Why is there not a Company comparison?

[ddog]

Is the Security community that small, or are there little differences? I've seen some differences in approaching 4 to 5 big chains so far. The differences may balance out, but there are siginficant factor differences any way.

I am planning to work 60 hrs a week if can get hours with one company, and (probably) around 70 hours per week if need 2 companies to do it. That's just an average Engineering week load in (past) manufacturing, although paid better. BUT, you move around like a consultant and get laid off every time Management 'acts' like they are saving money when they have no clue what value is. Anyway, security is one of the few industries with demand, like RN's and medical field has its health risks as well: so getting paid, overtime or not, for overtime hours is nice. And it seems to be a good supplement income no matter what your other job may be. I'm sure top positions above Supervisor are hard to get, like anywhere else though.

I've read some real good stuff on this site from some smart guys. I'd really like to hear from some veterans about different companies. Gripes, hype, industry 'poop', its all good for newbies and veterans alike I'd think

[N. A. Corbier]

Keep in mind some people are bound by Non-Disclosure Agreements, and one has to be careful what one says about current employers.

[ddog]

Keep in mind some people are bound by Non-Disclosure Agreements, and one has to be careful what one says about current employers.

Granted, I didn't think anyone would speak negatively about their current company, but legailities is another whole subject of interest in this industry: and something I want to learn more about in my training.

Thanks for the head up!

[CorpSec]

An important thing to remember is that it is more a matter of being on a good post or site with contract security and not a matter of being with a good company.

Sure, you probably want to be part of a company that is big enough to have enough accounts to ensure some variety and job security in the event of losing an account or two. But, beyond that, one person may work for a site that has an involved client who really supports the officers and ensures great working conditions and fair pay.

Meanwhile, a quarter mile down the road an officer with the same big company is working for a client that doesn't trust security and sticks you outside in a broken down guard shack.

Two officers, same company, definitely different perspectives on how good their job is.

[EMTGuard]

I wish we had more coverage in trade magazines such as Security which is mostly CCTV, IP tech stuff. I'd love to see more stuff such as what Police magazine does of profiling a different agency each month. Heck, truck drivers and HVAC techs have better trade journals than Security Officers.

[N. A. Corbier]

Honestly, I don't think the trade journalism companies can expend capital to focus on security personnel. They're not the people behind the purchasing decisions.

Security company owners, on the other hand, are in a position. I'm not sure if they're served by the "law enforcement magazine" segment, or the "alarm and integrator" segment.

But rank and file guys, there's no money in it.

[Black Caesar]

http://www.securitymagazine.com/

and

http://www.campussafetymagazine.com/

[ddog]

I'd rather filter out 'free' solicited opinions vs 'paid' commericial biases from subscribed magazines that opinions parallel advertising dollars per customer. Recruiters and bad attitudes show up, but eventually a concensus of members will highlight these deviants. That's the power of forums world wide now. But that may place the forum Admins in an uncomfortable position, which me must all respect. I sincerely appreciate the information and can figure it out (hopefully sooner than later). I'm going to 4 different company orientations in total, and have noted differences so far. Nothing real bad yet, but some are better at different factors than others which may result in better job satisfaction. The lower the pay, the more willingness for overtime; etc...

As a costing value engineer, overtime is a great deal for the company if they 'need' the overtime. And asset coverage necessitates overtime in scheduling 'blips' due to unforseen mishaps. Its either more people (overhead) or more hours one. Part time fill-ins does not seem to be a quality solution, and more a compromise on the total system. I did do some major system design work for the GA Tech Olympics human factors interface and communication screens for campus and city wide Security system (based on Tech campus and MARTA transportation system); so I will be concentrating on 'system' wide coverage to increase reliable confidence levels of protection.

And now with innexpensive H.264 surveillance camera systems, security is very available with 'sound' integrated with 'vision' alarms (finally), but critical manpower is still required at the protected asset end or you will just have pictures of masked criminals in the act.

There are so many things to discover from this unique site, other than specific company differences, that will enhance all members worth on the market

[EMTGuard]

http://www.securitymagazine.com/

That's the one I as talking about. Lots of tech stuff but little about those of us on the beat.

[Chimpie]

I am planning to work 60 hrs a week if can get hours with one company, and (probably) around 70 hours per week if need 2 companies to do it.

Why would you want to burn yourself out like that?

I prefer to put in my 40 and go home. Okay, it usually worked out to be 48 (12 hours shifts x 4), but I was okay with that. If there was a new toy to be bought, I'd pick up a shift if someone needed to take a day off or was sick. (12 x 1.5 x $Y = a nice bonus on the paycheck)

But 60 - 70 hours a week, every week. No way man. Not for me. More power to ya.

[Bern Wheaton]

This new company I applied for said it is up to you if you want over time,lmao,But I know the routine ,first you do it because you want to show them you are willing to be part of the company then they expect you to do it all the time.

The last company I work for I was the supervisor and I went out of town to go camping they called me and chewed me out for being out of town .Informing me I was to live my life for the company and never have a life! ,Rest of that day I enjoy camping.

[ycaso77]

I wish we had more coverage in trade magazines such as Security which is mostly CCTV, IP tech stuff. I'd love to see more stuff such as what Police magazine does of profiling a different agency each month. Heck, truck drivers and HVAC techs have better trade journals than Security Officers.

Security trade journals are geared towards the management side. Very rarely will you see an article about the troops in the field unless its one of the following categories:

!. We fired our in house staff and replaced them with low paid contract personnel- We saved money!

2. We bought the latest technical gadget that makes our officers work three times as hard but we look good- and we saved money!

3. We've improved our systems and CCTV so we can make do with far fewer personnel, and watch their every move at the same time- and we saved money!

4. We demand our officers have EMT certification, basic firefighting certs, have an ASIS basic cert, speak 3 languages, able to wrestle a polecat like nobody's business and be available 24/7 while still earning the lowest salary in the area- and we saved money!

Thats the industry mags in a nutshell. I'm always amazed how every job posting for security on the USAJOBS site now seems to be Allied. Seems all the ads in the trade publications are working.