Securing Sites In The 21st Century: How Technology-Led Security Keeps Employees, Businesses And Communities Safe
Technology plays a central role in our everyday lives – from 'pinning’ our location to share with family and friends, to asking Alexa the weather – but when it comes to the security industry, it can feel like the sector is playing catch-up. Here, Barrie Millett, Director of Assurance at Mitie, discusses how by using the right mix of people, technology and expertise, businesses can prepare for the unexpected and help keep their communities safe.
Getting back on the beat
From our experience, we know that one of the main challenges for security teams is maximising the time they spend on the front line and cutting down on mountains of paperwork. That’s why at Mitie we decided to develop a programme that allows our security teams to quickly create and update incident reports, immediately sharing the information with colleagues and customers based across different sites. It sounds small and obvious, but the impact is huge. By rolling-out this solution, one of our national retail clients redirected around £800,000 of our commercial managers’ time from behind the desk to the shop floor and saved £1.4m by automating compliance checks. And, as a bonus, using this solution also brings peace of mind to customers who can more easily keep track of what’s happening on the ground.
But this isn’t the extent of how insightful this technology can be. Businesses willing to go one step further can also use technology that matches this data with information already logged in the system. Our own system uses specialised algorithms to identify longer-term trends and build a bigger picture that analysts can then use to recommend new security initiatives.
The cherry on top is that smart solutions can also package all this information into a case file, which can be shared with Police Forces for an even wider impact. Businesses can support safety in their local communities by sharing these details in the correct format, reducing Police Officers’ desk-work by providing easy to process casefiles which can assist with prosecuting cases. What may seem like a simple tool to cut down on paperwork, can quickly have a big impact on keeping businesses, and communities, safe.
From protecting to preventing
The traditional approach to security has focused on identifying issues as they happen, using techniques such as CCTV, burglar alarms or patrolling, and then solving them as quickly as possible. However, prevention is not only better than the cure, it’s also where technology truly shines. By combining traditional security tools, sophisticated intelligence systems and a team of expert analysts, businesses can ensure their security operations are ahead of the game.
This is an approach that we’re seeing more and more among our own customers. For example, let’s say that by monitoring social media a retail security team has found that a small music group has scheduled an impromptu gig at the local park. Once the event has been flagged, a team of security experts – including ex-military, ex-police and analysts – will research extra details, such as likely number of attendees, and if there’re any potential risks to sites nearby. By analysing the data, the team concludes that the event may increase the number of people visiting a nearby supermarket and, with just a few clicks, they have already notified the retailer and security colleagues on-site that there’s likely to be a larger number of people visiting the store around that time frame. And this is just the beginning as, until the event has finished, the security team can continue sharing real-time updates and recommendations to reduce any potential risks to the store, employees and customers.
Working together to keep communities safe
As I’ve already mentioned, by embracing technology, businesses can also play a part in keeping wider communities safe, by bridging the gap between private and public sectors. For instance, using some technology solutions, businesses can anonymously share information, such as criminal behaviour, with other companies. This is something which is particularly useful where there are regional incidents and we’ve successfully collaborated with several of our national retail clients, using this shared information to support local Police Forces. By compiling the data into one report, we’ve helped police build cases against organised crime groups, playing our part in helping keep criminals off the streets.
Ready or not?
With uncertainty now playing a bigger part in our day-to-day life, technology solutions can give businesses the edge in identifying and preparing for the next challenge ahead. And, by having a collaborative approach, firms can play their part in keeping the entire community safe. Businesses that take the time now to invest in a technology-led approach to security will be beyond simply reacting to challenges, they’ll be ready for anything.
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