Developing the Right Skills and Mindset

In recent years we have witnessed a divergence from teaching the fundamental skills needed to be successful in this profession giving way to the more thrilling aspects such as shooting or driving because that is what people are willing to pay for.

Don’t get me wrong, these skills are important, and this is where regular training will help you master the practical, but what about the thinking processes that precede given actions?

While certain hard skills are necessary for any position, employers increasingly look for job applicants with certain soft skills. That's because it's generally easier for an employer to train a new employee in a hard skill (such as how to follow SOPs) than to train an employee in a soft skill (such as tact and diplomacy).

What are the most important skills that companies are looking for?

There are some skills and qualities that employers require of all applicants for employment, regardless of the position they are hiring for. These are called soft skills, and they include the interpersonal skills and attributes you need to succeed in the workplace. They also include the professional skills that are essential for workplace success.

Of course, there are the more tangible skills you need in order to do the job effectively. These are called hard skills, and they are the specific knowledge and abilities required to do the job. You’ll need both for most jobs, and it's important to show employers that you have the skills they need when you're applying and interviewing for jobs.

Below is a list of some of the skills that employers consider as most important when recruiting and hiring employees. In order to get your application noticed be sure to incorporate the skills you have that are required for the position for which you are applying in your resume and cover letter. Also, highlight your most relevant skills during job interviews.

1. Analytical

Employees need to be able to figure things out, so you will need to have some analytic skills to succeed in the workplace. The skills you need, and the level of skills required will vary depending on the job and the industry. In conjunction with being able to analyse, employees are expected to be able to organize, plan and prioritize effectively.

2. Communication

The ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, is essential, no matter what job you have or industry you work in. You will need to be able to communicate effectively with employees, managers, and customers in person, online, in writing and/or on the phone.

3. Interpersonal

Interpersonal skills, also known as people skills, are the skills you use to interact and engage with people. It is not unusual for someone to be hired purely because of his or her ability to connect with people as that could trump the other skills the employer might be seeking, so be sure yours are up to par. Your interpersonal skills will be evaluated during your job interviews, so it's important to prepare for the interview so you are as comfortable and confident as possible when interviewing.

4. Leadership

When companies hire for leadership roles, they seek employees who can successfully interact with employees, colleagues, clients and others. Even if you're not applying for management jobs, leadership is a valuable skill to bring to the employer.

5. Positive Attitude

Attitude might not be everything, but it’s extremely valuable. Employers want employees who are positive, even in stressful and challenging circumstances. They want to hire applicants with a “can do” attitude, who are flexible, dedicated and who are willing to contribute extra, if necessary, to get the job done.

6. Teamwork

Regardless of the job, employers want to hire people who are team players who are cooperative and work well with others. They don’t want employees who are difficult to work with. When you are interviewing be sure to share examples of how you worked well on a team.

7. Technical

The technical skills you need will vary, of course, depending on the job. However, most positions require at least some technical skills. Recruiters and hiring managers are looking for candidates who can jump right in on the first day of work and start helping the company achieve its goals. That means finding people with the right technical skills to get the job done.

Technical skills are the abilities and knowledge needed to perform specific tasks. They are practical, and often relate to mechanical, information technology, mathematical, or scientific tasks. These technical skills require training and experience to master. They are also typically a type of hard skill that can be taught in a classroom, and can be defined, evaluated, and measured (as opposed to soft skills, which are personal attributes that help you succeed at work).

This list of technical skills can come in handy for resumes, cover letters, job applications, and interviews. Included is a detailed list of some technical skills that are most desired across industries including ours.

Data Analysis

Nearly every industry today relies on data, whether it is data about their clients or the success of their product. While it is easy for companies to get data, they need employees who can collect, organize, and then interpret that data.

Project Management

This might seem to be more of a soft skill than a hard skill, but project management is critical for all technical projects. Being a good project manager means being an effective leader, delegating tasks, and measuring the success of each project.

Social Media Experience

Throwing a phrase like “experienced in social media” into your resume is no longer enough to impress most employers – today, so many people use social media. However, if you can explain your experience with certain media platforms and quantify your results, you will be able to stand out from the competition.

Technical Writing/Computer Literate

Many jobs that involve written communication require you to explain complex things in a way that is easy to understand. You might have to send messages to clients or write press releases, web content, or manuals for clients. Being able to communicate complex ideas in a clear way will make you stand out in many jobs.

Let Us Help You Showcase Your Skills

Allowing us to help you develop the right skills and mindset (a mindset is the thinking processes behind a given action) will enable you to showcase your top skills and qualities when you're job hunting.

Please contact craig@pbagroup.com to learn more about how we can help you.

PHEM Skills | FREC or FPOS

Being a member of The Faculty of Pre-Hospital Care of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh means that you are part of a proud tradition of innovation and excellence that stretches back over more than 500 years, but which has its eye firmly on the future.

Today, in its sixth century, the College continues to promote the highest standards in education, assessment and practice. It also contributes whole-heartedly, directly and indirectly, to the health and well-being of millions, through the dedication and skills of its Membership as they constantly strive to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients in their care.

On completion of recognised qualifications learners will be able to apply for membership to the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Faculty of Pre-Hospital Care (FPHC).

The FPHC recognition structure has changed from 1st January 2019 and to be recognized at any level the practitioner must have all the skills at that level. Practitioners may have additional skills from higher levels, but this does not mean that they are operating at that level. The examples given relate to public service roles and can be used to benchmark other medical threat and training requirements.

New Level | Equivalence

Provider | Competency framework A, B + C

• A | First Aider (management of an unconscious, bleeding or arrested patient). Certificated by a non-national organization.

• B | First Level Responder, nationally certified and qualified to meet statutory requirements within the workplace {EFAW, FAW}

• C | Nationally certificated Pre-hospital Responder (use of airway adjuncts & oxygen) e.g. Community First Responder {AoFAQ L3 Award in First Person on Scene Intermediate (24 GLH), QA L3 certificate in First Response Emergency Care (FREC) (35 GLH)}

Advanced Provider | Competency framework D, E + F

• D | Nationally certificated non health care Professional Pre-hospital Provider caring for patients as a secondary role e.g. Police Officers in Specialist Roles, Fire Service IEC, equivalent UKSAR trained personnel, Enhanced Community First Responder {FPHC D13 Enhanced FPOS Skills (40 GLH), BTEC L4 Certificate for First Person on Scene (FPOS) (88 GLH)}

• E | Nationally certificated non health care Professional Pre-hospital Provider caring for patients as a primary role e.g. UKSAR, some military personnel and specialist certificated police officers and firefighters. {BTEC L 4 Extended Certificate for First Person on Scene (FPOS) (98 GLH)}

• F | Non-registered health care professional e.g. Ambulance Technician, CMT1.

Executive Protection – Realities of the Industry and the Ugly Truth

This is a great article published by Denida Zinxhiria Grow on December 30, 2018

I haven’t written in a long time, so I thought to say goodbye to this Year with an old topic. The real world of Executive Protection with all its truths and myths.

Many newcomers in the profession have a completely different idea of what the profession is, based on what they have heard or what Hollywood tells them it is. This lack of “truth” either leaves them disappointed or leaves them vulnerable to making mistakes while on duty.

It is common in our industry to see many of our colleagues posting pictures on the internet social media sites of “selfies” taken in first class airline seats or in the client’s private jet. More selfies show them with their feet up on a suitcase claiming ‘’another flight’’, or posting from 5 and 6 star hotel rooms or from the finer restaurants, or next to a limousine parked next to a jet.

The reality is that the majorities of these pictures are either staged or were taken while not actually working a security detail. I have seen colleagues, ask or even offer to pay to stand next to a private jet. They put on their best 100 dollar suit, shiny 30 dollar Timex watch and 12 dollar dark sunglasses and “pose” next to someone else’s 10 million dollar jet. And I have seen aircraft tail numbers show up in these photos and for fun, ran the numbers, located the owners, and even tracked the flights.

The reality is anyone can pose anywhere and anytime and make it look like they are working. Anyone can ask a limo driver to take a picture of them next to that limo. When you are in such dire need to brag about your job to others that you put your client’s health and safety at risk, who in our industry would ever work with you or recommend you to others?

If I could only call out the people I know who were on vacations with their families and they post pictures pretending to be on a detail. I even know people who traveled to third world countries to meet their ‘’online’’ girlfriend or boyfriend and they posted pictures as working a detail in those countries.

The reality is, when you work for someone, it is rare to have a first class airline seat next to them on a 6 hour flight. Most clients, no matter how wealthy they are will book you an economy seat. Yes, there are a few clients who will book first class for their CPOs but to qualify to work for these clients you must already be well established in the industry and have a plethora of industry history and references.

The reality is that when you work with a well-trained team, you will work on rotations and schedules that allow for only two things: keeping the client safe and getting to bed to get enough sleep to be able to do it again tomorrow. Anyone who has the time to ‘’enjoy’’ taking pictures has probably too much time on their hands and maybe isn’t working at all. And if you are working alone, you cannot spare the laps in attention to your client to focus on yourself.

I have been in rotations where after work I was so tired that I didn’t have the energy or interest to call my family. This is usually due to working long shifts alone which is a situation worth discussing in another article.

The reality is when your client travels, they may be working or on vacation but if you travel with them, you are always working. You will always get less sleep than your client. When they finally retire for the evening, you are up another few hours planning and preparing for the next day. When they wake, it might be because you are responsible for waking them, which means you are up a couple of hours before them.

While working, you have to focus on your client’s needs. Finding time to eat and go to the bathroom is not your client’s responsibility or even on their mind. If you want to eat, you have to find your own way to do it quickly. If you need to empty your bladder, you have to leave sight of your client and return quickly. If it is not safe to leave your client, then you choose to either hold it, or make other arrangement. This is hard enough as a male but as a female, it is nearly impossible to improvise. Again, a subject for future articles.

The reality is you will need to find time to eat, sleep, shower, go to the bathroom, write reports, call your family, pay your bills, clean your clothes, charge your equipment batteries, train, stretch, exercise, and accomplish other normal life tasks and all outside of the client’s view.

You will find yourself doing things you wouldn’t do in your personal life, because you have to adapt to your client’s activities. And you will need to be an expert in your client’s extracurricular activities to enable you to not just accompany them but to identify threats to their safety. Riding elephants or horses, scuba diving, skydiving, hunting, mountain biking… And if you know you are not qualified, learn when to partner with or hire your own replacement for the activity.

You will find yourself in presence of heated family conversations and you are asked to take a side. You know its unprofessional to choose a side and you have to find a diplomatic answer within seconds. You will see behaviors and listen to words that will challenge your own personal and professional ethics. And again you will adapt or fail.

You will find yourself in challenging environments too. (I developed asthma working in Mumbai), you may get food or water poisoning, malaria, and even get worms from food.

You will have to work with people who have no training or they have been trained differently than you. Some “professionals” in our industry are great with weapons or driving but have no concept of controlling body odor. They speak 4 languages but can’t drive a car, they can cook any meal out of any cookbook but can’t provide first-aid on an insect bite or gunshot wound.

The reality is that people who come from different cultures and have different perspectives regarding punctuality, performance of their duties, and the common traits of professionalism have no clue that every decision they make from their clothing, language skills, hygiene habits and skill are all measured by the clients who would hire them.

The reality is that true professionals will not let themselves be photographed by others and certainly would never photograph themselves while working. And they will not want to work with those who do.

Professionals will know the difference between ethics and etiquette and follow the rules of each. Doing anything to compromise your client’s business or personal privacy is not just a mistake, it is a catastrophic attack on my industry and my ability to earn a living in it. I will continue to counter these attacks with my articles.

Professionals will know how to dress for any occasion their clients may invite them into and know how to negotiate with the client to avoid unsafe activities and conditions.

Professionals will know how to do one-hundred things in the company of their client that will never be acknowledged or appreciated and a thousand things near their client that will never be seen or known.

The reality is if you seek recognition in this industry for the function you are being paid to perform, you are not a true professional and have no business in the Executive Protection Industry. You will be looked upon as a cancer to those of us who remain silent and invisible while in the company of our clients.

Denida Zinxhiria

Founder & CEO

Athena Worldwide LLC

Athena Academy

Nannyguards

http://www.athenaworldwide.com

http://www.nannyguards.com