Robert “Powl” Smith is a celebrated military combat vet and Enterprise Accounts Portfolio Manager who uses leadership skills developed in the U.S. Army to manage some of Allied Universal’s largest accounts.

On a recent patrol sweep of a west coast hospital emergency department, Enhanced Protection Services Canine Handler Michael Garcia noticed an unattended backpack. Immediately, he and his German Shepherd partner, Drago, approached the bag for a search and cleared the suspicious item within seconds. The team is a valuable addition to the hospital’s layered security plan and a proactive response to the rise in violence, particularly active shooter incidents, across our nation’s hospital campuses.

Our Executive Protection Training Academy is designed utilizing the Instructional Systems Design (ISD) model that is commonly used by academia, defense, public safety, and other industries worldwide.

Allied Universal®, through its international business G4S, has dispatched five “certified earthquake searchers” to help with rescue efforts following catastrophic earthquakes in Turkey and Syria that have killed more than 35,000.

Deborah Tate Pecci has one of the most influential and demanding in-house counsel positions in the world. However, it was the flexibility and family friendly part-time position that attracted Deborah to the security business.

Our blog series focusing on top security concerns for the year ahead concludes by taking a closer look at solutions to address the ongoing rise in crime across most major U.S. cities. The Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) released its mid-year 2022 crime report, examining crime data from 29 cities. Their findings point to a continued high rate of violent crime which requires ongoing diligence and the expansion of security strategies with proven effectiveness.

Hollywood, the media, and elected officials have all combined to bring light to horrific crimes associated with human trafficking. More people are aware of sex trafficking than the issues of forced labor and domestic servitude, all of which are elements of human trafficking.

One recent night on the way to work, Enhanced Protection Services Canine Handler Claudia Gelzer spotted an abandoned dog in distress on New York City’s Belt Parkway. Without thinking twice, she pulled over to see how she might help. Fitz, aptly named after the looming JFK International Airport in the distance that evening, has since been nursed back to health and now is well assimilated into Claudia’s family. This touching story illustrates Claudia’s steadfast passion to serve.

As we continue our blog series focusing on three primary threats facing security professionals in the year ahead, we cannot ignore the rising statistics surrounding active shooter incidents. The FBI reports that the number of incidents in 2021 represents a 52.5% increase over the prior year and a 96.8% increase from 2017. Of the 61 incidents, more than half occurred in areas of commerce, although incidents in open areas, educational institutions and business facilities were among the top five in number of casualties.  

Organizations faced a broad range of security challenges in 2022, from the rise of active and mass shooter incidents to continued concerns surrounding Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). These realities serve as important context for security professionals as we anticipate the threat spectrum for the year ahead. How can lessons of the past guide and help inform decision making and readiness? In this three-part blog series, we will examine three of today’s primary threats and highlight important considerations and solutions for preparedness.