Officers in, managers out?

They reveal a marked improvement for all 'EuroZone' countries and the UK. The most significant change is in Germany, where the index rose slightly after 11 consecutive months of decline. The global trend is being led by the USA, which has experienced a 1.6% upturn in the latest figures.

Meantime, the Federation of European Employers has stated: "These latest leading indicators offer further evidence that the feared recession is unlikely to materialise, and that we can look forward to a probable rise in economic activity this coming winter."

While growth in the economy is good for the nation, it will lead to an upturn in the jobs market after 12 months of downward pressure. In other words, for security managers in the private sector – whether contracted or in-house – already struggling to find suitable staff, the situation can only worsen.

At present, demand outstrips supply in some of the technically skilled areas, and in employment 'black spots' such as the infamous M4 corridor and certain areas of London. The security industry is particularly vulnerable to trends such as these.

Now is exactly the time for the Security Industry Authority, the Security Industry Training Organisation and educational establishments across the country to launch initiatives that make the security sector the peoples' 'industry of choice'.

Many contract guarding companies and some installation firms have already turned towards Europe to find suitably skilled candidates as our own unemployment levels have reached record lows. On the flip side, as the economy warms up again so the pressure on wages will increase as employees – at all levels – chase the higher incomes offered by employee-starved firms. To offset the pressures caused by rising wage costs, employers of security staff should look earnestly at their personnel specifications and find ways of maintaining standards without compromising on quality.

In many cases, this can be achieved by removing the recruitment blinkers, investing in training and/or re-skilling and using imaginative means to attract members of staff from other industries.

All UK security managers should be forging international or, at the very least, pan-European networks for the sole purpose of identifying talent and then using their chosen recruitment method to bring these individuals into the UK. A nice aside to this is the influx of new ideas to age-old security problems.

The UK is already well-placed to lead the international security arena. We must remember, though, that qualified and experienced UK security managers are among the most desirable ex-pats in the global economy. At times of rising economic fortune, the pay-off for those brave enough to uproot for international assignments is excellent.

And they can do so in the knowledge that the UK economy will be able to absorb them once again when they tire of sun, sea and sand.