How to Hire Security Guards

Hiring a security guard can be a daunting challenge. After all, this is the person that you are entrusting with the safety of your employees and/or business.

If you hire the wrong person for the job, it can cost you — salary, and not to mention the costs and time associated with training a guard to the particulars of your business.

And, in an industry known for its rate of employee turnover, it really is a corporate advantage to hire the right type of security guard from the very start.

Many companies use in-house guards — security guards that are hired by the client directly — in lieu of outsourcing security needs to a security guard company.

Still, though, you will need a basic primer on how-to hire security guards, whether you hire a guard outright or you elect to hire a private security guard company to manage the process.

Follow these tips to hire the best type of security guard for your business:

Do a Criminal Background Check

This is the beginning stage of any prospective security guard candidate. Don’t save this until the very end; make it the beginning of the hiring process.

Why? Undertaking this step at the very beginning of the process will ensure that you know you have a candidate with a verified background, instead if wasting time, money and resources on the “perfect” candidate only to discover that they don’t pass a background check.

The background check will reveal a few basic things, such as criminal history and whether the candidate has felonies, an arrest record, and if they have outstanding warrants.

Generally, it’s best to let candidates know up front that they must pass a background check at your local police department; that way, they can decide if they’d like to proceed.

If a candidate refuses to consent to a background check, it’s a huge red flag that they have something to hide. A good policy is that if a prospective security guard refuses a background check, you should throw their resume in the trash and go on to the next candidate.

Do More Extensive Checks if Required

Typically, a criminal background check is sufficient; however, in some cases, you may need a more thorough background check, such as an education and a credit check. Generally, these types of checks are a bit more expensive, but are totally warranted in many cases.

If you need a certified security officer, a security guard with state weapon certification requirements, or if education is important, a more extensive background check is required.

You may want a a credit history check if the security guard will handle large amounts of money or valuables, so you’d ideally weed out candidates with a lot of debt or a persistent history of money troubles.

It’s a general rule that you should always double check and never take the prospective security guard’s word on face value. Candidates will, and do, lie about their background in order to get the job.

It’s best to make sure you do a thorough vetting of prospective candidates to make sure that what and who they say they are is indeed accurate.

Warning Signs That a Prospective Security Guard Isn’t Right for You

Sometimes, the candidate that aces a background check may still not be the right type of guard for your business. That’s because there are often personal characteristics that go into whether a person is an excellent, average or poor security guard — characteristics that can’t be judged on paper.

This is what makes the interview process extremely important. Let’s face it, in the security world, there is usually only enough time for one interview, not two or three. So, make sure you ask the right kinds of questions to hire the right kind of guard during your interview.

Many large guard companies use personality tests, but I’m not a big fan of them. People know how to influence them to get favorable results. They’ll lie and give you the answer you want to hear instead of the answer that they’d actually do.

Instead, ask pointed questions about their background, including why they want the position and why they left certain jobs. Don’t do all the talking; let them talk. Usually, people will tell you what you want them to know if you let them.

For example, if a person tells you that they are a security guard because they’ve always wanted to be a cop, they are not a good candidate. You don’t want a hypercharged security guard who is confused about his duties; security guards aren’t the police.

Don’t automatically dismiss candidates who have held different jobs. Remember, this is a high turnover industry and many times candidates leave jobs for high pay.

If you don’t want to have to worry about these types of particulars, it’s best to leave hiring a security guard up to a licensed and insured security company. They will complete all or many of the steps for you.

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