Memorandum Essay, Research Paper

Memorandum

TO:Mr. Thomas Williams

FROM:Ms. Loukitchar Jeremy

DATE:April 3, 2001

SUBJECT:Proposal for Security Guard Service at Martins Terminal # 2

Due to our growing needs for security at the Martins Terminal #2 (19? estimated loss from stolen goods amounts to $200,000), I recommend we engage a contract security service to control the flow of personnel, vehicles, and materials/products entering and departing from our terminal. After recently adding a public food court to our vicinity, a number of people have had access to our company. This new feature makes it hard to determine whether this thief is internal or external. Thou we always have loss in our company, recent records from the Loss Prevention Office has indicated a significant rise since the opening of our public food court. After interviewing six company security offices in the area, I narrowed my investigation to three security services: Hamilton, Guardsmen, and Security Unlimited.

Guardsmen will allow our final approval on assigned guards and will provide results of all reference checks, physical exams, and polygraph tests. Their representative has also allowed access to salary schedules and benefits packages, those being equal to ours at entry-level positions. The guards receive 12 hours of instruction and two days? personal supervision on the job. As a local company, Guardsmen schedules weekly unannounced supervisory visits and can be flexible in providing backup support.

Proposal

I propose we offer a contract to Guardsmen security at an annual cost of $75,750.

This recommendation is based on the following criteria and investigative information from Hamilton, Security Unlimited, and Guardsmen.

Hiring Practices

The security company should be willing to go into detail about how guards are selected; all guards should be subject to final approval by our Martins representative. The security company should provide results of all reference checks, polygraph exams, and physical exams. Also, guards should have acceptable oral and written communication skills. Previous experience as military/civilian police would also be advantageous.

?None of the companies could guarantee its guards had previous military/civilian police experience or acceptable writing skills.

?Guardsmen meets all our hiring criteria except as noted in the previous sentence.

?Martins does not require their personnel to take polygraphs.

?Security Unlimited will not agree to furnish reference checks. This would suggest background checks are not always made, and such checks would, in my estimation, eliminate approximately 50 percent of all applicants.

Supervision

Martins should require regular weekly visits by an area supervisor. Without this backup supervision, Martins Terminal personnel will find themselves repeatedly involved in details of security management, supposedly provided by the security company itself.

?Guardsmen guarantees weekly unannounced supervisory visits.

?Hamilton?s procedures call for only ?unspecified? visits by its supervisors and would not state how often these visits occur.

?Security Unlimited guarantees weekly unannounced supervisory visits.

Methodology

1. Compensation

Hourly rates should be comparable to those paid terminal personnel at entry-level positions, with scheduled increases based on merit. The company?s benefits package should also include uniforms and personal equipment, holiday and overtime compensation, vacations, hospitalization, and life insurance. Such compensation suggests permanence and more highly skilled workers.

?Guardsmen has provided all this requested information. Beginning salaries are comparable to those of our personnel, and raises are based on merit.

?Neither Hamilton nor Security Unlimited would provide the details of its benefits package, both merely saying it was ?adequate.?

?Security Unlimited?s beginning wage is far below that of our entry-level employees.

2. Training

Since no state certification is required, the company should provide training prior to posting personnel at the terminal. Guard training should include legal, authority, search/seizure, personal appearance and conduct, emergency plans, and safety. New personnel should work under personal supervision for at least 24 hours before assuming duties alone.

?Guardsmen provides 12 hours? training and two days? personal on-the-job supervision.

?Hamilton provides eight hours of training prior to assigning a guard to a permanent duty station, and minimal first-day personal supervision.

?Security Unlimited provides six hours of training but no personal on-the-job supervision.

3. Location

Companies should be located within 50 miles of our terminal to allow for close and frequent supervision and flexibility in providing backup personnel.

?All three companies are local.

Personnel

If you accept this proposal, I?d suggest implementation be turned over to Darrell Benjamin and myself with January 1, as our target date.

Darrell Benjamin: masters (1997) in Human Affairs and Business Operations. U.S.C. (University of South Carolina)

He comes fully qualified to deal with our problem areas.

Loukitchar Jeremy: B.S (1995) in Business Operations and Humanitarian. G.S.U. (Georgia State University)

I am fully capable and experience to take on this assignment.

Costs

Our requirements for sufficient security include one supervisor/instructor and three security officers (one officer to cover each of the three eight-hour shifts). Weekly, this should amount to 120 hours of straight time, eight hours of overtime, and the supervisor?s salary. Costs for the security service, of course, vary in line with how well the companies meet the above criteria:

?Guardsmen$75,750

?Hamilton$58,500

?Security Unlimited$63,385

Security services are like football tickets. If you want to sit on the 50-yard line, you must pay a fair price. However, if you can be satisfied with seats in the end zone, they come a little cheaper.

Feasibility

Guardsmen Security has had a successful history and comes highly recommended by companies that are or have used their services. Guardsmen security has also indicated in a guarantee to its customers to reduce thief or security violation within the first six to twelve months of implementation.

Finally, Together as a team, Mr. Benjamin and myself should be successful in eliminating this familiar problem of company loss, we have both been responsible, praised and rewarded for the 1996 capital increase of our former company Cabins & Son.