Independent security risk assessment – Responsibility
For retail and shopping mall security falls on multiple parties: landlords, managing agents/facility managers, shopping centre management, tenants, business owners, and the deployed security company.Each plays a crucial role in ensuring an effective, efficient, and manageable security system with clear communication lines and defined responsibilities, addressing identified internal and external risks.
Understanding who is responsible for what part of the security system is as crucial as knowing what security system is in place. Without this clarity, no security system can operate efficiently or cost-effectively. A security risk assessment is essential to identify, understand, research, and develop a security plan that aligns with the overall security strategy and budgetary constraints.
The security budget
Is a significant part of the retail operational budget. Therefore, limiting or curtailing this expense is common practice for most landlords, managing agents, and tenants. A quality independent security risk assessment helps ensure that the security budget is spent wisely. Prevents incorrect assignment or redundancy. Security awareness training can often save more money than implementing additional measures.
Currently,
Security companies often define the risk at no cost and propose solutions from their stock, suggesting that the retail sector does not take security seriously enough. Without independent security risk assessments, retail operations lack scrutiny of their security systems, protocols, policies, systems, and personnel.
This assessment is crucial for identifying strengths and weaknesses aligned with the strategic goals of retail operations and their management.
Written by: Andre Mundell, Independent security risk assessor at Alwinco.
Alwinco
Conducts Independent Security Risk Assessment throughout South Africa, with a significant presence in Gauteng (including Waterkloof, Randburg, Carlswald, Rivonia, and Hatfield), as well as in Noordhoek, Musgrave, and Somerset West.
To read the full article published in https://www.securitysa.com/54321n