Magazine Who is protecting who

Training NewsNOT ‘DEATH BY POWERPOINT’:32Bill FoxTrainers areputting ‘e’into learningThe internet, mobile phones andcomputers have become part of ourlives - so why not part of securitytraining? A conflict managementtrainer and a guarding companyseparately tell Mark Rowe howe-learning has a part to play.Traditionally, at the risk ofstating the obvious, trainingfor security staff has beenclassroom-based, including towardsSecurity Industry Authority (SIA)licences. That learners take the coursein a classroom gets across the basics,Keyholding Problems?The Answer is Clear...Rifkin re-usable key bags made to the exact size you require.However, Stock Bags are:332 W (3 x 4.5”) 76 x 114mm217 W (4 x 6”) 102 x 152mm73 W (5.5 x 10.5”) 140 x 267mmSCANFIELD MANAGEMENT SERVICES LTD.Sapporo House, Parkhurst Fields, Churt, Surrey GU10 2PQ, EnglandTel: +44 (0) 1428 717850E.Mail: sue.tutill@btinternet.comwww.arifkin.comAPRIL 2013 PROFESSIONAL SECURITYand guards against corner-cutting orpeople not taking the course at all.But is that old way of a trainer at thefront and learners behind desks thebest way to teach people, especiallyfor refresher training? There’s a pushand pull here - security companies,or non-security companies wantingto put across security messages tocostly to bring everyone who oughtto have the teaching in the sameroom, at the same time as the trainer.How much more convenient to offere-learning that people can do on acomputer. Likewise, trainers arearguing for - to use a piece of trainingjargon - a ‘blended’ approach. Youmight put starters behind a desk togive them the core learning; thenperhaps for 30 minutes to eventstewards after they’ve done stadiumsearches before the match or concert,and before the crowd arrives.Blendedmanagement training companyMaybo says, e-learning, blendedlearning, are more cost-effectivethan classroom training. “Youcan access at work, and peoplecan even access from home;and without pulling them awayfrom something essential.”There are limitations, he adds; inexample, e-learning or a blendis good for reinforcing whatpeople have already learned.What e-learning cannot helpyou with is applying, practically,the theory that you’ve learnedat the computer. Bill arguesthat giving some e-learningmeans that you can make betteruse of course time in front of aclassroom trainer. Then is thetime to develop the skills, ‘andthe other, key word is developingit, it’s wrong to say e-learningdoesn’t have a role. Likewise,though, classroom training shouldbe engaging, rather than ‘deathby Powerpoint’. ‘The importantthing is that we get away fromtick the box training, just to getwhether a door superviser orit’s important, Bill urged, that staffare kept up to date, and on top of therisks of the job. Hence Maybo’s workon e-learning and indeed software toprovide learning on mobile devices;again cost-effective Bill says, forlists of things to refer to on the job,whether tips or checklists.At Corps head officeMick Clark, senior HR businesspartner at Corps Security, sees andhears himself speaking on his deskcomputer, and closes the document.Like many of us, he doesn’t like tosee and hear himself on screen. He’sshowing Professional Security acompany training video for securitylike Mick Clark that to train newstaff – and not to forget refreshertraining – you would have to packcar and more or less live on the road.fast-developing part of London northof the City, Mick describes onlinelearning as ‘a brilliant way to doperson on site, we want to developthem and train them.” Given onlineaccess (with permission!?) on site, atime on a 12-hour night shift sayshows me the password-protectedemployee portal, letting staff forexample view payslips online. What’soffered need not be strictly aboutsecurity, but whatever the employerwants to put across to newcomers,such as safe manual handling,customer service; or company history(what older readers will rememberas the Corps of Commissionaires,‘the Corps’ for short, has 150 years’worth). Corps has done MP3 ‘radioplays’ about equality and diversitysent and returned by post. The beautyof the internet is that whatever’suploaded is there for wheneversomeone chooses to view or listen.www.professionalsecurity.co.uk