6 Helpful Tips To Improve Your Security Guard Service

In this last part of our 4 part series which talks about how to improve your security guard service, we will be reviewing some of the previous concepts and introducing a few more.  If you missed our 3 previous articles you can find links to them at the bottom of this page.

Now that we have covered the fundamentals of security guard service in our previous articles, I can offer the 6 most helpful tips to improve your security guard service.  In my experience, these tips will help resolve 80-90% of all security guard issues that security guard buyers face.

1. Review the Supervision System for Security Guards

Having a contractor with adequate systems for remotely supervising your guards is one of the most important components of ensuring good service. If your security contractor is not providing adequate supervision, your guards will be inadequately trained and unmotivated. Additionally, when your guards aren’t supervised they often feel that the job they are performing isn’t important.  Subsequently, they often adopt unprofessional behavior such as being habitually tardy or even stealing.  Before signing a contract with a security guard company, find out how it will carry out guard supervision.  As we previously discussed, supervision may be provided in several forms including:

2. Assess the Training Provided to the Guards

If you are not satisfied with the service that your guards are providing, chances are their training has been inadequate. To improve your security guard service, assess the orientation that your contractor is providing. This orientation, also referred to as Site Specific Training, should be assessed for things such as:

  • Whether the training occurred at your property?
  • Who was responsible for providing the training?
  • How long was the training for each guard?
  • Are their post orders that can be used for training?

The best way to assess the training is to sit through an orientation to see how the guards are being prepared to provide service at your property.

3. Verify Your Guards Qualifications

In most states there is a specified amount of training that guards must go through before they are licensed. Find out what the requirements are in your state and verify that the guards that your security guard company is placing are in compliance.  Additionally, to ensure a good fit you should reserve the right to conduct an interview of any guard PRIOR to them being assigned to your property. This initial interview is a good way of finding out what you can expect from the security guards.  After the interview if you don’t find the guard to be a good match, you can ask for a different guard.

 4. Perform Inspections To Improve Your Security

When possible, stopping by your property unannounced after normal business hours is a great way of finding out how your security operates when you aren’t there.  While performing your inspection question your guards about their duties to ensure they understand their jobs.  As an alternative, consider having your guards audited via a third party security consultant.  If you go the route of an independent 3rd party inspection, ensure that the consultant that you choose isn’t another security guard company or your results may be biased.

5. Meet Regularly With Your Contractor

The easiest way to improve your security is to meet regularly with your security guard contractor. These meetings can be formal or informal and even be conducted by phone.  The purpose of these meeting should be to provide the contractor with feedback about guard performance.  By providing them with regular feedback, you will find incremental opportunities to improve your security service. Both parties can discuss topics like tenant feedback, feedback from any remote supervisory systems, guard attrition, and the result of security audits during these meetings. These regular meetings will help your contractor understand what is expected and find ways to achieve acceptable levels of service.

6. To Improve Your Security Services Choose A Quality Contractor

Of the 6 tips in this article #6 is the most common sense.  But surprisingly it is also the one that many times is not followed.  As with anything in life what you put in is what you get out.  Although many security guard companies may seem the same, the quality assurance programs that help ensure that you and your customers are happy with your service aren’t free.  So assess the ability and track record of your vendors and choose the one that will be able to truly meet your needs.  “In this world, you get what you pay for.”― Kurt Vonnegut


Series: Improving Your Security Guard Service

Article 1: Understanding The Billing Rate For Your Contract Security Force

Article 2: Understanding Contract Security Guard Training

Article 3: 3 Tools for Managing Your Contract Security Force


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By Courtney Sparkman

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