Security professionals should know what that kind of cooperation entails and what the possible limitations are, and really what the professional expectations are for investigative cooperation, so as to not impede or otherwise hinder active investigations. While private security as a profession has boomed in many ways, there are some key ways in which the industry still lags behind. One of these ways is accurate data collection, data presentation, and collection of other relevant statistics. This must be a modern issue that security professionals take seriously. Statistics may be dry to some, but that trait does not diminish the value or the necessity of accurate and up-to-date statistics about the industry, including demographics, tools used, success rates, rates of collaboration with other agencies, and more. With modern tools such as data visualization, it is relatively more simple to represent large quantities of data in visually appealing ways in a condensed manner. Gunter and Kidwell speak directly to the disturbing lack of stats, and indirectly express their intention for their research:

In the past four decades, a series of reports and studies have examined private security agencies and personnel. These studies helped redefine the roles of private security and documented the growth and trends in the industry as a whole. However, these studies have become outdated, and there continues to be a significant need for more detailed and timely information, especially when considering the increasing range of roles played by private security. (Gunter & Kidwell, 2004, 9)

In other words, without accurate data and thoroughly compiled data, security professionals have little idea of how effective their work is. This is hard to explain and argue to a potential client. While stats are not the most important...