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What
are Post Orders?:
Post orders, often referred
to as guard manuals or security officer manuals, are the written
orders that direct the security officers' actions and must contain
all the basic information to cover foreseeable events the assigned
officers may encounter. Post orders are a component of
standard security practices. Any facility without an up to
date set of comprehensive post orders risks excessive and
unnecessary exposure to litigation, should a security related
premises liability event occur there.
Many Facilities Lack This
Necessary Manual:
Some contract services
provide fairly detailed post orders for large accounts, but most
rely on a generic manual common to all accounts, backed up by a page
or two of specifics. Some companies protected by proprietary
security officers boast comprehensive manuals, but most don't.
Without such a manual, security officers are placed in the position
of making decisions beyond their authority, which may invariably
prove to be wrong, or result in an internal politics debacle.
For example, many posts orders state the trunks of outbound
vehicles' will be checked, but provide no instructions to handle
unusual events, such as a person refusing to open the trunk, or
stolen assets or illegal drugs being observed.
Reasons for Outsourcing this
Project:
Any professional in house
security manager is probably capable of preparing a comprehensive
set of post orders. Most, however, must prioritize, and
continue to justify their position with "measurable
results." Often, therefore, this project is one
that gets put on the back burner. In other cases, these folks
are security professionals, but admittedly not professional writers,
and while they could get the job done in some fashion, the result
might be less than even they would be happy with. Substandard
post orders from a contract service, of course, expose the client to
vicarious liability. In spite of these considerations, the
most convincing argument for considering an outside security
consultant is cost effectiveness. At Loss Prevention Concepts,
Ltd., we have prepared over a hundred sets of post orders,
specifically applying to a variety of businesses and
facilities. What might take a professional security manager a
hundred hours or more to draft, would likely take us less than
twenty.
L.P.C., Ltd. Post Orders:
Like everything we do in the
consulting area, each project is significantly different. The
post orders we prepare are based on the client's needs and
desires. Our objective with these projects is to improve
accountability and give the security officers clear direction and
detailed instructions as to how to respond to predictable
situations. It is the client, however, who will outline the
desired response. Additionally, these orders act as a
reference for the officers, providing a role in their training, as
well as protecting them from adverse internal politics. For
instance, should a middle management supervisor complain that a
security officer unnecessarily caused delay by requiring a trunk or
package inspection, the security officer would avoid any problems by
having this procedural backup to document the responsibility to
conduct this check. (Or, if not part of the required
procedure, the officer would be clearly in the wrong unless there
was probable or reasonable cause.) Post orders we
prepare for clients don't just address emergencies, such as bomb
threats, snow emergencies, etc., but also cover routine duties such
as weighing trucks.
For Rate
Information On This Service, Please Click Below:
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