27-11draft

Comment
Sara Taylor, who joined
guarding contractor
Incentive Lynx this year
as deputy MD
Photo courtesy of Incentive
Lynx Security
38
HAPPY
‘We are going to
prevent children
purchasing knives
online, and we are
going to stop people
carrying acid in public if
they don’t have a good
reason.’
Home Secretary Amber
Rudd.
apprentice opportunity:
ENGAGING
WITH WOMEN
Historically, security has been
a male dominated sector.
However, due to the changing
role of security officers over recent
years, there has been a drive to get
more women to pursue a career in
security. But how does a company
go about engaging women to join an
industry that has stereotypically been
a ‘male profession’? asks Sara Taylor.
Altered image
The first step is altering the image
of a stereotypical security officer.
In the 30 years since I joined the
industry, the role of a security officer
has evolved dramatically and now
encompasses everything from front
of house to concierge and reception
duties. As a result, security officers
are more frequently required to
engage with customers on a day to
day basis. Therefore, it is important
to find the right balance between
providing a no-nonsense image that
prevents any threats, while ensuring
those entering the building are met
with a welcome. This is why it is
better to have an range of skilled
people with different backgrounds
to be able to fulfil the variety of
situations they could come across.
Different paths
It is also important to highlight that
a career in security doesn’t always
mean becoming a security officer.
Employees behind the scenes in sales,
management and operations play a
vital role in ensuring the industry
continues to operate successfully by
making sure clients’ needs are met
through assessing and delivering
the correct solutions across a wide
variety of sites. Therefore, it is just as
important to have a strong and diverse
team working behind the lines, as it
is in the more customer facing roles.
However, the key challenge is raising
awareness of the career options
available to those looking to join,
or progress. One way of educating
girls and women about the career
paths in security is through increased
NOVEMBER 2017 PROFESSIONAL SECURITY
training opportunities. Recently
the Government introduced an
Apprenticeship Levy which required
all employers operating in the UK,
with a pay bill over £3m per year,
to pay 0.5pc. The idea; companies
will be able to access this money to
fund apprenticeship schemes. This
provides companies with a fantastic
opportunity to attract girls out of
school, take them on as apprentices
and educate them about the variety
of potential careers in the industry, as
well as offering a real alternative to
university and further education.
Further develop
In addition, actively encouraging
existing staff to complete courses can
help employees to further develop
their careers. At Incentive Lynx,
we provide our employees with
multiple training opportunities to
help them progress; this includes
leadership and management courses
and IOSH managing safely courses.
For example, one employee, Tamara
Bajdik started her career at Incentive
as a security officer in 2016. Through
completing several training courses,
she’s qualified as a supervisor. When
I asked her why she pursued a career
in security she said:
‘I love my job. Each day is different
– you never know what challenges
you will be facing when you turn up
to work in the morning. Incentive
Lynx has provided me with the
opportunity to progress my career.
However, I do believe the industry
can do more to attract women by
offering them flexible working and
more training opportunities. In my
opinion a mentoring scheme should
be set up for women who work in the
industry, where those who hold higher
positions work with employees who
are just starting out in their career, to
help them to develop and advance.’
In conclusion
Changes in the security industry has
meant that companies must look to
hire a more gender diverse team.
At Incentive Lynx, we are actively
working to seek out female security
officers to fulfil roles to constantly
meet clients’ changing demands. p
WE’RE AT
FOREFRONT
We seem to
live in ‘crisis’
times, writes
Michelle
Bailey, who
makes the case
for prevention
of crime as
preferable to
detection.
One such crisis that has been heavily
in the news recently is the reducing
number of detectives our police
forces have at their disposal, whilst
case loads are increasing. This
is a growing challenge for chief
constables and Police and Crime
Commissioners (PCCs). In the face
of such challenges a new approach is
needed and communities will need to
understand how they can support their
local police force.
Shared challenges
Equally, security companies need to
be at the forefront of the solution.
There may not be a perfect answer
but there is certainly a better answer
to these shared challenges. We should
firstly commend our UK police.
Officers are working harder than
ever and their goodwill contributes
to the positive reputation that we
enjoy. There has never been a greater
need for the security industry to step
forward, help raise public awareness
and offer the reassurances that can
be gained through their services.
Working as the supplier to local
authorities, as is our privilege in
Barnsley, will also become a key
factor in serving the protection needs
of our towns and cities. Partnerships
must be the way forward if we are to
retain the protection the public rightly
expect. Let’s make it our challenge to
play a full part in the solutions. We
have trained our staff for such duties
and they are ready to be used. It’s the
most effective solution to ease the
pressures on our police and the means
to prevent crime at source. p
l About Michelle Bailey: one of the
Women in Security (WiS) award
winners featured last issue, she’s MD
of Active Response Security Services.
www.professionalsecurity.co.uk
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