A recurring theme often heard from leaders in the field of private security is that although managers typically possess the technical skills needed to excel in the workplace, they often lack the fundamental "people" skills that are equally important to ensuring that an organization runs smoothly. In my experience teaching at the university level, many of the major discussion points and questions from my students are not related to security systems, technology, or hardware. Instead, they deal with the interpersonal aspects of managing people and with the daily activities a security manager is expected to perform. My own employment and other practical experiences with security organizations has validated these concerns and prompted me to address these issues in this book. I wrote Principles of Security Management with an orientation aimed at providing the reader with a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to be an effective security manager. This book is premised on the fact that security operations and practices do not operate in isolation. Regardless of whether the security organization is proprietary or contractual, it operates in a broad context and interacts with other departments, organizations, or systems. This implies that students and security practitioners need to apply cutting-edge business practices and principles in their organizations if they are to ensure personal and organizational success.

In order to help readers achieve this goal, this book incorporates contemporary research and information drawn from the social science and business literature. It provides the reader with a comprehensive and balanced understanding of the role and functions of security in the twenty-first century. The organization of this book reflects the knowledge, skills, and abilities that are needed to be a successful security manager and maximize an employee''s potential. The focus is on the management of the greatest asset any company can possess--its employees. The first three chapters provide the basic framework for the remainder of the text. Chapter 1, the introduction, provides the reader with a general discussion of the current state of security and management principles. A historical review of the industry is also presented to help the reader gain an understanding of the current state of security. Chapter 2, meanwhile, provides the reader with an understanding of the need for leaders in security organizations and reviews principles and theories related to effective leadership.

Chapter 3 summarizes the major points of being an effective supervisor, including the diverse roles and responsibilities of the supervisor. The fundamental managerial activity of planning and decision making is discussed in detail in Chapter 4. The next five chapters focus on the progression of managerial activities related to supervising employees. Chapter 5 examines the recruitment and selection process as well as legal issues that must be considered when hiring new employees. Chapter 6 provides a general overview of issues related to training employees. Once these employees are properly trained, another managerial responsibility is motivating them to maximize their potential and contribution to the organization. Motivation is addressed in Chapter 7. The need for monitoring the performance of individuals is also a fundamental managerial activity.

Chapter 8 discusses contemporary approaches to properly managing and designing an appraisal system that is acceptable to employees and managers in the organization. Chapter 9 deals with issues related to the discipline and discharge processes in organizations. It includes a discussion on the need for the creation and maintenance of a disciplinary program as well as procedures for discharging employees in an ethical, fair, and legal manner. The next three chapters examine specific issues in private security. Chapter 10 exposes the reader to a greater understanding of the history of unions and collective bargaining in the United States, the grievance administration process, and security''s role during strikes. One activity that all managers will need to engage in over the course of their careers is conducting security surveys. Chapter 11 provides the reader with a general understanding of the need for security surveys, including various approaches when conducting security audits. It includes a discussion of the minimum requirements for what should be included or analyzed.

Organizational planning also requires the creation of budgets. Chapter 12 provides an analysis of the budgeting process in organizations by examining the various purposes behind budgeting and the roles of managers in the budgeting process. Another regular managerial responsibility is scheduling employees. Chapter 13 examines the process of putting together a schedule and various types of models that can be used to effectively schedule employees in an organization. The last chapter is an overview of issues that the security industry will be expected to address during the next three decades, such as defining security as a profession, changes in the legal environment, and expansion into new markets.