Useful ESRM Skills To Retaining Assets In This Pandemic
USEFUL ESRM SKILLS TO RETAINING ASSETS IN THIS PANDEMIC
Abraham C. Okpom
Enterprise Security Risk Management Expert | Certified Trainer | CMS Auditor (ISO18788,ISO9001)
As security professionals have you found out that you and others in your organisation do not always define security the same way? Have security interests and business interests been misaligned?
Why?
Why Skills? There is no gainsaying that we need skills (expertise, talent, ability) to be successful in our career or personal growth, work as a team, communicate effectively, plan, lead, and to rise up the ladder of success”
To align security interest and business interest we need appropriate skills, what is skills?
Note: There are other relevant security skills appropriate to the area you wish to pursue.
| called from The Express Tribune | The Importance of Skills | April 25, 2016. |
Every profession have need of specialised skills.
“Mastering a variety of skills can be a distinguishing mark of an individual in this era of competition, multiculturalism and globalization.”
| What is Skill? | “A skill is the ability to perform an action with determined | |
| results often within a given amount of time, energy, or both. | ||
| Wikipedia |
“Skill is the unified force of experience, intellect and passion in their operation” John Ruskin
We all agree that “ Security is everyone’s business” It is not an US and THEM enterprise” as a lot of persons want us to believe, it requires variety of skills, essentially Risk Management skills.
What is ESRM?
As a professional you may have already practice some of the components of ESRM, such as risk identification, risk transfer and acceptance, crisis and recovery management.
ASIS defines “An Enterprise Security Risk Management as one that identifies and mitigate risks departments-by-departments, location-by-location, across a company’s entire business structure-in ways that contribute to the organisation’s business goals”.
Enterprise Security Risk Management is a risk-based approach to managingsecurity program. It is based on the idea that you cannot protect what you don’t understand.
- To protect assets, security professionals need to understand the organization, its mission, its needs and its priorities, and will need to ask these questions of the business
- What do I need to protect?
- What do I need to protect it from?
- How can I best and most efficiently protect it?
- “The highest skill is the true judgment of value” Francois Alexandre Federic
- COVID-19 pandemic has forced businesses to close their doors, navigate unknown territories – compelling them to figure out what’s best for their employees and facilities whilst safeguarding the business.
Enterprise Security Risk Management useful skills
- Enterprise Skills: “All Skills are learnable” Brian Tracy
Enterprise skill emanate from having business knowledge and commercial awareness. How much do you know about your company’s business? Financial knowledge help especially Cost benefit analysis.
- Security Skills:
Opportunities in the security space are endless and security professionals require technical skills just to mention a few, Information security, security engineering, fraud and investigation skills, Penetration testing, Crisis management, biochemical, security architecture, intelligence etc.
Don’t join the band wagon choose one for yourself.
- Risk Assessment Skills:
The roles of security leader in ESRM is to manage security vulnerabilities to enterprise assets using the risk- base approach in collaboration with business leaders. Therefore the security professional must be able to identify assets, identify risks, identify vulnerabilities, mitigate prioritized risks and implement continuous improvement solutions.
- Communication Skills:
Communication skill is a universal skill that all profession requires. If you are deploying new security product, solving issues or educating internal or external stakeholders in any capacity you must communicate.
“Your number one skill as a leader is the ability to influence” Tony Robbins.
Majority of security professionals need negotiation or dialogue abilities
- People management skills:
“The greatest communication skill is paying value to others” Denis Waitley
Security professionals are problem solvers, they are expected to communicate with people whose problems they are trying to resolve. These people may be internal or external stakeholders such as clients, vendors, department heads, GSA, host communities etc.
In the event of security incident diffusing tension among stakeholders, working under pressure will be part of the job. Customer skill helps to put the security professional in the shoes of the customer
CLOSING POINT OF VIEW
- According to research carried out by the ASIS Foundation, security has began to evolve beyond guarding doors, checking IDS and screening briefcase and purses.Today, security professionals need to incorporate Enterprise Security Risk Management approach to secure assets.
- Evaluate assets and ensure strong relations with clients and customers in order to protect business from COVID-19 disruption
- Strengthen business connection, seek advise and help from business owners, engage in reach out programs to stakeholders and other support services to help them navigate this season.
In summary to retain Assets(facilities and People) security professionals must maintain strong relations throughout this pandemic, deploying the risk based approach.
Asset retention/protection might just be just a check-up call, an email, a Webinar, and a training away etc.
Palliatives is not all about money.
Ensuring that all assets are intact and secure is the most valued gift to business owners post pandemic.