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 THE MARK SMITH
COLUMN
SMITH PROTECTIVE SERVICES,
INC.
Building a better security officer
Part Three:
Good employee relations translate to good customer relations
In previous articles, I have talked about hiring the right security officer from the perspective of the hiring manager, because that is where it starts. From recruiting from the right labor-pool applicants who want to work, who have a favorable job history and who are not job-hoppers, to careful interviews to establish the right fit for the job, managers are trying to find what they want in a security officer.
But now that the desired officer is hired, the best long-term employment relationships focus just as much on what the security officer wants from the job. Experience with many hundreds of longtime employees has brought me to the following conclusions.
• Be honest with the job offer. In the interview, applicants have said they left another security company because they were promised a certain wage, certain hours or a close-to-home location, and none of it happened. Finding out the job assigned does not resemble the job promised leads many good employees to quit.
• Explain the duties and expectations of the job up
front. That way you can find out whether they want to do that job and thereby save the company, the customer and the officer from a poor job fit.
• Provide the correct amount of
training. Remember that training starts with your explanation of the duties and expectations of the job and ends with thorough on-the-job training to be sure that the customer’s specific post orders are well understood. If an officer is hazy about how to do the job, they will not be happy in the job.
• Pay them correctly. The manager sees a mistake on a paycheck as a clerical error. The security officer sees it as a violation of his trust in his employer, and it can affect his job performance. If an officer feels their check is not correct, investigate it quickly and fix any mistakes quickly.
• Recognize outstanding performance, and make sure all your employees know about
it. Get as much bang for your buck as you can. Awards and cash are great motivators. Promotions or transfers to more challenging positions show your employees you pay attention to performance and abilities.
• Provide steady leadership and
supervision. Listening to their problems and ideas, as well as spotting problems with their performance and correcting them, keeps that balance of trust and discipline that translates into a job well done and a satisfied customer.
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