Tale of the two security industries
On the 9th of October 09, I spoke at the SIA Small Business Forum in London. At the start of my presentation, I projected the image of a door supervisor, Mohamed Kaleem Rafek. Mohammed was brutally murdered in Manchester in March of this year. I asked my audience if anyone had heard about this high profile murder investigation, to my utmost shock and dismay not a single soul in the audience had heard about Mohammed’s untimely demise.
Bearing in mind that my audience was made up of security managers, senior executives of the SIA and many of the trade organisations that purport to represent our security industry. It dawned upon me that ‘not all security professionals are created equal’. The underclass is made up of the hardworking men and women like myself who have to work nightshifts in the rain and sub zero temperature whilst the ‘elite’ members, so far removed from the everyday frontline issues, milk us like dairy cows whilst still demonstrating the utmost contempt for our wellbeing.
In the November 09 issue of the Professional Security Magazine, many commentators were incensed at my willingness to hold the SIA accountable. A number of subscribers even made strides to emphasise how improved the security industry has become since the introduction of the 2001 Security Industry Act. May I first express my sincere gratitude to all those who read my articles and took the time to comment. Whether those views were supportive of my position or not, I do respect your point of view as a fellow professional
To those who disagree I offer the following. There is no doubt that the regulation process has indeed made an enormous difference to the security industry. The public perception of the security industry has been changed for the better. This in itself must be seen as a positive step. But I am still searching for answers to the questions posed in my articles: Who has benefited from the regulation? What is the meaning of the word ‘professionalism’ or phrase ‘Best practices?’ What will a professionalised security industry look like in ten or twenty year’s time?
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Romeo Richards -
About the Author:
Romeo Richards is the CEO of Retail Profit Protection Experts a division of Richards International Group (RIG). Romeo is a co-author of the bestselling retail loss prevention book: 84%: The most effective strategy for retail profit protection. For more articles, whitepaper, best practices guide and ebooks written by Mr. Romeo Richards please visit: http//www.theprofitexperts.co.uk.
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