Contracting Security Service: Challenges and Rewards

12/27/2022

As workplace paradigm shifts are still developing, it is integral to be mindful of four key challenges currently affecting all industries and how this changing economic landscape could impact overall success. 

• The increasing difficulty of finding and keeping quality staff.  
• Decisions related to adjusting your targeted recruiting pool to consider individuals without security, safety, or customer service experience.  
• Technology updates that can assist staff in accomplishing their job duties and provide you with reports and metrics that will help you analyze situations and inform new solutions.  
• Minimum wage increases that impact not only your budget but the larger recruiting pool.  
• Rewarding Exceptional Work  

Contractor responses to your request for proposal should adequately describe how they will help achieve your goals by outlining the appropriate level of administrative support, applicable maintenance assistance, and an overall business model and system that will effectively support your site. Unfortunately, this level of response is not typically provided. More often, we are seeing site security directors performing administrative tasks in addition to their primary surveillance duties. For large accounts, it is recommended to include a separate role for administrative functions, ensuring clear separation of tasks and maximum site security.   

Performance-based metrics-based contract. Like Pavlov’s dog, we want to classically condition our provider with rewards for good performance, and penalties for poor performance.  

With the onset of the Great Resignation, job satisfaction has never been more important. To retain quality staff, it is imperative you provide regular feedback and reward exceptional performance. Consider using a metrics-based contract that uses key scoring criteria to show staff performance and overall engagement. Thresholds of scoring are suggested and may not always result in a yes/no response. Be explicit when defining staff expectations, including rewards and penalties for not meeting workplace expectations. Examples of some key performance indicators/metrics can include:  

• Maintaining same staff  
• Minimum staffing requirements – meeting staffing obligations  
• Turnover rate/maintaining consistent staffing at the sites  
• Training certification compliance  
• Monthly drills  
• Corrective action plan  
• Invoice accuracy/timeliness  
• Response management response  
• Supervision  
• Emergency response times  
• Rounds – accurate data confirmed by tour data that is administered by the client, not the contractor.  
• Timely incident report  
• Data metrics performance around incidents  
• Language   
• Quality  
• Dress/professionalism  

Sean A. Ahrens (sahrens@aeieng.com), CPP, FSyl, CSC, is a premises liability expert and a board of directors' member with the International Association of Professional Security Consultants (IAPSC). Ahrens provides security consulting, assessment, and security design solutions that reduce security exposures for domestic and international clientele as a market group leader forAffiliated Engineers, Inc. (AEI).   

Steve Siegel (steveadvil@hotmail.com), is a member of and has served on the boards of many security industry associations, including ASIS, IAHSS, ADSAI, CAI, BOMA, IREM, ISPA, MSC and more. He is also a sought-after security industry subject matter expert.)