Keeping The Peace

Posted by admin on in Recruitment tagged with

There’s seldom been a better time to join the security industry.

WORDS: ROB FLETCHER

“The press don’t always paint the security industry in the best light,” according to one professional working in the security sector. This is despite many of their activities being both essential and constructive, to the extent that there has rarely been a better time to be involved in the industry.

British involvement in the Middle East and Central Asia, plus the attempt to rebuild the infrastructure and industry of countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq are presenting excellent opportunities. While, closer to home, events such as the forthcoming London Olympics are also going to generate considerable security work.

Considering the peacekeeping role the contemporary Armed Forces are so often required to play, it is perhaps no surprise that the security industry considers Service leavers prime candidates. Indeed, while many areas of the industry are open to civilians, military training, discipline and experience all make Service leavers ideal employees, especially for many of the more interesting postings both at home and abroad.

QUALIFICATIONS

Many frontline companies will have a workforce dominated by those with military backgrounds. This not only makes adapting to civilian life easier, but also makes the companies more receptive to giving more Service leavers jobs.

No matter your experience and qualifications, though, if you want to work for a UK-based security company – whether as a CCTV operator in a small town shopping mall, or as a close protection (CP) officer for a high ranking politician on the frontline – you first have to gain a qualification recognised by the Security Industry Association (SIA).

An example is a BTEC qualification, a level 3 award in close protection. Offered by numerous universities, colleges and institutions, the most popular tend to be the intensive three-week courses run by companies such as Clearwater Special Projects in Shropshire. Generally costing between £2,000 and £3,000, these residential courses provide full board and excellent intensive training in matters as diverse as surveillance, ambush detection and histories of terrorist organisations, making them more colourful and practical than most of their academic equivalents.

OPPORTUNITIES

Combining both practical and theoretical elements, once the course is completed, you then have to sit a SIA exam; after that, the world is your oyster! You could end up acting as CP to rock stars, protecting senior military figures and politicians or even providing the right conditions and advice to attract investors to formerly war-torn areas abroad.

Those whose jobs put them ‘at the sharp end’ benefit both from the military structure of security businesses and from back up and infrastructure which, according to one operative, “rivals, and sometimes exceeds that provided by the military”. An added bonus is the system of ‘nine weeks on, three weeks off’: it ensures that you’re less likely to be affected by combat stress and that “it’s possible to spend more time with your friends and family back home”.

All in all, a career in security can provide either an excellent bridge between the military and a more settled civilian existence, or an exciting, dynamic and rewarding career in its own right. Either way, it’s liable to keep you thinking on your feet!

Andrew Connelly started off his Army career with the Royal Artillery before transferring to the Artillery Parachute Regiment. He then served 15 years with the Royal Military Police (RMP), where he attained the rank of WO2 and conducted various policing/operational roles around the world, including close protection (CP) operations in the Balkans and Middle East.

Retiring on a full pension in February 2008, Andrew’s experience and qualifications gained in the Army, including passing the RMP Close Protection Course – “No mean feat for a 36-year-old man,” he reflects – meant that pursuing a career in the security industry was a “natural path” to follow.

“Despite my experience and knowledge from completing the highly-regarded military CP course, in order to work legally in the British CP field I had to first gain the BTEC level 3 qualification,” he says. “This required 150 hours of additional coursework, before I could obtain the SIA licence.”

Rather than work in the UK, Andrew opted for freelance work in Afghanistan and Iraq. He found these particularly rewarding; they were “dynamic and focussed on economic revitalisation, which is the most important stage in a country’s growth after the counter-insurgency operations.”

He then successfully applied for a job with Aegis Defence Services. “Aegis have years of experience at all levels in hostile environments and is the leader in the security industry,” he explains. “The opportunities available in the company are very rewarding and there is plenty of scope to promote within house. Their additional civil affairs work is very rewarding and the Aegis Foundation, a registered charity, does much to help local communities to look after themselves through small, grass roots, low cost and high impact community projects.”

Andrew believes his new role is ideally suited to Service leavers. “The industry has opportunities at all levels of experience, and Service leavers’ attributes will only benefit the industry,” he says. “The training you get in the Armed Forces is second to none. The management roles I have conducted in the Army have benefitted me in my current role and there are several uncanny similarities. It’s amazing how many people who I knew in the Forces I now work alongside. The transition into civvy street can be seamless, as long as you prepare yourself. I have to thank my wife for her support also during this transition and the CTP’s Career Transition Workshop course, which is invaluable to all Service leavers – it’s free and you will benefit more than you can imagine.”

He adds: “Whether you want to work in the UK as a CCTV operator, as a Personal Protection Officer (in the UK) or in a frontline CP role abroad, the security industry has something to suit all tastes. The remuneration for work in hostile environments is more rewarding for obvious reasons, but with the big oil producing companies now signed up to contracts in Iraq, the industry is going to get even busier.”

Tiny URL for this post: http://tinyurl.com/28qry45