What to Look for in an Executive Protection Service for Travel Security
According to Security Magazine, the demand for travel security advice has grown by nearly 30 percent in the last two years and increased by 800 percent in the last decade.
This isn’t a surprise considering the current age of globalization, with top executives and other VIP individuals frequently traveling internationally to conduct business.
Now, more than ever, companies must make a concerted effort to ensure the safety of their executives. In this article, we’ll cover what executive protection is, who can benefit from it, and a few key things to look for when hiring a security firm to provide executive protection services for travel.
What is Executive Protection?
Executive protection refers to security and risk mitigation measures taken to ensure the security of individuals exposed to increased personal risk due to their high-profile status, employment, net worth, affiliations or geographical location.
Protective measures may include home security systems, bodyguards, armored vehicles and vehicle scramble plans, mail screening, private jet travel, background checks for other employees, and other precautions.
Who Can Benefit from Executive Protection?
VIPs: High-profile executives, celebrities, and politicians can greatly benefit from the level of security provided by Executive Protection. Security may also be provided for immediate and extended family members to prevent threats such as kidnapping and extortion.
Women: Female executives also benefit significantly from Executive Protection Services. More than 83 percent of women have experienced one or more safety-related concerns or incidents while traveling for business in the past year, according to research from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA). Their top concerns include general safety, sexual harassment, and assault, travel to certain countries and cities and assault or kidnapping risk.
Those traveling to high-risk locations: According to the2019 World Risk Map from Drum Cussac, the top countries that rank high for risk include Syria, the Republic of South Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Libya, Somalia, Central African Republic, Iraq, Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi. However, depending on the individual threat level, any location can pose a security risk.
What Does an Effective Executive Protection Service Offer?
Proactive Care
An effective Executive Protection Service offers proactive care by assessing the environment before the client arrives.
The Executive Protection provider should carefully analyze the client’s itinerary, location profiles and planned events to establish the baseline risk and put a security plan in place that will mitigate as many relevant, real-world dangers as possible.
Threats to be considered should include kidnapping, petty crime, persons of interest, and the risks of medical emergencies and natural disasters.
Reactive Care
It’s also vital that an Executive Protection provider can quickly and efficiently react in situations where the client’s security has been compromised.
For this reason, current or former military and law enforcement professionals are an excellent choice for executive care, as they’re highly-trained to perform well in dangerous situations.
Trained Security Drivers
Most attacks happen in or around a vehicle; therefore, having a security-trained driver is essential to a successful executive protection program. Drivers need to have the proper training to react quickly in emergencies.
An experienced Executive Protection provider should ensure that all vehicles are safe, fully functional and include safety equipment such as spare tires, bulbs, and first aid kit. The drivers must also be licensed, and background checked. Untrained drivers can cost clients time, money, and potentially their lives.
Improves the Bottom Line
When properly done, Executive Protection Services can expedite a client’s entry from point A to point B. This can save companies and shareholders money because some of the world’s top executives earn thousands of dollars every minute.
Time is money, and a well-executed executive protection service can save you time by taking care of personal needs before the client arrives, like checking into hotels and having cars and trained drivers waiting outside.
Moreover, if something happens to a top executive, it can cause a company’s shares to plummet. Therefore, Executive Protection should be considered a top priority.
Protection is Available Now
The world is an unpredictable place. The biggest mistake that most people make with their personal safety is to allow themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security. While police forces do a great deal to protect citizens, a lot can happen in the 5 – 15 minutes it takes them to respond to an emergency call.
With Executive Protection Services, individuals become proactive as opposed to only reactive when it comes to the safety of themselves and their family members, while companies become proactive in protecting its most valuable asset – its people and the interest of its shareholders.
Contact Knight Protection Services to learn more about our highly-trained Executive Protection personnel.
