Establishing Your Career Path in Close Protection

In this short article, I want to address the main questions that many people looking for a career in close protection have in the early stages of their careers. 

To clarify, the commercial close protection industry is challenging for most people to enter, mainly because it is a very small and ‘cliquey’ world where doors usually open for people if they know the right people. So, to start with, networking is a valuable key to opening the doors.

My personal experience and opinions come from working over 30 years within the security, close protection and risk management industry in various African countries and Europe and Asia in operational and management positions. 

These days, most people’s career paths usually start with some close protection training, whether mandatory licensing courses or privately-run companies. Everyone needs to be trained, but the issue I see these days is that what many courses are teaching has little or no relevance in reality. An overemphasis is put on self-defense or firearms training, and little time is spent honing the skill sets that people will be relying on daily. 

It’s a sad fact that one major problem with close protection training companies is that many instructors do not have the relevant close protection experience to be able to deliver realistic course content. Most are just re-teaching what they were taught on a similar course without understanding how those tactics could be applied in reality. Many theories that sound good in a classroom do not work when working with clients and can quickly lead to issues and contract terminations. 

I know of one European close protection school whose students were told that they must take control of their client’s passport, the client must do as they are instructed and not be ordering their security team around, etc. This might be good for the instructor’s ego when talking in front of his students, but he clearly has no real experience of working with clients. 

First off, why would you want the client’s passport? Sure, have a copy for the client profile, but to have their actual passport is not required. If there is an issue and you get separated from the client for whatever reason, how can they travel without their passport?

You can guide and educate your clients, but they are paying the bills. You are part of their staff, like the nannies, cooks, and gardeners. And if you start to order them around rudely, you will quickly be looking for a new job. For students who attended this school, their careers have started on the wrong footing, and they will now require a lesson in professional etiquette. If left to work with a client unsupervised, they could start major issues by only trying to do what they were told on their training course by someone who claims to be an expert but, in all likelihood, has no actual hands-on experience. 

Another question I hear asked often is whether it’s necessary to have military or police experience to get work in protection. In my opinion, the benefits of military or police experience are that those who have served understand discipline can work within a team and follow orders. Some of the skills are transferable to the close protection industry, but many have no relevance. One thing I’ve observed with former military or police is that they can find it challenging to adapt to working with clients in more informal commercial work environments because they are accustomed to working in a more rigid structure.

The big question for most people is that they are told they need to have experience to get employed, but how can they get experience if no one will give them their first job? You have to be persistent, and if you’re serious about your chosen career, you must gain experience in other relevant areas of the security industry. Like every industry, you need to start at the bottom and work your way up. Unless you are very fortunate, you will not be walking into a full-time CP job straight after completing your basic training. And if you do, I would question whether you have the experience to perform your duties without supervision.

Many people do not understand that most close protection jobs are short term, so you have to think about how you will be earning a living and supporting yourself between contracts once you’re on the circuit. 

I will now list a few areas within the security industry where you can learn skills relevant to close protection. Here you can widen your knowledge and gain foundation skills that cannot be learned on courses or via webinars. 

Door Supervisors (Bar/Club Bouncer)For some reason, many people in the security industry look down on the world of club and bar security, but it is a place to learn vital skill sets. As long as you are working with professionals, you will learn good people skills, be aware of your environment, read people’s body language, and deescalate confrontations and potentially deal with violence and its medical and legal aftermaths. Use of force is always a last resort, but even if you eventually end up working with high-end clients in luxury environments, you need to know how to deal with physical threats and confrontations. 

An associate recently told me that he had regular calls from people he knew who often required door supervisors at short notice and were paying good money. Yet, many of those who had approached him for CP work would turn down offers of a night or two of well-paid door work. My associate said that many of these ‘CPOs in waiting’ would tell him they would not risk getting glassed or bottled, but if he offered them a “high-risk” CP job, he’s sure they’d eagerly take the job even if the pay were well below par. 

But, in reality, it’s unlikely he’d trust any of them with a decent CP job. If they’re too afraid to work in a club, how could they be trusted in a hostile environment or with a client under an active threat? Until we’ve gained real-world experience of dealing with potentially violent incidents, we are untested and inexperienced in this area. 

Event SecurityIf you are working in the close protection industry, it helps if you understand how things work in the environments you will be attending with your clients. Many CP jobs are specifically for escorting clients when they attend events or business meetings. So, understanding how the general security for such things work is essential to ensure your procedures and protocols do not clash with those of the venue security

Suppose you spend some time working with a professional event security company. You could be learning the basics of access and crowd control, customer service, fire safety awareness, situational awareness, conflict resolution and how to deal with emergencies and all types of crime. These skill sets are valuable in the close protection world, especially later in your career, as you move on to managing security teams or the client’s general security. 

Hotel SecurityIn the close protection business, you will spend an awful lot of time operating in and out of hotels. You must understand the basics of hotel security procedures and how their staff operate. This is particularly useful when carrying out an advance if you’re tasked to select and secure hotels and venues for future client visits. 

Working in quality hotels, you will learn people skills and customer services while dealing with a variety of customers with a wide array of problems. High-end hotels are also excellent places for finding business as the guests are also potential clients who may need close protection services. There is also the opportunity to see how visiting close protection teams work with their clients and exchange business cards, being sure to let them know that if they need any help in the future, you’re available. 

Manned Guarding/Cash in TransitThe manned guarding industry is always looking for decent personnel but finding reputable companies to work for can be difficult as the pay can be low, the hours long, with less than favourable conditions. There are reputable companies out there, and a lot can be learned from working in this particular sector. 

Understanding the security and working of offices or industrial sites will add to your knowledge and benefit you throughout your career. If your client works from an office building, shouldn’t you, as his close protection, know how the building is secured and how the internal security team operates? If the client owns an industrial business, doesn’t it make sense for the CP team to understand the safety hazards within the site?  

The manned guarding industry can be far from glamorous. Still, it can put money in your pocket and give you valuable knowledge and experience, all of which applies to the close protection industry. 

ConclusionIf you’re serious about a career in the close protection industry, you need to have solid foundations and the only way to get those foundations is to go and start working in the security industry in some capacity. You have to be willing to work and cannot expect to start at the top. You will have to put in hours, effort, and a lot of networking to open the door to get a foot into the close protection industry. And then hopefully, it will have been worth your efforts. 

Many people quickly become disillusioned with the close protection industry due to infrequent contracts, no job security, long hours, problematic clients, and unthankful employers, but that is the CP business. You can make good money in CP but never get into the mindset that you can live that same lifestyle as your clients. You are the hired help, just like the nannies, drivers, cooks, and gardeners. And be assured, if the client needs to save money, you will be the first to take a pay cut or lose your job altogether.

In time, if you stay in the security industry, you will see that from a management perspective that the time you put in working various sectors of the security industry enables you to identify, understand and avoid problems and issues that only those that have firsthand experience can. Like CP instructors, many security managers do not have the firsthand experience of providing regular security services or close protection services but end up being given those positions by uninformed clients, those they have BS’ed or their friends. 

After several years of gaining experience within various security sectors to complement your training courses, you will have become more employable. And suppose CP positions elude you, or you decide this line of work’s not for you. In that case, you will have the foundations to progress into operations management or recruitment positions within the industry, which typically has better job security, stability, and a lot less stress and aggravation than the close protection business. 

Hopefully, this short article has given you some tips for starting a close protection career path. Where possible, train with experienced instructors and try to only work for professional companies. And hopefully, in the end, the long hours, sore feet, and boredom will get you where you want to be. Follow this advice, and you will become an asset for any client or company and not just a well-read, untested liability who thinks they know it all. 

Establishing Your Career Path in Close ProtectionBy Andrew Chatzkelowitz 

Andrew’s unique perspectives come from over 30 years of experience in local and international security arenas covering close protection, risk management and security operations. He has gained extensive real-world experience in hostile and culturally diverse environments in various countries and continents.

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