With the holidays behind us and the new year in full motion, now is an excellent time to look at some of the potential, yet critical, gaps in your approach to risk management and risk mitigation. According to Chris Hammond, Director Pinkerton Risk Advisory, and Ewa Urbanowicz, Corporate Security Solutions Director, here are three key areas that CSOs and security teams need to address moving into 2022:
Strategic risk and supply chain resources
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the business environment around the world and has impacted supply chains, including resources for security management. From extremely long lead times of access control cards and closed-circuit television (CCTV) or video surveillance technology to challenges in staffing security posts, organizations face operational disruptions.
“Security is not only a risk companies must face, but CSO’s must plan for contingencies related to their existing security measures,” said Urbanowicz. “Executive and travel protection may also be impacted in 2022.”
Security management teams need to consider the business continuity impact if their supply chain resources are disrupted. When developing a plan, there are a few questions they should be asking:
- What is our increased risk exposure? How do we plan for alternative risk mitigation measures?
- What do we do if we cannot get access cards for employees who need them to come into our facility?
- What if we cannot staff critical posts with security officers?
COVID-19 has presented businesses with a unique challenge. And while most organizations have adapted quickly to the new landscape, the pandemic has shown just how important it is to make a plan to mitigate against future disruptions.
Pandemic back to work
Employees are your most valuable resource, and that is why deciding when and how to bring your employees back to work is a complex challenge.
“Many companies are still managing how to operate and ensure a safe work environment within a pandemic, or hopefully a post-pandemic world,” said Hammond.
Vaccination mandates and contact tracing requirements introduce not only challenges for business but also for security management. For example, organizations should consider if there is a potential for resistance to changes in workplace health and safety protocols and whether that resistance could result in behaviors ranging from threats to employees to community civil unrest. In addition, companies should evaluate their building access control procedures.
“It is important to reevaluate the threat environment to understand the impact to security resources and processes,” Hammond said.
Geopolitical landscape for 2022
Corporate security professionals should adopt a global perspective when thinking about their security and risk mitigation practices. Even for organizations that may not yet be operating on a global scale, there are always emerging threats in an increasingly interconnected world. Local businesses are no longer the only ones affected by localized events. Even the smallest conflict is realized on a global scale, and seemingly disconnected events overseas can have a ripple effect that impacts your business operations.
“These conflicts may affect company operations at large,” said Urbanowicz. “They can also affect supply chains, office closures, overall safety of the employees as wells as the security of physical and intellectual properties.”
The challenges for geopolitical risk management will only increase. Businesses must develop a sense of strategic awareness as interdependence on the global marketplace increases and include the geopolitical landscape as an essential component of their comprehensive corporate risk management.
Are you interested in learning more? Contact us to learn how we can help your organization navigate these strategies and keep your people, property, and proprietary information safe and secure.
