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ADDRESSING THE INSIDER THREATTHE SECURITY MANAUFACTURERS COALITION
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FEBRUARY 2016 VOLUME 22 ISSUE 1
February 2016 Aviationsecurityinternational26 To subscribe www.asi-mag.com/subscribe
Security Leadership
Where did all the time go? This year marks a significant milestone in my career and I really didn’t see it coming. 2016 finds me looking back
on a 25-year career in security. I can hardly believe how much time has passed since my manager at the International Telecommunication Union, the UN agency where this incredible journey began, asked me to “look after the security stuff”. She was someone I neither had the desire nor the courage to refuse, so I did as I was asked. Armed only with an abundance of inexperience, naivety and a notebook, I set out to find out what all this ‘security stuff’ was about and how I might be able to ‘look after’ it. I had absolutely no idea what was expected of me.
In the two and a half decades since, I still routinely find myself at a loss on how to solve a particular security problem. Armed perhaps with slightly more experience and slightly less naivety today (but never without the notebook!), I make no apology for not knowing, immediately, how to answer a question or solve a particular problem. I’ve come to rely heavily on the advice and support of a great many people around the world from whom I’ve learned so much and to whom I am both indebted and forever grateful.
Many of them have become great friends. Many of them are avid readers of Aviation Security International and I trust all of them will know I’m writing about them today, confident in the knowledge I would have struggled to achieve even half as much without their help.
Looking forward to the next 25 years, I wonder what challenges the next generation will face. And I worry about how they might deal with those challenges. What support will they have? Who will they go to for advice? What experience will they have? Will their work in security still be low-paid and under-valued? How will they lead their organisations and how will they work across boundaries, across government and industry, across geographies and cultures to effect change and lead us forward to a better, more secure future? I ask these questions because I honestly don’t know. And not knowing those answers does concern me.
So where are we today?Organisations responsible for security are under immense pressure and face a growing number of increasingly complex threats. New causes are driving new actors to exploit vulnerabilities and conduct attacks using entirely new methods of operation. We are witnessing the crisis of a generation on the borders of Europe as hundreds of thousands flee war-ravaged countries and failed States, who risk everything in pursuit of a better life, with many losing them along the way.
These issues are compounded by the sheer number of organisations responsible for security with new tools and techniques demanding procedures be rethought, impacting already strained operations.
So how can these organisations anticipate threats and still shape the industry’s future direction?
The answer, I firmly believe, lies in leadership.
The Security LandscapeThe security sector is in desperate need of leaders who can learn lessons from the past, prepare for the future, understand how they perform today and who are willing to become better leaders for themselves and their organisations tomorrow.
The range of threats faced by government, the private sector and the general public is increasing in both number and complexity. Transportation systems, particularly civil aviation, remain high value targets. Modus operandi have changed fundamentally, as has the profile of those seeking to carry out attacks. Against this backdrop, detection, identification and data-mining technologies continue to evolve, playing a vital role in shaping new security measures and countermeasures.
Ultimately, whatever cause or ideology drives terrorism and whatever laws and technologies are put in place to mitigate these threats, security always comes down to people – the hundreds of thousands of people who perform mission-critical tasks at the front line every single day and the people who lead and inspire them to perform to the absolute best of their abilities.
Poverty of LeadershipIn the 25 years of working in the sector, it is hard yet necessary to admit that the security industry suffers from a ‘poverty of leadership’. All too often, security staff are under-valued and regarded as low-skilled workers; their managers unaware of the leadership qualities they need; and those leading the organisation not having the time to evaluate how they lead or how to inspire the best from their people.
Combined, these factors form a compelling case to elevate the importance of leadership in security: to create an environment for today’s leaders to see the system as a whole, examine the global landscape, develop innovative and holistic solutions, anticipate future trends and provide strong direction that improves outcomes, activates leadership in their teams, attracts and retains talent and takes people with them.
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By Matthew Finn
“…the security sector is in desperate need of leaders who can learn lessons from the past, prepare for the future, understand how they perform today and who are willing to become better leaders for themselves and their organisations tomorrow…”
February 2016 Aviationsecurityinternational www.asi-mag.com 27
Potential BarriersThe appetite for this type of examination may be muted for a number of reasons. Some leaders may believe they can achieve these outcomes through further training or participating in industry conferences, or may feel uncomfortable with this type of ‘deeper’ intervention. Indeed, that may be the very reason it doesn’t currently exist.
My own experience has led me to conclude that the majority of conferences, valuable in their own way, only offer networking opportunities and a chance to listen to case studies from a cohort of speakers, myself included, who are regular features on the speaking circuit. For its part, training, whilst important for more junior and middle leaders in providing foundation knowledge and models for interpreting data, routinely fails to deliver either the insight or the behavioural change to develop people as leaders.
What could we achieve together?I believe, with the right approach and the right people, we can fundamentally change how our industry performs.
Together, we can collectively define and agree on the purpose of security and develop a compelling collective vision for the future – one that collaborates across imposed boundaries of each individual State, policy responsibility, organisation, department, private or public sector.
Together, we can share and learn lessons from the past, examine the current context and prepare for the future.
Together, we can develop innovative strategies to tackle the challenges leaders face. And, together, we can define the leadership needed to tackle these challenges and give leaders insight into their individual approaches and create a powerful network among security leaders around the world.
Start the ConversationIf now is not the right time to do this, then when is? We can of course continue to sit on the sidelines and opine how we might have done things differently or better. And we can continue to see problems in our industry yet fail to act upon them. Or we could start a conversation. And from that conversation, we can take action and effect vital, positive change in security and put leadership at the top of our agenda, become better leaders ourselves and create even better leaders in those who follow in our footsteps.
This is the conversation I want to have with today’s security leaders and hear, first hand, what their challenges are and how, together, we might work to address them. That’s why I’m investing in a forum to develop leadership in security for those who feel the same way so we can explore what we can achieve together. And I’m equally keen to hear from those who hold a different view or who are developing different ideas.
It’s about security. It’s about our industry. It’s about leadership. And it’s about time we all stepped up. The people who will be ‘looking after the security stuff’ for the next 25 years really need our help.
Matthew Finn is the Managing Director of AUGMENTIQ, an independent consultancy practice specialising in aviation, border and transportation security.
“…the security industry suffers from a ‘poverty of leadership’…”
