In the security area, CCTV systems are typically installed for surveillance purposes. However, surveillance can mean a number of things. In order to get the kind of performance you want from your system, you have to ensure that you define what surveillance is supposed to address.
It is quite possible that a company implements a sophisticated CCTV system and when it comes to actual surveillance, tells a number of operators to monitor screens for any kind of theft and leaves them to get on with this indefinitely. Sometimes these operators know little about the processes they are looking at, have not been through any kind of selection process, and have received no training in doing surveillance or the provision of knowledge on how they are working. When establishing a surveillance operation, one needs to have a management surveillance strategy that addresses the purposes, activities and expected outcomes.
An important initial consideration is the risk management requirements within the enterprise and how surveillance can contribute to this. Specific objectives and desired results for surveillance can be set to address specific risk areas within the organisation. Where possible, the economic impact of surveillance can be calculated to demonstrate potential savings from incidents that are detected or prevented. Some companies develop a risk management model that provides the basis for this.
Priorities
The priority of surveillance tasks relative to other security functions needs to be established and clearly stated. Because control rooms often incorporate a number of other security functions such as access control, alarm handling, fire etc, one should decide up front what weight should be given to surveillance. This has implications for how much time is spent on surveillance and when surveillance needs override other functions.
The danger is that operators get so busy with other tasks that they get very little opportunity to view monitors, never mind perform effective surveillance. It also has a direct impact on the quality of surveillance, when operators are available to detect incidents, and the type of incidents that operators can detect or concentrate on in the available time. It may be necessary to have dedicated surveillance operators, control rooms or functions to ensure that surveillance is able to achieve objectives. In the casino industry, for example, surveillance of gaming areas is totally separated from security functions. In the mining industry, separate dedicated surveillance functions are sometimes set up to provide a highly focused type of surveillance that complements the general monitoring.
The needs and concerns of other departments and disciplines within the organisation should be addressed as part of the strategy. Surveillance objectives need to be communicated and discussed with the production and other departments you work with. This is because many of the surveillance functions are done either on, or in conjunction with other departments. Surveillance is also best done when standards or procedures are established with client departments for their areas of responsibility. Part of creating a surveillance friendly environment is to ensure the area, work processes, procedures and behaviour of people is as conducive to identifying contraventions or theft as possible. This is best done in close consultation with the managers and staff of other departments where surveillance is being done. In many cases, rules and procedures need to be clarified for production processes so surveillance operators can make informed judgements. Unilateral action by surveillance may lead to a backlash by people who feel they are being disrupted unnecessarily or inappropriately targeted. Specific department needs based on risk factors also need to be established up front. These could involve production activities that involve a high level of value, moving of assets that are susceptible to robbery or people or handling conditions which are more vulnerable than others.
Intelligence information
There is a need to transform video material and coverage into investigation or intelligence information. An important part of surveillance is building up a comprehensive picture of what is happening in the areas being covered. Priorities in viewing targets, whether these are people or situations, also need to be established. Intelligence information also helps provide a focus to surveillance rather than having undirected general monitoring. This requires transforming video material, operator observations, and comments into a database of information that provides the basis for further analysis and investigation.
Effective ongoing surveillance requires quality control, review and auditing of video information gathered. Auditing and review of information is an important part of ensuring that the quality of viewing, the areas addressed, cameras used, and overall focus is appropriate and of a suitable quality. Further, review allows the detection of incidents that may have slipped through live surveillance. A significant number of incidents can be picked up on review. This is assisted by more time being available to study an action, repeat views, the use of slow motion play, and the possibility of querying situations and viewing alternative perspectives. The feedback provided from these activities to operators can provide a major enhancement to on-the-job performance. Who does this review or auditing and where it is done are important aspects to consider.
Additional non-security functions that could be accommodated within the security role need to be considered and their impact on the surveillance objectives need to be assessed. The addition of surveillance relating to production, quality control, or process control has the potential for additional funding and stakeholder commitment for the surveillance function. However, the focus and time demands relative to the other functions and priorities in the surveillance strategy do need to be defined and agreed on.
Control room design and arrangements, staffing requirements, training and the relationships with the rest of the organisation will all be influenced by what you want to do in your surveillance strategy. Often, however, an in-depth surveillance strategy comes after the CCTV systems have been put in. This can result in problems with work overload, inadequate coverage, inappropriate workstation and software design, sacrifices in what is covered under surveillance, and some confusion about priorities among operators. Unfortunately it is a fact of life that security departments are never likely to be given all the capital expenditure that they would like and certainly not the ideal manpower requirements.
Some management of risk and compromises on what can be covered will always be required. Determining strategy and doing an analysis of workload as early as possible helps in optimising effort relative to resources. In the next issue, we will look at the components that you can build into your surveillance strategy.
Dr Craig Donald is an industrial psychologist and specialist in human factors in security and CCTV. He is the co-developer of the Surveillance and Monitoring Assessment Exercise (SAMAE) for the selection and placement of CCTV operators and presenter of the CCTV Surveillance Skills training course. He can be contacted on telephone: 011 787 7811, fax: 011 886 6815, or e-mail: [email protected]
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