printer friendly version

Technicians and company capacity to deliver

The importance of technical capacity in security installation companies.

The number of security installation companies that have maintained their economic position and identity over the past 15 years is probably less than one may expect.

Although this has been a thriving sector as CCTV and other security technologies boomed, there have been frequent takeovers, mergers, realignments and re-launching under different names. From my position where I see the 'working' systems of these service suppliers on a regular basis, one thing appears clear - the technical capacity within these companies and the ability to deliver and maintain an effective long-term working system for the client is critical to company success.

The technical capacity for service may be taken for granted but it is probably one of the most under-appreciated areas in defining company image and effectiveness. For many companies, the sales personnel and marketing define the company image and huge resources are diverted into this.

However, the technical personnel and in particular technicians are often the real face of the company. Once the client has got past the glossy brochures, sales pitch and contract signature, technicians become the defining influence on the image of the company and the long-term relationships with clients.

I have seen situations where technicians are literally the glue holding systems together, and when they leave it is accompanied by major drops in efficiency and system failures.

Excellent technicians who truly understand the industry, equipment, and the manner in which it should be implemented are not always readily available. Many of those in the industry work long hours and under high demands for extended periods. The top technicians probably get put under even more pressure because they are needed almost continuously. As South African companies expand into Africa, I have seen some of them travel not only nationally but across the continent for extended periods away from family.

Technicians are providing an increasingly valuable role for companies that go beyond the immediate technical work. The overall impression of the quality of the company care is influenced directly by the technician.

Technicians play a public relations role in representing company interests, they have to make a plan to keep things going under difficult conditions, they can provide an entry point for further sales, and they are often needed as coordinators where there is a need to integrate multidisciplinary systems on client premises. They also absorb a lot of frustration at times from the client, and have to engage in mutual troubleshooting and at times conflict resolution. Educational input on equipment and functions is also given to the client when the realities of the new system are put to the test and compared against expectations. Increasingly, technicians are also going to have to provide more structured training to client operating personnel as clients get more and more demanding in terms of having formal input to their employees.

There is a range of problems that are guaranteed to get clients emotional and frustrated, including:

* Delays in service delivery schedules.

* Poor adherence to maintenance schedules.

* Slow response times to breakdowns or non-functioning equipment.

* Technical staff being away from site when needed particularly when the service level agreement being paid for states they are supposed to be there.

* Too few technicians to meet actual requirements.

* Replacement of technicians with non-qualified staff or those with diluted skills.

* Shifting the responsibility for support to unqualified company personnel.

* Making technical excuses for failures that clients find out are not in fact the problem.

* Clients having to repeatedly brief new replacement technicians on the system.

It helps substantially if technicians also have practical insights into how the system is going to be used both for a design and an ongoing operational need.

Recently, where I had a technical specialist on a CCTV surveillance course, some learning implications for design and operation were immediately put into practice on the job to make a more effective system.

In my experience technicians often make or break projects, both literally and figuratively. As indicated, they are increasingly being seen to project the image of the company. For any installation company, they play a key part in long-term business plans and success. Clients develop trust relationships with technicians and will often follow them across companies, calling them, no matter where they are, to assist in resolving issues, even after they have left particular projects and moved on.

As a country we need to ensure that such personnel are available, but each company should have its own focus on developing such skills and supporting the technicians. Management simply cannot afford to take technicians for granted, and to be truly successful over the long term, CCTV and other security technology solution providers need to ensure they are managing and developing their own technical capacity.

Dr Craig Donald is a human factors specialist in security and CCTV. He is a director of Leaderware, which provides instruments for the selection of CCTV operators, X-ray screeners and other security personnel in major operations around the world. He also runs CCTV Surveillance Skills and Body Language, and Advanced Surveillance Body Language courses for CCTV operators, supervisors and managers internationally, and consults on CCTV management. He can be contacted on +27 (0)11 787 7811 or [email protected]

Share this article:

Further reading: