Quality Assurance
Quality Assurance for Residential Estates
A key selling point for Residential Estates is the promise of a greater degree of security from crime. Residents increasingly demand a no-crime environment in return for their investment. Residential Estates in turn market a “safe” lifestyle as a differentiator, and considerable budgets are accordingly spent on security. Yet crime continues to plague such Estates. Criminals have become highly professional and are capable of bypassing standard security solutions. Security solutions which are poorly designed, maintained, or operated are even more vulnerable.
In the wake of such crime incidents, Residential Estates are increasingly being called upon to ensure diligence around their security service systems. Estates must demonstrate that they have installed appropriate levels of security equipment and services, that these are being used correctly and are maintained as required, and that security personnel is being managed well towards maintaining security integrity. Yet today, security service systems are increasingly complex and sophisticated and require specialist knowledge to operate and maintain correctly. Security management has become a specialist field requiring specialist skills. In reality, only very large Residential Estates can afford a dedicated or specialist security manager, so the role is often delegated to Estate managers. Few such managers have the requisite specialist skills to perform the security management function effectively, and reliance is often made on the advice of security providers, who in turn are likely to place their own interests first.
Advanced Conflict Training (ACT) has developed an offering to meet the need for specialist independent skills to guide the implementation of integrated security service systems. The Quality Assurance Management offering focuses on meeting the need for specialist skills in overseeing the installation, implementation, operation, and maintenance of integrated security service systems.
Quality Assurance Management complements day-to-day security providers with specialist services to customize your security solution. The offering is designed to support the onsite security manager with critical quality management functions. ACT is a leader in the provision of military, paramilitary, personal, and business safety services and has been providing solutions in challenging environments both locally and internationally for over 9 years, and with our Quality Assurance Management offering we seek to apply our specialized skills to ensure ongoing quality in your security service system. ACT will provide independent specialist skills to ensure that:
Your integrated security system cost-effectively mitigates the correctly identified likely or high-impact evolving security threats faced by your Estate
The policies and procedures used by your day-to-day security providers are tailored to your unique circumstances in line with evolving threats
The various components or layers of your security system are well-integrated, operate effectively, and are well maintained over time, through ongoing independent testing and evaluation
Your day-to-day security provider maintains excellent service by meeting our stringent independent accreditation requirements on an ongoing basis
You receive cutting-edge independent advice on the most appropriate investments in new security technology as it becomes available
The guards assigned to your Estate by your day-to-day security provider operate at optimal levels through ongoing training, in particular on the policies and procedures customized for your Estate
You can hold your various security service providers to account through our independent reports on all aspects of the effectiveness of your security system.
1.
THREAT MITIGATION:
Managing threats is a balance between what is possible and what is probable and what it costs to mitigate the likely threats. Residential Estates spend a great deal of money protecting their residents against general crime, without necessarily customizing for likely or high-impact threats. ACT ensures that threats are correctly identified; in particular the likely and high-impact threats, and also ensures that the most cost-effective security systems and processes necessary to combat these are identified. Such threat identification covers the crime potential and trends both inside the Estate as well as in the immediate surroundings.
Threat identification is not a once-off activity as crime trends shift and as the surrounding and internal environment change. ACT provides an ongoing assessment by meeting regularly with security and other staff within the Estate, the local Neighbourhood Watch, and SAPS regularly to gather information in order to identify weaknesses and potential threats, and to provide you with appropriate advice on mitigating these.
2.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES:
Policies and procedures are the strategic links between the vision for safety and the realization of that vision through the day-to-day operations of security guards within the security system. The reality is that most security providers simply use “one-size-fits-all” “Standard Operating Procedures” (SOPs) that come with their security guards. Policies and procedures are seldom customised to reflect the unique threats and weaknesses of the particular Residential Estate and are frequently flawed if implemented blindly.
Policies and procedures need to be clear, integrated, effective, and relevant for the Residential Estate being served. ACT will review, test, train on, and revise policies and procedures regularly in order to provide ongoing improvements. Good policies and procedures allow managers to control events in advance and prevent costly life-threatening mistakes.
3.
EVALUATIONS:
Residential Estates have traditionally sought to prevent security breaches by installing and maintaining layers of defensive security measures. These may include walls or fences (barrier layers), cameras (warning layer), and security guards (reaction layer). These layers are however often “installed” at different times, by different vendors and operate in isolation from one another without proper integration. Effective security requires that each layer or system works both as required and contracted and that there is an effective integration amongst them.
ACT performs ongoing evaluations to assess the readiness of your integrated security solution (which may include security hardware, guarding, access control procedures, and armed response) at Estates to ensure both the systems and personnel are ready to combat threats and are in compliance with their respective security maintenance agreements. Our evaluations combine inspection and reviews with vulnerability testing, where we take on the role of potential criminals.
All results of testing are shared with the client and are used to identify systems and capability weaknesses towards initiating the appropriate corrective actions and training.
ACT also performs customer experience testing (“secret shopper” tests) to ensure that the security personnel is polite and professional and that they respond appropriately to visitors, residents, and potential new clients.
4.
APPROVED SUPPLIER PROGRAM:
“We can’t control the supplier so why do we need to define the requirements? They have been in business a long time and they know what they are doing”. But do they?
Security has become one of the fastest-growing industries in South Africa. New security companies selling cameras, fences, or security guards open up every month, all claiming to be better and cheaper. Unfortunately, this drives a price war which forces security companies to cut corners in order to remain competitive. This trend impacts negatively on service levels.
Our experience in training security personnel around the world as well as our development of strong, relevant policies and procedures positions us perfectly to evaluate security suppliers independently for our clients. Furthermore, our regular “field” work gives us ongoing insights as to how criminals work and we use this experience to test service levels among security service providers.
ACT uses cutting-edge methodologies to test and accredit service providers who exceed the basic standards set by the industry and work with them to improve their service to the client. While ACT accreditation makes use of exceptionally high standards and a consistent scoring methodology, our accreditation goes beyond simply ensuring compliance with requirements for accreditation. The accreditation is relationship-focused and ensures ongoing excellence for the client.
5.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT:
Security hardware and technology are undergoing constant evolution. ACT conducts ongoing evaluations of new technology available in the market. Our aim is not simply to determine strengths and weaknesses but to determine the requirements for appropriate implementation and support, as well as the appropriateness of the technology for different environments. For example, under what conditions is an infra-red camera to be preferred? What height of an electric fence is effective on a wall? Which fencing is most appropriate for your situation? The knowledge gained through ongoing research and development is then applied appropriately in the recommendations we provide to you to maintain excellence in your security service system. A great deal of focus is also placed on improving training methodologies and techniques.
6.
TRAINING:
Security personnel is crucial to keeping residents and staff safe. The industry’s current Security Officer accredited training is mostly theory and once the guard has passed the test, the theory is frequently forgotten and does very little in the way of preparing the guard to proactively and reactively protect your Estate. Lack of motivation is also a problem, along with frequent changes in security personnel.
Good training is expensive and may take guards away from their duties. This is why it is usually one of the lowest priorities for a guarding company. Our training is delivered on the job and is specific to the role of the guard, and to the customized policies and procedures we have devised for your Estate. Guards are presented with actual situations that they might face through role-playing and are trained to problem-solve the situation as a team.
Training can have a tremendous impact on security personnel’s perception of themselves, on their internal motivation, and ultimately on their work performance. Regular training will address identified weaknesses and create consistency within the security staff of the Estate. Regular training of guards instills a sense of pride in the role of Security Officer. Regular training also ensures that new or substituted guards are also trained. Security effectiveness and consistency are key elements to a safer Residential Estate lifestyle.
7.
REPORTING:
We work with the security service providers to improve their services on an ongoing basis. All deficiencies or shortcomings and recommendations for improvements including training will be tabled in regular formal written reports to the Residential Estate representative, who is then able to hold security providers to account if they continue to fail to comply. Reports, suggestions, and recommendations will also be discussed in regular meetings.