TRAINING, TRAINING, TRAINING... (Did I mention training?)
Likely the most under-emphasized aspect of any security program is training. Sometimes that lapse shows up as procedural failures. Other times it’s legal issues, like a report being inadmissible or a suspect going free. But in the worst cases, it results in injuries and, God forbid, even deaths. Security is not a joke, and in today’s world we can’t afford to allow room for foreseeable issues to blossom unchecked. One of the best ways to do that is through effective and frequent training.
Lessons Learned:
I was 20 years old and stationed State-side working nuclear security as an Air Force Airman. Cold, heat, wind, rain, snow, ice… like postal carriers, it didn’t matter. We were there. We had a lieutenant (Lt.) who loved training in the form of exercises – spontaneous scenarios involving mock security breaches we would have to resolve. It never failed, if he was on your shift, guaranteed you’d have an exercise or three.
As a result, we were good – I mean, we were damn good at our jobs. Response times for the entire team, sometimes spread over what must’ve been 10+ acres, were measured in seconds and our responses were efficient, effective, and proportionate to the type of threat being faced. We all simultaneously hated and loved the man – hated him because we could never just relax but loved him because he forced us to be the best we could be.
One day, the Lt. decided to initiate an exercise where he posed as an “unauthorized person” walking through the area of responsibility (AOR). We quickly surrounded him, cutting off his escape routes. The issue was, none of us knew what to do in the sense that he was an officer. Putting hands on an officer could result in various forms of disciplinary action in the military. One of my team members, though, had had enough. This was the fourth or fifth exercise before the shift was half done, and he was over it. So, while the rest of us corralled the Lt., he rushed through our human cordon, hitting the Lt. and knocking him off his feet in a spectacular tackle. We handcuffed him, put him in the back of the vehicle he and another supervisor had driven to the AOR, and put a paper bag over his head that read “A-FLIGHT CHEW TOY” in sharpie. The other supervisor then drove the Lt. back to the squadron. We were instant “legends”.
About an hour went by when we were notified the Lt. had been injured in the exercise and taken to the base hospital for imaging of his shoulder. We were also advised not to worry, that he knew he’d worked us all up, and he accepted this as the inevitable consequence, so no one would receive any disciplinary action.
We collectively relaxed. No more exercises today…
We didn’t realize our stupidity until half of our team was “dead”. The Lt. had snuck back into the area, using his fake injury as cover, and snuck up on two of our patrols “killing” them unbeknownst to the rest of us. Another patrol spotted him and called it in over the radio, which initiated a new exercise, and we finally caught him. But the lesson was clear – never let your guard down.
There’s another lesson, though. A lesson more germane to our topic. We weren’t good at our jobs by accident. This wasn’t merely a group of highly gifted security specialists cosmically predestined for highly skilled operations concerning the most high-risk resource known to mankind. No. We were incredibly well trained by an outstanding Lt. I can honestly say I learned more from that man than most of the courses I’ve attended throughout my career, but the lesson about the importance of training effectively and often seared its place on my brain permanently.
Not Optional:
As security professionals, training is non-negotiable. It simply must happen. As administration, however, this poses a challenge; often two-fold – scheduling and financial. Training, especially quality training, isn’t cheap. And getting everyone through a given course can cause scheduling issues requiring the wisdom of Solomon to plan. However, that doesn’t remove or reduce the importance. That doesn’t remove or reduce the potential fallout from lack of training, or poor-quality training. In fact, lack of frequency and/or quality directly increases the likelihood of that fallout.
We have to keep in mind that “training standards” are industry minimums, not the goal one should strive to achieve. That might mean very little, realistically speaking, in an under-funded organization. I get it. Capital is king here. That said, given the stakes – i.e. suspects walking free and people being hurt or killed – it’s my opinion that training simply must happen regardless of fiscal constraints. That could mean negotiating with a local jujitsu school for security specific training at a discounted rate, shared tuition costs or tuition reimbursement for courses sought by staff on their own time, or even internal exercises conducted during shifts when and where possible. Creativity here is critical for so many reasons, not the least of which is liability.
Not all training looks the same, though. There are two types – formal and informal. Formal training looks like paid courses and in-house trainings outside of a given shift. These are your CPR/AED, First Aid/Stop the Bleed, Report Writing, and Defensive Tactics courses, for example. Informal training can take the form of exercises, like I mentioned earlier, “what-if sessions” (much like mini tabletop exercises), reading relevant articles or books, etc. Both forms can be corporate or individual, but whereas one is mandated, the other isn’t, and I would argue that the one that isn’t mandated, the informal, is the one that separates the good from the great, just like the Lt’s exercises did for us.
How Serious?
The question, however, comes down to how seriously your organization takes security. Arguably, none of this matters for your organization if security is little more than window dressing. I’ve worked for organizations like this, and I can tell you nothing is more frustrating for a security officer than being cosmetic in function.
Here’s the way I see it, and feel free to disagree:
If your organization has resources worth protecting via security measures, then security is worth taking seriously.
Period, end of statement, mic-drop, done. From there, the only limiting factors are finances and imagination.
So ask yourself as an administrator:
· How seriously do I take security?
· What is actually expected of my security program, specifically relating to my personnel?
· Is my level of seriousness reflected in the resources I allocate to security operations?
· Am I only offering “industry standard” training?
As a security professional, ask yourself:
· Am I adequately trained for the job I’m asked to perform?
If not:
· What gaps or weaknesses exist in my current training?
· Is there room to negotiate more training from my employer?
· What can I do to train myself?
My experience with training programs as a civilian is one of the reasons I started Dùn Consulting (Dùn Sain LLC). I know intimately how frustratingly impossible it is to do the job without adequate resources - and training is a resource. I also know that training, truly significant training, can’t be cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all. Yes, there are standards that everyone must meet, but beyond those training must fit your specific organizational requirements. If you would like more information on how Dùn Consulting can help your organization with that, visit dunconsulting.com or click the button below to schedule a free 15-minute initial consultation.
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