Professional security guards are crucial for the safety of your company, property, and events. Well-reputed companies make sure their security guards are highly trained and prepared for the work. In addition to these key skills, there is another important factor that greatly contributes to their performance – their motivation.
Motivated security guards stay dedicated to their job and strive for excellence. They try to prevent problematic situations at all times, and even if something goes wrong, they aim to solve it effectively right at the moment.
Ways to Keep Your Security Guards Motivated
Ensure that your security guards are always motivated and ready to perform at their best by providing them with motivational incentives. These seven important factors can be considered to make sure your guards do not become discouraged or apathetic.
1. Become Acquainted With Your Security Guards
Treat your security guards in the same way you treat your other employees. The foremost method of keeping your guards motivated is by understanding them more closely. The best thing you can do is to give attention to them and build a strong bond with them. This way, your guards will feel valued and appreciated.
When you better understand your guards, you’re able to assign the right job to the right person. They’ll be responsible and perform better when their jobs meet their aptitude and capabilities. As a result of better performance, they will stay motivated and continue showing great results.
2. Equip Them With The Right Tools
Patrolling is quite a challenging task, even for the security guards. And, if they lack modern gadgets and appropriate tools, they won’t be able to work efficiently. They feel immensely low and demoralized when they fail to handle the situations due to the lack of resources.
Therefore, provide and familiarize them with the latest technology to keep their motivation levels elevated. This way, they will feel valued, equipped, and motivated. When they know you’ve invested for them to work at their best, your guards won’t give excuses or be lazy.
3. Appreciate Their Hard Work
Having to stay on your toes the entire shift isn’t easy. Particularly when it comes to guards who patrol the perimeter; this is a physically demanding job. Here, being appreciative can make a difference. Don’t only appreciate them when they catch criminals and prevent robbery, but appreciate them every day as they keep your space safe by constant alertness round the clock.
4. Provide a Proper work Environment
Motivating your guards is a lot easier if they have a comfortable working environment. Despite being so basic, it is the most influential factor. They should have a separate room or area to store their personal belongings, get ready for work, and spend their break times. Make sure that their places are clean and big enough and not cluttered.
5. Clearly Communicate The Rules and Guidelines
The basic aim of hiring a security guard is to increase the safety of your workplace or home. Therefore, before you hire guards, take a moment and think about what you want them to do. Make sure all the written rules and guidelines match your verbal sayings and are communicated clearly.
Make sure you have prepared a professional job description and listed all the duties you’re expecting from the security guard. In this way, the guard as well as you will have an easier time. Your guards will know what to do and what not to do.
6. Provide Training Sessions Regularly
Another important factor to keep your guards motivated is to ensure their skills are up to mark by scheduling proper training sessions. There is no reason for them to believe their skills are limited based on their age. They should be learning continuously and dynamically. In addition to making them more capable, it will give them incentives to work harder to improve their skills and to get promoted.
7. Compensation must be adequate
When all is said and done, money is what counts. The main reason employees work is to earn money. Your security guards need to be properly compensated if you want them to remain motivated. Salary increases, cash prizes for heroic actions, or performing well on duty and yearly increments can highly increase their motivation.
Bottomline
There are security guards at almost every company facility. They are present at the front desk, around buildings, reception areas, and in industrial areas. The guard also serves as a sign and representative of the security function of the entire company. A dependable security force is essential to the safety of your establishment. Therefore, it’s crucial to keep your guards motivated and perform well on a 24/7 basis.