Making money from security

It took several bomb attacks, indiscriminate killings of hundreds of individuals by unidentified gunmen and open confrontation with security officials to achieve this shift.Before now many agencies of government, corporate organisations and private businesses paid little attention to security.  One could walk in and out of a place without being noticed; park vehicles anywhere, enter […]

It took several bomb attacks, indiscriminate killings of hundreds of individuals by unidentified gunmen and open confrontation with security officials to achieve this shift.
Before now many agencies of government, corporate organisations and private businesses paid little attention to security.  One could walk in and out of a place without being noticed; park vehicles anywhere, enter with any object even if it was harmful and practically get away with it.
 The security agencies especially the police appeared to be sleeping as kidnapping, armed robbery, car snatching and other anti-social vices were the order of the day. But all that has changed overnight, thanks to the reality of terrorism in the country.
Now before entering any place, the security guard flashes a metal detector, runs it all over you, finds out if you are being expected by the person you are visiting and asks you to register your name. If you are in a car, you are made to come down to open your boot after a bomb detector has surveyed the vehicle.
Many Nigerians who were not used to the intensity of this scrutiny can complain, but as they are grumbling, others are cashing in on this new awareness. Security provision is now a good money making venture.
 How so? Many security companies are springing up, ex-military and police officials who would have retired to their pension are now consultants to government, graduates are now picking up employment as security guards and so on. Even some universities have begun to offer diploma courses in security management and are planning to run degrees programmes in response to the need to breed professionals in this area.  
So the question now is how can one become a part of this booming industry? Daily Trust sought the answer from Major Maxwell Alexander (Rtd) who runs a private security outfit in Nigeria. Before he started his outfit he had served in the Army Special Forces and his last posting was the Guards Brigade unit where he saw to the protection of three former heads of states.
 Alexander is also an expert in special operations with expertise in counter terrorism and is a member of the American Society for Industrial Security International (ASIS) which is the benchmark for security worldwide. He said security is a very wide and interesting field and because of recent developments in Nigeria, many people are beginning to become conscious of what security is about.
 “Private security in Nigeria is being coordinated by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, it is the regulating body. Actually those venturing into security these days are expected to have had experience with security in any of the security agencies or paramilitary but there are other additional aspects that even if you have served in the military or police you need to still be vast in them.
“Alternatively if one has the financial capital and the interest to go into security then one of the directors of the company must have had experience in security before. But a complete civilian cannot venture into it just like that because that would give room for lack of performance. But even if he is synergising with an ex-security official as a director he must also ensure that he has the basic knowledge for the sake of professionalism and there are courses for professional development that are run by foreign universities,” he said.
There are also International security organisations in Nigeria that offer certain courses and some universities offer diploma in security management.
 Explaining what professional security involves he said, “ Before we recruit any security officer we do background check and investigation. After employing him some of his duties include writing occurrence reports, carrying out surveillance to ensure where you are protecting is well protected.”
The security official also reports on the general lax of security in the area, the tendency for thieving and fraud of the staff of that place. There is a lot of training given to the security officials before even being drawn into the operation like asset protection, basic fire fighting, life saving, counter terrorism awareness, aspects of surveillance and use of security equipment like CCTV, digital recorders and other surveillance devices not to talk of bomb detectors and the rest.
They should also be trained to be able to withstand physical attack, bomb blast and all that.
“After acquiring some professional training and doing the necessary paper work to set up the business, it is also important to carve a niche as there are many services a security company can offer. Spend some time researching the industry to determine what jobs your new security company can start with. Businesses security, events security, patrol services, vehicle security, body guard services, surveillance video-monitoring centre and family security are services security companies offer depending on their capital and manpower.
 Alexander said security is a highly profitable venture as people are seeking professionals for security rather than local watchmen.
  According to him, even graduates are picking it up as a career and there is room for promotion within the industry. “The United States of America is one of the countries that pay security officials very well and that is because of the importance attached to it. But with the issue of insurgency, terrorism and militancy some people are beginning to be more conscious about security.
“ We are ensuring that people who pick it up as a career are well remunerated,” he said.
 Giving a breakdown of the career progression for a security officer, Alexander said he or she begins as a patrol man- senior patrol man- section leader- inspector- senior inspector- supervisor- senior supervisor- contract manager- operations manager- area manager.
 For anyone interested in applying for a job as a security officer, it is essential to become aware of all responsibilities that can be found in a security office job description at whichever place you intend to apply. One requirement that is very important in this field of work is the ability to communicate with others, regardless of their disposition. This means that sometimes you may have to keep your cool when dealing with upset or irate individuals. This is a position that requires you to be very efficient in each of the skills and responsibilities requested of you in order to maintain secure and safe surroundings at all times.
One benefit of becoming proficient and excelling in the security job description duties of this career choice is it creates a strong base for furthering your education and training to enter into a career in law enforcement.