@RTC Aldershot - Security management training

Security management training

Mark McMillan, Security Industry Training Organisation (SITO) Senior Training Advisor at the RTC, explains what the job involves and how the course can help

Introduction
The task was to design a course that gave Service leavers the foundation knowledge required to enter the security industry at management level. Several months of research and consultation within the industry showed that there was no foundation programme available, and that the majority of security managers had no formal qualifications that enabled them to carry out their security management roles.

The management gap
The industry employs over 350,000 people, of whom 43,000 are in supervisory and management jobs. These individuals are expected to control the day-to-day function of the security staff under them as well as run contracts that can be worth millions of pounds; and often to do this with little or no training and guidance.

For some years there has been a lack of fundamental management skills within the industry. Many managers entering the sector from outside had impressive management skills and qualifications but no understanding of security. The other source of managers - those promoted from within - often caused even more problems. They had been working within the industry for many years, promoted because no one else was available, and then passed from company to company as and when they were removed from their previous management position due to incompetence.

A number of organisations favoured recruiting from the Armed Forces or police. This reduced the skills gap, but did little to furnish effective security managers with the full range of knowledge required. SITO has reported 'a dearth of competent supervisors and managers within the sector'; so the RTC programme has been designed, with full industry backing, to fill this 'dearth' with a solid influx of fully qualified Service leavers.

The future of security management
Recent RTC courses have been populated by individuals with a determination to succeed and a hunger for knowledge. Industry representatives who have visited these previous courses are unanimous in agreeing that combining quality Service leavers with the level of knowledge and skills gained on the course can only benefit both the successful students and the industry.

The Security Management course
The course brings together the management and security skills of Service leavers and the demands of the security industry. It consists of a series of modules leading to City & Guilds and SITO awards, as well as National Vocational Qualifications that also provide credits towards a foundation degree in Security Management. Because it is tailored specifically for Service people interested in a second career in security management, the course covers the range of topics required by both SITO and the industry. It is very intense but previous students have expressed the satisfaction they have gained from achieving the qualifications, and the opportunities that are now available to them.

Employment opportunities
A number of students who attended the course are now in security management positions with various companies within the industry. The success rate of students becoming security managers are extremely high and, from the feedback SITO has already received from the industry, it is not surprising. The qualities already possessed by the average Service leaver, enhanced by the qualifications and skills provided by the course, add up to a package that is always likely to appeal to employers and lead to success.

Security requirements continue to grow and, with the introduction of the Security Industry Authority, there is massive opportunity for those willing to learn and transfer the skills they already possess to an exciting and forward-looking industry.

A case in point
David McRae-Adams is a former Sergeant who served with the RAF Police for 23 years and then successfully completed the Security Management course at the RTC, Aldershot in April 2002.

His reasons for choosing the course were to pursue a career within the security industry by transferring his skills and experience from his military role into a new civilian career. Obviously, as a Sergeant, he had considerable supervisory and management expertise that was allied to a great deal of practical security work through his job.

Passing the course with SITO, City & Guilds Professional and Advanced Security Officer and SITO Security Supervision and Management - valuable and recognised qualifications - helped him to secure a position as site security manager. It also gave him an insight into civilian security, enabled him to apply his existing knowledge and the new skills he had been taught. His military security background was an advantage but was not essential.

McRae-Adams is now a site security manager with Reliance Security Services Ltd, contracted to a multinational consumer products company. His next goal is promotion within the company following what he describes as 'a thoroughly enjoyable course'.
For further information and course administration, call Aldershot Military 3520 (01252 348520)