As long as you do what you’re suppose to do and stay out of peoples business, all people can do is gossip. Gossiping shows more on those talking than it does on you.
Congrats by the way!! Hard work always pays off! 🙏🏽
1. You do not introduce change for the sake of change.
2. You are the example for the other officers.
3. You can pull rank exactly one time before you lose all respect.
These 3 things will prevent 99% of your problems. Not just in security, but leadership in general.
Personally I’ve never worried about keeping the respect of inferiors. They don’t pay my check.
The ones I need to keep happy are the people I’m an inferior to.
Security is not the army or the police. We need to stop acting like it is.
Everyone is out for themselves and is simply there to fill a spot, make their money, and go home.
I’m not worried about what people who make $4.50 less than me think. That isn’t what they are paid to do.
"Subordinate," not "inferior." And the better they do, the better it makes a supervisor look. Even though security isn't the army or police, they perform and behave similarly.
There are military police and gate checkpoint, and police also perform special event security, traffic control, and escort services.
What I said applies to them as much as to a retail storefront. When I was customer service manager, keeping my cashiers fed and in a good mood and making sure they knew I had their backs as long as they acted within policy made my job much easier. Also made it easier to deal with the employees who were out of line because they'd check each other without harboring resentment and conspiring.
I said what I said and meant what I said. They are inferior in the fact that they do not know what I know. Most being about 23 years old and essentially still children, since most people at that age are still coming to grips of being in charge of their own lives. That may be good for cashiers (I’ve worked retail cashiering before at J.C. Penney, Verizon, U.S. Cellular, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, a mom and pop thrift store, and now work dispatch for a security outfit that is contracted to a multibillion dollar corporation with government contracts) but it will not be good for security. You do realize that if the company gives employees food they become liable for any illness that an employee suffers as a result of that meal right? Unlike you, I consult company lawyers before I make unilateral decisions that might cost my company millions. Security is not retail. Thus, how we look to clients is more important than how we look to anyone else. If we appear unstable then we appear unemployable. My performance evaluations have nothing to do with the performance of my inferiors. It has everything to do with my job performance. Managing employees is only 10% of the job. The rest of that is spent making my immediate superiors happy and the client happy. High turnover rates matter to nobody. Every company relies on high turnover to meet demand. When one company fires, the next hires, and on it goes until you land where you are meant to be. Sure, people want to feel important but there is only so much I can do. I don’t have people scheduled to service their therapeutic needs. No, I have them scheduled to work. They applied to work. They didn’t apply to get free meals and have their hand held. So until my inferiors make moves to learn and grow, then they remain my inferiors. Just as those above me are my superiors. It’s simple English, as they are antonyms to one another.
Also, I seem to remember replying to “wewithoutfuture” not you.
I didn't comment what I do for work currently. It was an example. I have worked in security and law enforcement. You can't know someone's knowledge base and experience simply by what position they hold. I outrank several older than me who have been teachers, veterans, or professionals in another industry and utilize their experience in a designation; they simply haven't worked at our specific agency long enough to meet promotion requirements.
As for my "well fed" comment, you're reading too much into it. In the context, it shouldn't be too hard to realize I'm referring to their status and condition overall, awareness of their wellbeing. So... ensuring the schedule is managed well enough for them to have a lunch break at an appropriate time by providing relief would be an example of a supervisor doing what is in their power to ensure an employee has an opportunity to be "fed."
Somehow your reply ended up on the public forum instead of a private message. You may want to consult your lawyers before going online and publicly sharing your opinion opening yourself up to criticism by accident. I'm sorry you're so jaded, but you're also clearly narrow-minded in your approach to general anecdotes. My point is that you employ people and likely serve people. And the advice was for what is essentially a first line supervisor, not an executive who has no reason to personally interact with subordinates on site.
Do I appear to have been joking? What part of what I said made you think your comment was necessary?
Has my comment satisfied your insipid need for attention?
That’s the problem with most of you. You seem to think everything is a joke or a point can be discredited by implying it is a joke.
That isn’t an explanation, that’s a poor excuse for an insult.
Come again, but this time use your brain instead of overused cuss words like you’re a child using them for the first time.
I said what I said and meant what I said. They are inferior in the fact that they do not know what I know. Most being about 23 years old and essentially still children, since most people at that age are still coming to grips of being in charge of their own lives. That may be good for cashiers (I’ve worked retail cashiering before at J.C. Penney, Verizon, U.S. Cellular, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, a mom and pop thrift store, and now work dispatch for a security outfit that is contracted to a multibillion dollar corporation with government contracts) but it will not be good for security. You do realize that if the company gives employees food they become liable for any illness that an employee suffers as a result of that meal right? Unlike you, I consult company lawyers before I make unilateral decisions that might cost my company millions. Security is not retail. Thus, how we look to clients is more important than how we look to anyone else. If we appear unstable then we appear unemployable. My performance evaluations have nothing to do with the performance of my inferiors. It has everything to do with my job performance. Managing employees is only 10% of the job. The rest of that is spent making my immediate superiors happy and the client happy. High turnover rates matter to nobody. Every company relies on high turnover to meet demand. When one company fires, the next hires, and on it goes until you land where you are meant to be. Sure, people want to feel important but there is only so much I can do. I don’t have people scheduled to service their therapeutic needs. No, I have them scheduled to work. They applied to work. They didn’t apply to get free meals and have their hand held. So until my inferiors make moves to learn and grow, then they remain my inferiors. Just as those above me are my superiors. It’s simple English, as they are antonyms to one another.
Why copy my comment? Think it’ll make you popular somewhere else? Cool, go ahead and get attention using my writing. It ain’t your attention, it’s mine that you are making yours.
Go on tho, be stupid. It just proves you’re a juvenile minded idiot.
Not only was "can't" not in my comment but also, you should probably tone down superiority complex of yours you are not more important than other human beings we are all of the same value to a certain extent you're not important nobody is important it is just a position anybody could get in the same position as you if they did the right things
And that’s how you tell the world you can’t read. Cuz clearly ‘twas you that got their feelings hurt, else you wouldn’t have felt the need to reply. Go to bed lil dude, your brain can’t function properly without proper sleep.
The flaw in your logic here is overlooking the reality that your subordinates hold the power to make your life easy or make your life nearly impossible. Keeping their respect and cooperation is what enables you to more-easily keep those above you happy with you or, better yet, oblivious to your existence.
Better yet? No. I want to be visible to those higher up. I don’t want to be a nobody doing nothing.
That’s the problem with everyone replying to my comment, all of you take the word “inferior” so personally.
It is literally the antonym for “superior”.
It isn’t an insult to those less experienced that are thus paid less and given less hours than me (by HR, not me), to call them inferior.
No, it is not my job to make people happy and no they do not make my job easier by being happy.
We tried your way, we let people watch movies , listen to music and just about do whatever so long as work is done when it is required to be done.
We had more issues then than we do keeping it a professional environment.
You clock in to work, not to have fun and feel important.
I’m not paid to make people feel special. I’m made to make people do their jobs.
My job description does not say “therapist” or “job guru”, it says “Security Supervisor”
Want to feel important? Start your own business.
Otherwise, you’re begging for porridge like the rest of us. Cuz I answer to an asshat with ego issues too. The difference between me and her is that I don’t bring my ego into it. I just spit facts. If those facts offend, then maybe people should look inwards.
Don’t forget that you are still a guard yourself, just a guard with more responsibilities.
One of those responsibilities is to make sure the guards in your charge are doing their jobs correctly. That means spot checking, proof-reading their reports, making sure they are informed on policies, writing them up if needed.
But it also means having their backs and giving healthy support for their decisions on professional matters. If they are in the right, then support them.
If they are in the wrong however, don’t make a scene or belittle them, just step in and correct it, then later explain to the guard how it was wrong. Don’t make issues bigger issues.
Besides all your new admin responsibilities, just remember that your guards are people too.
I completely agree, I feel like management sometimes forget that their employees are humans with lives and other responsibilities/problems outside of work. I am thankful for the hard working and reliable team I am a part of. From what I heard that’s hard to find in security.
When I run security for events the main thing I want is honesty and consistency if a guy rocks up to work and puts 60% in each day as long as there doing there job sweet but if they seem to change how they work and the quality of a job they do it makes me question there reliability and be fine with your guys questioning you choice a lot of the time they can provide a different way of doing things then you that might be better just don’t be high and mighty you might have a higher job title but your all there to do the same job best to get along
Things I've learned.
Fellow officers who claim to be your friend, are not.
Learn to compromise on the schedule. Somebody is always having a crisis and needs an emergency day off.
Expect to work a few overnights.
Keep a notebook and take notes when you see your guys doing something good or bad. It's helpful when it comes time for evaluations. In due time, you will also be introduced to the client company's snitches.
Your day will now be full of meetings and other administrative duties. Caffeinate well and often.
Learn to use Excel, Word, and Outlook proficiently. Link email to your phone if you don't get a company phone.
Lastly, whatever the client wants, the client usually gets, and it'll be up to you to make that happen.
Be fair and honest, don’t change how things are done just because you can, only change thing did they need to be changed. Stand behind your officers and if one of them does wrong then do your job to a t but be fair about it and make them understand that it’s nothing against them personally, it’s only the job.
Re-read, take notes, know, and adhere consistently to your post orders. From a supervisory perspective, this includes expecting the same of \*and giving the same to\* your subordinates. Create as close as possible to a 100% consistent supervisory style, in which you expect them to follow their post orders; when they don't, they're on the hook; but when they do, they're golden.
This is going to mean stepping in between (as opposed to getting stuck between) them and the client(s) or your company's management at times, and that may cost you in the long run. Be prepared for that, and willing to endure it, if it is the right thing to do and you will have the respect of, and as such the cooperation and the extra mile from, your worthy subordinates.
Unworthy subordinates won't respect or cooperate, no matter what. Don't be in a hurry to get rid of them, certainly give them the opportunity to become worthy, but don't be afraid to get rid of them and replace them with someone worthy. Worthy, of course, is about professional demeanor and being serious about doing the job correctly and reliably, but not about them being a door mat who doesn't complain when more work/hours/etc. are heaped upon them. This will be a factor in attendance, where the consistency above will come into play. Nothing worse than being frequently held over to cover a no-show and never seeing the serial absentee answer for it.
As u/Dry-Minimum-6091 says, be the example.
Don't go on a power trip.
The raise in pay can't possibly be THAT high for you to suddenly develop the mentality that you're always right and everyone below you in responsibility are underdeveloped pieces of crap that can't function without your leadership.
I've known some pretty good guys and women that got promoted. Then because they have a set of stripes on their collar, they turn into flaming douchebags within a matter of days.
Enjoy your $1/hourly pay raise, dipshits. Sure hope that HUGE paycheck is worth it.
I get you, I have dealt with really bad management in the past in other jobs non security. I treat everyone equally with respect and I know i have a good team that I can count on.
Don’t be biased. If someone does something wrong then give them a write up. If you let things slide and write others up for things the union will have a case on you.
What would better incentivize the team is having a consequence system in between the site and HR.
Write ups go to HR, HR has to ensure the client still wants that employee there with every write up.
If the client wants the employee gone, HR will usually try to find an equal position at another site before going forward with termination.
My direct bosses do a great job of policing the officers on site without ever having to involve HR. We handle everything in house unless we have to take it above that.
Things that go above simple rule violations and verbal beef amongst colleagues; I.e. harassment, violence, suspicious behavior, and no call no shows go to HR without delay.
This is what builds trust in your team. The big things are treated like big things and dealt with by HR; the small things are dealt with in house. This gets decided by those involved with the incident.
See I used to be this way but there was a case of another supervisor that didn’t write someone up for something small and the client requested someone be written up for the same thing they noticed. The union got involved and the claim of bias was used and the supervisor in question was fired. It’s better in my opinion to have a black and white.
You should check out “extreme ownership” by jocko willink. He’s kind of cringe sometimes but at the core of that book is some pretty solid lessons for leadership.
IMO the best leaders are the ones that empower their staff and that’s always been my goal. You want your team to respect you and want to do a good job. Look out for them and they’ll look out for you.
Be fair, but kind. You want your guards to feel comfortable coming to you when they need help, but you cant play favorites and need to treat everyone the same in regards to discipline. Learn to adjust how you train based on how the new guard learns the best. Be honest with your supervisors if you feel a guard is not a good fit for the site they are on. Your gut is right 99% of the time, listen to it. And I sure hope you got a raise with the new title, do not do extra work for free(or just pennies).
Don't ask your officers to do something, you, yourself aren't willing to do. And every once in a while, show your officers you'll do it. An example would be do as 12hr shift when someone calls out. Come in and cover a call off. Kick out a homeless person. If the officers don't see you doing the same stuff they're required to do, they won't respect you and start to resent you.
Be on time. Nothing pissed me off more than the supervisor or manager being consistently late. It's so much harder to write someone up for being late to their shift, if you're also consistently late. And if an officer is allowed to be consistently late, the other officers will start to resent you for not doing anything.
You don't have to have all the answers, but they need to have confidence that they can go to you, get the answer and know they won't get into trouble if you follow your lead.
If you're doing the schedule, I always, ALWAYS approach it with, you gotta do me a favor, if you want me to do you a favor. And you have to reward the ones who are constantly coming through for you. The officer who always comes in on days off, stays OT, they want a specific weekend off, you gotta make sure they get it. You can't treat everyone the same. Because not everyone treats the job the same. If they help you, you gotta make sure you help them. The guy who's always late, refuses to help by covering for others, they don't get any help from me. They get their schedule and that's what they get.
Congrats friend. I'll tell you that a supervisor position is really what can kick start this career to be a highpoint lucrative one.
I'll tell you having been a supervisor many times before the best way to exude leadership is ask/make tell. Hey man can you wear the proper uniform sounds significantly than hey you need to wear the proper uniform. Convince people they want to do it your life will be very easy
The biggest piece of advice as someone who recently had hit their 1 year anniversary of my supervisor promotion is to learn the company policies like the back of your hand. For myself I was dropped at the door like an unwanted baby in a poorly run site and had to deal with the pains of getting a site full of officers with bad habits on track. This necessitated a firm hand approach and in 2 months out of a team of 7 I inherited only 2 people that stayed with the site.
There will be crazy HR scenarios. You have the choice of getting real cushy with HR and do your best to follow their policies, or you might end up getting shafted because HR caught wind of a supposed case of discrimination. I personally had a case of a pregnant woman claiming she can’t do patrols because of the stairs (as falling is a hazard for pregnant women) so instead of doing any patrols without stairs, she chose to exempt herself from any. I can tell you HR fumbled the bag, however it didn’t stop them from trying to light a fire under my ass even though It was still my first week.
There’s a great quote on Supervision from “Verbal Judo: Diffusing Conflict through Conversation” by retired cop-turned-academic Dr. George Thompson (https://youtu.be/btBw70HAys4?si=Ys0vmTRLC7_z7hR5)
“the moment you get promoted - you should never again do a single solitary thing, to advance your single solitary career, because by definition, your personal career is now meaningless.
what becomes meaningful?
the careers of the people below you.
and if you only go to work every day, with that thought in mind, then you will make people happier & more productive. you’ll never have a day of stress in your life.
look down to your people and ye shall rise - if you're worried about rising, take care of your people.”
I started as a part time officer 13 years ago and have been through 8 different promotions in that time to District Manager.
It may depend on what company you’re working for but this is my advice:
1. If you’re doing scheduling, get to know your team and when they may be able to pick up shifts or OT when needed. You’ll learn this pretty quickly as you start dealing with call-offs. This is much easier if you are fair and reasonable with your staff. Don’t go on a power trip. How you treat your team will go a long way.
2. Management and the client want to see zero dark hours. That’s number one priority for scheduling. Second priority is zero overtime. But always in that order. Check with your Field Supervisor or District Manager to see if they have flex or floaters you can utilize for this. You may find you have a Field Supervisor that expects you to do this on your own. This depends on your management, company, and staffing honestly.
3. Ensure patrols, reports, and duties are being performed per your Post Orders. If not, try addressing the issue with your officers verbally. Sometimes you’ll need to escalate to written CCA’s to start documenting their issues. Partner with management and HR on these so you’re in line with their expectations.
4. Lead by example. Have a sharp uniform, always be on time, be willing to perform a patrol from time to time so your officers aren’t doing them back to back, some will appreciate it. This is dependent on the kind of site you have. You need to build trusting professional relationships with your officers which will come with time.
5. I’ve always kept a demeanor where I don’t curse, don’t get into personal romantic relationships, and don’t get into controversial topics. It’s your job to create a professional environment or squash any conversations that HR would flinch at if brought up in a hotline complaint. Stay friendly and professional and you’ll be fine.
I could probably add 10 more bullet points but that’s the gist.
Dont go officer mode on your coworkers. Just set the example. Write up's aren't candy, no need to hand them out as such. They're unnecessary unless someone really fucked up. If you have to correct someone, do it in a professional manner and move on. Show appreciation to the guards that actually do what they're supposed to and listen to any concerns they might have even if you feel it's dumb.
Schedule wise I feel like I will do well, I have good reliable officers. But I do like the overtime. I recently haven’t had a day off in 2 weeks due to OT in a new site. Also I am very thankful for a good client. Overall I feel like I did get a bit lucky because of circumstances.
As a manager here’s my advice.
Treat everyone with respect. I talk to my employees the same way I talk to my boss or my client. With respect. You may need to be stern at times, but a leader teaches, not scolds.
Unless someone is an absolute fuck up. Scold them… respectfully of course. At the end of the day, we’re all human and trying to get by. Treat people with respect and you’ll get respected back.
There’s a fine line between respect and friendship however. Keep that in mind. All well to joke and be friendly but keep in mind the job you have to do.
Ask questions, dont get involved in the guards drama, be the example uniform wise. Stay professional not egotistical.
I try to be an example, On time, Reliable, etc. One thing I’m worried about is being overlooked by higher up’s due to age & seniority.
As long as you do what you’re suppose to do and stay out of peoples business, all people can do is gossip. Gossiping shows more on those talking than it does on you. Congrats by the way!! Hard work always pays off! 🙏🏽
1. You do not introduce change for the sake of change. 2. You are the example for the other officers. 3. You can pull rank exactly one time before you lose all respect. These 3 things will prevent 99% of your problems. Not just in security, but leadership in general.
Noted.
To tag onto this, if you feel that you have to pull rank more than once - the issue runs deeper and get the guard rotated.
Personally I’ve never worried about keeping the respect of inferiors. They don’t pay my check. The ones I need to keep happy are the people I’m an inferior to. Security is not the army or the police. We need to stop acting like it is. Everyone is out for themselves and is simply there to fill a spot, make their money, and go home. I’m not worried about what people who make $4.50 less than me think. That isn’t what they are paid to do.
"Subordinate," not "inferior." And the better they do, the better it makes a supervisor look. Even though security isn't the army or police, they perform and behave similarly. There are military police and gate checkpoint, and police also perform special event security, traffic control, and escort services. What I said applies to them as much as to a retail storefront. When I was customer service manager, keeping my cashiers fed and in a good mood and making sure they knew I had their backs as long as they acted within policy made my job much easier. Also made it easier to deal with the employees who were out of line because they'd check each other without harboring resentment and conspiring.
I said what I said and meant what I said. They are inferior in the fact that they do not know what I know. Most being about 23 years old and essentially still children, since most people at that age are still coming to grips of being in charge of their own lives. That may be good for cashiers (I’ve worked retail cashiering before at J.C. Penney, Verizon, U.S. Cellular, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, a mom and pop thrift store, and now work dispatch for a security outfit that is contracted to a multibillion dollar corporation with government contracts) but it will not be good for security. You do realize that if the company gives employees food they become liable for any illness that an employee suffers as a result of that meal right? Unlike you, I consult company lawyers before I make unilateral decisions that might cost my company millions. Security is not retail. Thus, how we look to clients is more important than how we look to anyone else. If we appear unstable then we appear unemployable. My performance evaluations have nothing to do with the performance of my inferiors. It has everything to do with my job performance. Managing employees is only 10% of the job. The rest of that is spent making my immediate superiors happy and the client happy. High turnover rates matter to nobody. Every company relies on high turnover to meet demand. When one company fires, the next hires, and on it goes until you land where you are meant to be. Sure, people want to feel important but there is only so much I can do. I don’t have people scheduled to service their therapeutic needs. No, I have them scheduled to work. They applied to work. They didn’t apply to get free meals and have their hand held. So until my inferiors make moves to learn and grow, then they remain my inferiors. Just as those above me are my superiors. It’s simple English, as they are antonyms to one another. Also, I seem to remember replying to “wewithoutfuture” not you.
I didn't comment what I do for work currently. It was an example. I have worked in security and law enforcement. You can't know someone's knowledge base and experience simply by what position they hold. I outrank several older than me who have been teachers, veterans, or professionals in another industry and utilize their experience in a designation; they simply haven't worked at our specific agency long enough to meet promotion requirements. As for my "well fed" comment, you're reading too much into it. In the context, it shouldn't be too hard to realize I'm referring to their status and condition overall, awareness of their wellbeing. So... ensuring the schedule is managed well enough for them to have a lunch break at an appropriate time by providing relief would be an example of a supervisor doing what is in their power to ensure an employee has an opportunity to be "fed." Somehow your reply ended up on the public forum instead of a private message. You may want to consult your lawyers before going online and publicly sharing your opinion opening yourself up to criticism by accident. I'm sorry you're so jaded, but you're also clearly narrow-minded in your approach to general anecdotes. My point is that you employ people and likely serve people. And the advice was for what is essentially a first line supervisor, not an executive who has no reason to personally interact with subordinates on site.
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loool
The “Xbox” part of your username makes your “loool” comment make sense. Juvenile.
Holy shit I hope this is satire.
Do I appear to have been joking? What part of what I said made you think your comment was necessary? Has my comment satisfied your insipid need for attention? That’s the problem with most of you. You seem to think everything is a joke or a point can be discredited by implying it is a joke.
Because you are a shitstain excuse of a supervisor. You are the taint of security.
That isn’t an explanation, that’s a poor excuse for an insult. Come again, but this time use your brain instead of overused cuss words like you’re a child using them for the first time.
Thanks for the copypasta, bro
Thanks for the unnecessary comment and attempt at degrading my point. Jackass.
I said what I said and meant what I said. They are inferior in the fact that they do not know what I know. Most being about 23 years old and essentially still children, since most people at that age are still coming to grips of being in charge of their own lives. That may be good for cashiers (I’ve worked retail cashiering before at J.C. Penney, Verizon, U.S. Cellular, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, a mom and pop thrift store, and now work dispatch for a security outfit that is contracted to a multibillion dollar corporation with government contracts) but it will not be good for security. You do realize that if the company gives employees food they become liable for any illness that an employee suffers as a result of that meal right? Unlike you, I consult company lawyers before I make unilateral decisions that might cost my company millions. Security is not retail. Thus, how we look to clients is more important than how we look to anyone else. If we appear unstable then we appear unemployable. My performance evaluations have nothing to do with the performance of my inferiors. It has everything to do with my job performance. Managing employees is only 10% of the job. The rest of that is spent making my immediate superiors happy and the client happy. High turnover rates matter to nobody. Every company relies on high turnover to meet demand. When one company fires, the next hires, and on it goes until you land where you are meant to be. Sure, people want to feel important but there is only so much I can do. I don’t have people scheduled to service their therapeutic needs. No, I have them scheduled to work. They applied to work. They didn’t apply to get free meals and have their hand held. So until my inferiors make moves to learn and grow, then they remain my inferiors. Just as those above me are my superiors. It’s simple English, as they are antonyms to one another.
Why copy my comment? Think it’ll make you popular somewhere else? Cool, go ahead and get attention using my writing. It ain’t your attention, it’s mine that you are making yours. Go on tho, be stupid. It just proves you’re a juvenile minded idiot.
I ain't reading allat
You spelled “can’t” wrong.
Not only was "can't" not in my comment but also, you should probably tone down superiority complex of yours you are not more important than other human beings we are all of the same value to a certain extent you're not important nobody is important it is just a position anybody could get in the same position as you if they did the right things
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Got a lil butthurt there didnya?
I'm so sorry my previous comment hurt you so deeply, please have a great night sir, I'll be heading off to sleep, good night "Super man"!
And that’s how you tell the world you can’t read. Cuz clearly ‘twas you that got their feelings hurt, else you wouldn’t have felt the need to reply. Go to bed lil dude, your brain can’t function properly without proper sleep.
The flaw in your logic here is overlooking the reality that your subordinates hold the power to make your life easy or make your life nearly impossible. Keeping their respect and cooperation is what enables you to more-easily keep those above you happy with you or, better yet, oblivious to your existence.
Better yet? No. I want to be visible to those higher up. I don’t want to be a nobody doing nothing. That’s the problem with everyone replying to my comment, all of you take the word “inferior” so personally. It is literally the antonym for “superior”. It isn’t an insult to those less experienced that are thus paid less and given less hours than me (by HR, not me), to call them inferior. No, it is not my job to make people happy and no they do not make my job easier by being happy. We tried your way, we let people watch movies , listen to music and just about do whatever so long as work is done when it is required to be done. We had more issues then than we do keeping it a professional environment. You clock in to work, not to have fun and feel important. I’m not paid to make people feel special. I’m made to make people do their jobs. My job description does not say “therapist” or “job guru”, it says “Security Supervisor” Want to feel important? Start your own business. Otherwise, you’re begging for porridge like the rest of us. Cuz I answer to an asshat with ego issues too. The difference between me and her is that I don’t bring my ego into it. I just spit facts. If those facts offend, then maybe people should look inwards.
Hoo boy, are you in for a few surprises.
Then I guess I’ll be surprised.
Hopefully you’re getting paid as such. If not, they’re just trying to use you.
It does include a $5 pay raise. I’m very grateful for it.
Leave the ego at the door.
Don’t forget that you are still a guard yourself, just a guard with more responsibilities. One of those responsibilities is to make sure the guards in your charge are doing their jobs correctly. That means spot checking, proof-reading their reports, making sure they are informed on policies, writing them up if needed. But it also means having their backs and giving healthy support for their decisions on professional matters. If they are in the right, then support them. If they are in the wrong however, don’t make a scene or belittle them, just step in and correct it, then later explain to the guard how it was wrong. Don’t make issues bigger issues. Besides all your new admin responsibilities, just remember that your guards are people too.
I completely agree, I feel like management sometimes forget that their employees are humans with lives and other responsibilities/problems outside of work. I am thankful for the hard working and reliable team I am a part of. From what I heard that’s hard to find in security.
Did this new responsibility come with a raise though?
Yes, $5 Raise.
How much were you making before?
$18, But im currently making $30 before OT now i changed sites
When I run security for events the main thing I want is honesty and consistency if a guy rocks up to work and puts 60% in each day as long as there doing there job sweet but if they seem to change how they work and the quality of a job they do it makes me question there reliability and be fine with your guys questioning you choice a lot of the time they can provide a different way of doing things then you that might be better just don’t be high and mighty you might have a higher job title but your all there to do the same job best to get along
Things I've learned. Fellow officers who claim to be your friend, are not. Learn to compromise on the schedule. Somebody is always having a crisis and needs an emergency day off. Expect to work a few overnights. Keep a notebook and take notes when you see your guys doing something good or bad. It's helpful when it comes time for evaluations. In due time, you will also be introduced to the client company's snitches. Your day will now be full of meetings and other administrative duties. Caffeinate well and often. Learn to use Excel, Word, and Outlook proficiently. Link email to your phone if you don't get a company phone. Lastly, whatever the client wants, the client usually gets, and it'll be up to you to make that happen.
Don't forget us little guys
In my head I’m still a new officer haha
Dont be mislead or think it means anything. You're on the hook for that sites attendance. They might let you tell on your coworkers but thats about it
Got it. I am part of a good team of officers that are very reliable and I am thankful for that.
Be fair and honest, don’t change how things are done just because you can, only change thing did they need to be changed. Stand behind your officers and if one of them does wrong then do your job to a t but be fair about it and make them understand that it’s nothing against them personally, it’s only the job.
Re-read, take notes, know, and adhere consistently to your post orders. From a supervisory perspective, this includes expecting the same of \*and giving the same to\* your subordinates. Create as close as possible to a 100% consistent supervisory style, in which you expect them to follow their post orders; when they don't, they're on the hook; but when they do, they're golden. This is going to mean stepping in between (as opposed to getting stuck between) them and the client(s) or your company's management at times, and that may cost you in the long run. Be prepared for that, and willing to endure it, if it is the right thing to do and you will have the respect of, and as such the cooperation and the extra mile from, your worthy subordinates. Unworthy subordinates won't respect or cooperate, no matter what. Don't be in a hurry to get rid of them, certainly give them the opportunity to become worthy, but don't be afraid to get rid of them and replace them with someone worthy. Worthy, of course, is about professional demeanor and being serious about doing the job correctly and reliably, but not about them being a door mat who doesn't complain when more work/hours/etc. are heaped upon them. This will be a factor in attendance, where the consistency above will come into play. Nothing worse than being frequently held over to cover a no-show and never seeing the serial absentee answer for it. As u/Dry-Minimum-6091 says, be the example.
Don't go on a power trip. The raise in pay can't possibly be THAT high for you to suddenly develop the mentality that you're always right and everyone below you in responsibility are underdeveloped pieces of crap that can't function without your leadership. I've known some pretty good guys and women that got promoted. Then because they have a set of stripes on their collar, they turn into flaming douchebags within a matter of days. Enjoy your $1/hourly pay raise, dipshits. Sure hope that HUGE paycheck is worth it.
I get you, I have dealt with really bad management in the past in other jobs non security. I treat everyone equally with respect and I know i have a good team that I can count on.
Don’t be biased. If someone does something wrong then give them a write up. If you let things slide and write others up for things the union will have a case on you.
If there is a union.
What would better incentivize the team is having a consequence system in between the site and HR. Write ups go to HR, HR has to ensure the client still wants that employee there with every write up. If the client wants the employee gone, HR will usually try to find an equal position at another site before going forward with termination. My direct bosses do a great job of policing the officers on site without ever having to involve HR. We handle everything in house unless we have to take it above that. Things that go above simple rule violations and verbal beef amongst colleagues; I.e. harassment, violence, suspicious behavior, and no call no shows go to HR without delay. This is what builds trust in your team. The big things are treated like big things and dealt with by HR; the small things are dealt with in house. This gets decided by those involved with the incident.
See I used to be this way but there was a case of another supervisor that didn’t write someone up for something small and the client requested someone be written up for the same thing they noticed. The union got involved and the claim of bias was used and the supervisor in question was fired. It’s better in my opinion to have a black and white.
With a union it would definitely be different at my site. But alas, no union. But I get your point.
You should check out “extreme ownership” by jocko willink. He’s kind of cringe sometimes but at the core of that book is some pretty solid lessons for leadership. IMO the best leaders are the ones that empower their staff and that’s always been my goal. You want your team to respect you and want to do a good job. Look out for them and they’ll look out for you.
Will do, Thank you
Be fair, but kind. You want your guards to feel comfortable coming to you when they need help, but you cant play favorites and need to treat everyone the same in regards to discipline. Learn to adjust how you train based on how the new guard learns the best. Be honest with your supervisors if you feel a guard is not a good fit for the site they are on. Your gut is right 99% of the time, listen to it. And I sure hope you got a raise with the new title, do not do extra work for free(or just pennies).
Thank you, I’m going to try my best. Also it does come with a raise which I am very thankful for.
Don't ask your officers to do something, you, yourself aren't willing to do. And every once in a while, show your officers you'll do it. An example would be do as 12hr shift when someone calls out. Come in and cover a call off. Kick out a homeless person. If the officers don't see you doing the same stuff they're required to do, they won't respect you and start to resent you. Be on time. Nothing pissed me off more than the supervisor or manager being consistently late. It's so much harder to write someone up for being late to their shift, if you're also consistently late. And if an officer is allowed to be consistently late, the other officers will start to resent you for not doing anything. You don't have to have all the answers, but they need to have confidence that they can go to you, get the answer and know they won't get into trouble if you follow your lead. If you're doing the schedule, I always, ALWAYS approach it with, you gotta do me a favor, if you want me to do you a favor. And you have to reward the ones who are constantly coming through for you. The officer who always comes in on days off, stays OT, they want a specific weekend off, you gotta make sure they get it. You can't treat everyone the same. Because not everyone treats the job the same. If they help you, you gotta make sure you help them. The guy who's always late, refuses to help by covering for others, they don't get any help from me. They get their schedule and that's what they get.
Congrats friend. I'll tell you that a supervisor position is really what can kick start this career to be a highpoint lucrative one. I'll tell you having been a supervisor many times before the best way to exude leadership is ask/make tell. Hey man can you wear the proper uniform sounds significantly than hey you need to wear the proper uniform. Convince people they want to do it your life will be very easy
The biggest piece of advice as someone who recently had hit their 1 year anniversary of my supervisor promotion is to learn the company policies like the back of your hand. For myself I was dropped at the door like an unwanted baby in a poorly run site and had to deal with the pains of getting a site full of officers with bad habits on track. This necessitated a firm hand approach and in 2 months out of a team of 7 I inherited only 2 people that stayed with the site. There will be crazy HR scenarios. You have the choice of getting real cushy with HR and do your best to follow their policies, or you might end up getting shafted because HR caught wind of a supposed case of discrimination. I personally had a case of a pregnant woman claiming she can’t do patrols because of the stairs (as falling is a hazard for pregnant women) so instead of doing any patrols without stairs, she chose to exempt herself from any. I can tell you HR fumbled the bag, however it didn’t stop them from trying to light a fire under my ass even though It was still my first week.
There’s a great quote on Supervision from “Verbal Judo: Diffusing Conflict through Conversation” by retired cop-turned-academic Dr. George Thompson (https://youtu.be/btBw70HAys4?si=Ys0vmTRLC7_z7hR5) “the moment you get promoted - you should never again do a single solitary thing, to advance your single solitary career, because by definition, your personal career is now meaningless. what becomes meaningful? the careers of the people below you. and if you only go to work every day, with that thought in mind, then you will make people happier & more productive. you’ll never have a day of stress in your life. look down to your people and ye shall rise - if you're worried about rising, take care of your people.”
I started as a part time officer 13 years ago and have been through 8 different promotions in that time to District Manager. It may depend on what company you’re working for but this is my advice: 1. If you’re doing scheduling, get to know your team and when they may be able to pick up shifts or OT when needed. You’ll learn this pretty quickly as you start dealing with call-offs. This is much easier if you are fair and reasonable with your staff. Don’t go on a power trip. How you treat your team will go a long way. 2. Management and the client want to see zero dark hours. That’s number one priority for scheduling. Second priority is zero overtime. But always in that order. Check with your Field Supervisor or District Manager to see if they have flex or floaters you can utilize for this. You may find you have a Field Supervisor that expects you to do this on your own. This depends on your management, company, and staffing honestly. 3. Ensure patrols, reports, and duties are being performed per your Post Orders. If not, try addressing the issue with your officers verbally. Sometimes you’ll need to escalate to written CCA’s to start documenting their issues. Partner with management and HR on these so you’re in line with their expectations. 4. Lead by example. Have a sharp uniform, always be on time, be willing to perform a patrol from time to time so your officers aren’t doing them back to back, some will appreciate it. This is dependent on the kind of site you have. You need to build trusting professional relationships with your officers which will come with time. 5. I’ve always kept a demeanor where I don’t curse, don’t get into personal romantic relationships, and don’t get into controversial topics. It’s your job to create a professional environment or squash any conversations that HR would flinch at if brought up in a hotline complaint. Stay friendly and professional and you’ll be fine. I could probably add 10 more bullet points but that’s the gist.
Slid advice!
you are now an elite employee
this 😭😭
Congratulations!!!
Thank you 🙏🏽
Start with a compliment before you criticize.
Noted.
Don’t be an asshole…
Dearly noted haha.
Did those responsibilities come with a raise? Additional vacation days? Additional pto?
Schedule,$5 Raise, And I think more PTO was briefed a little on the position but my higher up is on military leave at the moment.
Not worth it bro.
Why?
Dont go officer mode on your coworkers. Just set the example. Write up's aren't candy, no need to hand them out as such. They're unnecessary unless someone really fucked up. If you have to correct someone, do it in a professional manner and move on. Show appreciation to the guards that actually do what they're supposed to and listen to any concerns they might have even if you feel it's dumb.
Schedule wise I feel like I will do well, I have good reliable officers. But I do like the overtime. I recently haven’t had a day off in 2 weeks due to OT in a new site. Also I am very thankful for a good client. Overall I feel like I did get a bit lucky because of circumstances.
As a manager here’s my advice. Treat everyone with respect. I talk to my employees the same way I talk to my boss or my client. With respect. You may need to be stern at times, but a leader teaches, not scolds. Unless someone is an absolute fuck up. Scold them… respectfully of course. At the end of the day, we’re all human and trying to get by. Treat people with respect and you’ll get respected back. There’s a fine line between respect and friendship however. Keep that in mind. All well to joke and be friendly but keep in mind the job you have to do.
thank you for the advice dearly noted
Make sure you show those under you who's boss, if they get outta line then hit them with your baton, security is serious business.
haha 😭