Primary distinctions between proprietary and contract security services

When considering their security needs, businesses will be faced with whether to develop an in-house, proprietary team or to outsource their security to a contractor. There are significant differences between contract security services and proprietary security, as well as costs and benefits associated with each. With proprietary services, the company can control and monitor all their security needs, change security strategies as needed, and conduct all training in-house. Security personnel are also directly reporting to the company, creating a safer and more internally cohesive security strategy. Yet few companies can afford to develop a security staff from scratch, maintain that staff through ongoing and important skills upgrades, and monitor security internally. Contract security services have become popular among businesses of all sizes for good reason, offering substantial cost savings. Moreover, security contract services can be highly effective and reliable when they ascribe to international standards for professional development in their field. The International Association of Professional Security Consultants (IAPSC, 2018) is one of the top international professional organizations and governing bodies that ensures the integrity of contract security worldwide, along with the International Security Management Association (ISMA, 2018). When organizations in the public or private sector consider using contract security, they can go through appropriate safeguarding channels.
Contract security companies also enter into complex legal agreements with the clients they serve. Many municipalities are turning towards contract security, which is far more common than many people in the general public realize, often replacing or at least operating contiguously with public law enforcement. For example, the City of San Jose (2013) uses contract security for many of its public works facilities. Doing so helps save the city money, while still providing the requisite security strategies and protection at high stakes targets. When it comes to concerns about background checks, overall honesty and integrity, fraud or deception, both the private sector and the public are understandably concerned when outsourcing security services. Organizations like the National Association of Legal Investigators (NALI, 2018) offers legal counsel for security staff and their companies, but can also protect clients from negligent security officers. The Tyco (2018) corporate citizenship program also promotes ethics at all levels of business operations, including the security sector. Both proprietary and contract security would be subject to universal ethical laws as well as prevailing state and federal legislation. Organizations that fail to comply with state and federal laws related to banking, information technology, encryption, and other features may find that they save even more money when they rely on contract security services that have already done their due diligence in these areas.
Generally, the decision of whether to develop a proprietary security department or to use contract services is one that should be subject to great financial scrutiny as well as an overall costs-benefits analysis. The Smithsonian Institution conducted a study that highlighted additional benefits of contract security over proprietary security. The most significant findings were that contract security personnel are actually more reliable, with fewer problems with absenteeism and turnover (Cypress Private Security, 2018). Firms that can afford proprietary security may choose to do so selectively, such as by hiring experienced in-house personnel for specific roles. Organizations that will opt for fully proprietary security staff ultimately need to consider managing security as a completely separate department, with its own knowledgeable and responsible leaders who can guide the security staff towards ongoing vigilance and long-term professional development. Professional development remains the cornerstone of all security personnel, whether working for a contract service provider or a proprietary security department.



References

City of San Jose, California (2013), Private Security Agreement, http://sanjoseca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/13311
Cypress Private Security (2018). Proprietary, Contract, and Hybrid: Benchmark Study of Museum Security Staff Approaches. http://cypress-security.com/2015/10/30/proprietary-contract-and-hybrid-benchmark-study-of-museum-security-staff-approaches/
IAPSC (2018). Find security consultants. https://iapsc.org/find-a-consultant/
International Security Management Association (ISMA, 2018). https://isma.com/about-isma
National Association of Legal Investigators (NALI, 2018). About NALI. http://nalionline.org/about-nali/
Tyco (2018). CSR program. http://www.tyco.com/about/corporate-citizenship