Page 50 - the SyI Quarterly

Chartered Security Professionals
I I have been involved in several projects highlighting security careers,
Promoting security as a
career pathway - are we
doing enough?
By Chris Middleton CSyP MSyI
In my personal view we are not doing enough, however, we are making progress. For example,
does security feature as a career option at options day within the education sector, where students
consider the next step in their career alongside other professions like law, finance, Blue Light Services,
and medicine - the more traditional and academic roles?
In my personal experience and research, alongside working with industry groups and fellow peers,
security is still not regarded as a career choice, especially for those in their latter years of full-time
education. The irony is many students take up part-time roles in security to work around their studies
as the hours are very flexible. We also have many young students leaving full-time education finding
themselves out of work and being signposted towards getting a job in security as an easy option or for
stop-gap purposes. We need to change the latter.
Like so many other colleagues in our industry, both past and present, many of us did not see any
promotional material for security roles when we met our careers adviser, highlighting a rewarding
career in security, depending on which sector specialism you chose. At the time of writing, it is good
to see progress being made by both our industry and those that sit outside of it. According to the
National Careers Service website, there are six listings for security roles, which can be found in the
emergency and uniform services section. Anyone that works in our industry knows, that this reflection
does not even scratch the surface of how many roles we have on offer, per sector. This clearly shows a
disconnect between those responsible for promoting the security sector as a profession to those not
already working within it.
So, what needs to happen next? The good news is that the security industry has already been working
on several initiatives to promote security as a career of choice, but the pandemic has somewhat
hindered the progress that had been made, as the attention of those involved had to redirect their
focus elsewhere. As someone who started in this industry 19 years ago and initially set himself a six-
month review period to see if the sector would be for him, (having come from a high-pressured sales
background), I have been delighted to see how both my career, and that of others, have significantly
grown and evolved during this time.
We still have work to do and, on that front, I am pleased to say I continue to work with both those in
the security industry and those in the education setting to see how we bridge the gap and get security
careers more front and center. As security professionals it is important to demonstrate and showcase
the best of what our industry has to offer, along with the amazing academic routes that exist for those
who show a willingness and aptitude to Continuing Professional Development and learning.
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and get to see firsthand the interest and return of investment from
those who were in attendance. One that has shown great results
since it launched in 2020 is the NextGen initiative, Secure Future’s
Programme - the brainchild idea of Chartered Security Professional,
Paul Barnard, supported by the Security Institute with fellow partner
and charity arm, the EY Foundation. I also had the recent pleasure
of being invited with a fellow industry colleague and CEO of Quick
Click Security, Houdah Al-Hakim to a careers day event at a large
secondary school federation in London. It may come as a surprise
to some to learn that the stall with the highest number of students
at any one time was Houdahs. The best testimonial from that day
was the change in perception people had about security from when
they arrived, to when they left, and showed genuine interest in
wanting to know more.
The biggest area of discussion, especially at the student level was
cyber security. We need to get more opportunities to get in front
of those in the education setting to allow us to promote what our
amazing sector has to offer and break down the myths and stigma
that have tarnished our profession at times. We also need more
dialogue with those outside our sector to allow us to promote
the benefits and opportunities that exist within our industry to
ensure we make it reflective of today’s world and highlight its future
direction and need for continuous improvement, collaboration, and
its inclusive aim, whilst also trying to address the gender imbalance.
I recently achieved my security career highlight, having passed the
rigorous process to become a Chartered Security Professional,
being admitted in June this year as number 252 to the Register of
Chartered Security Professionals (RSCP) on behalf of The Worshipful
Company of Security Professionals, who were granted a Royal
Charter in 2011, to create the Register. The Register is globally
recognised as the gold standard and the benchmark for security
excellence and professionalism.
In achieving my chartered status, I hope it shows others considering
starting out in a security career of what hard work, determination,
commitment, getting things wrong but taking the lessons learned,
having the integrity to admit your mistakes, and knowing it is ok to
seek the advice of others, what can be accomplished.
In closing, there has never been a better time to join our industry
given the wealth of pathways that currently exist, along with the
plethora of apprenticeships and vocational opportunities that are
currently available and growing, in addition to the various security
member associations that are on offer. Just as important, there is
a wealth of expertise that can be accessed through mentoring or
from one of many special interest groups that have a global input
and following.
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