure that your services contractor conducted background checks on each of the people they’re sending to your business.
These checks don’t have to be limited to just criminal. In some industries, such as finance and insurance, you might need to extend this to credit and others (this is case-by-case).
3. Did the company properly train its guards?
Your contractor should have also provided training to its guards. At the minimum, you’re looking for Occupational First Aid and WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System).
In some situations, such as warehouses and other large sites, you’ll need to ensure the guards are trained in residential patrol training and vehicle patrol techniques.
Support Your Guards With an Integrated Security System
As noted earlier, security guards are not an end-all-be-all solution. They’re just one piece to a wider security system that also includes video surveillance and other measures.
Even the best security teams can’t directly monitor every part of your facility, especially during off-hours and holidays when they’re generally the only people onsite.
In these situations, an integrated security system not only makes up for limited numbers of guards onsite, but it makes your security teams much more effective.
Your security system should include the following:
1. Video Surveillance System
A video surveillance system allows you to monitor any area of your facility 24/7. You can even assign security personnel to view the footage in real-time. This allows the team to have its eyes on every area without having to post people everywhere.
2. Access Control
By restricting access to sensitive areas in your company to only vetted employees, you can reduce the scope for your security guards.
You can protect certain areas of your facility with locks that require key codes, cards, or specific biometric signatures.
If the chances of an outsider or intruder getting into a sensitive area are small because of a key card system, that’ll reduce risk. In case of a breach, an access control system also lets you audit the issue by seeing who entered and when.
3. Alert System Monitoring Services
You can integrate alarm systems to your entry points, such as windows and doors. If there’s tampering or a break-in, these alarms will go-off and alert your onsite security team to respond quickly. With a managed service, you can even call law-enforcement to reinforce your security employees.
Next Steps
Just as security guards need an integrated security system to carry out their work effectively, you need security guards for quick response and resolution.
However, this article only scratches the surface. No two businesses or organizations are the same in terms of their security risks and needs. You need to identify a lot of factors to ensure that you’re spending on security effectively.
Avoid waste in your security spending by finding and closing every gap in your facility. Our team will put every dollar you spend towards avoiding theft and breaches. Contact Logixx today.