Dubai : What happens when 10 retired major generals from Dubai Police get together to form a private security company?
The result is an organisation with over 2,000 security personnel who undergo rigorous training to uphold the level of service acceptable in the eyes of the government.
First Security Group (FSG), one of about 400 private security companies in the UAE, was founded five years ago with the support of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and under the watchful eyes of Dubai Police.
The company provides services such as guarding, security and health safety training and corporate services such as due diligence, investigation and debt recovery.
It has worked over the years to protect government and private enterprises and has in its portfolio projects and clients such as the Dubai Airport, RTA's JT Metro, etisalat, Emirates NBD Bank and various universities and hotels.
With personal experience in Dubai Police of over 37 years, FSG's chief executive and board member Retired Major General Abdul Aziz Al Bannai speaks to Gulf News about the group's business and Dubai's private security market.
"When we established the company five years ago, the private security sector was not developed. It did not match Shaikh Mohammad's vision. There was a great need for professional security in the private sector," Al Bannai said.
"It was easy to become much bigger than we did, but it was not about that for us. Our main purpose is not a commercial one. We have brought the concept of proper training to Dubai's private security market."
Since the inception of the company, what has been the change in security standards in the market?
Before, people used to be brought into the country who didn't have any experience and the next day you would see them wearing the uniform of a security guard.
Now, with new policies and regulations, no one can work without a proper training certification.
When we set out to establish this company, we had a higher standard than other existing private security companies.
After us, others followed suit. Security has been improved with many companies, not just us. In the last five years, I think there has been a 50 per cent improvement in overall security standards.
From here on, we have plans to improve further. Also, there are instructions from Lieutenant General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Minister of Interior, to increase the level of security in the entire country.
When we started, we changed the meaning of security in Dubai. While working closely with Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim, Chief of Dubai Police, plus our own experience, we achieved a high quality of services that we can provide. Each one of us on the board has at least 25 years of experience with Dubai Police.
The difference between us and other security companies is that we know what the meaning of security is.
If Dubai is considered safer now, why are we hearing more news on crime? How can more crime be dealt with?
I don't agree. Statistics show that crime has reduced. There might be more crime on the legal side such as bounced cheques, but serious crime has dropped in the past few years.
There are many activities that are being done to make sure of this. Security is one of the top priorities for Dubai.
I would advise each resident here to consider himself a policeman. He should contribute to the safety. If you see anything wrong, you should report it.
What is the market scope for personal security, considering this is a city that is thought to be one of the safest in the world?
The demand is there, but honestly, it is not as much as we expected. Things are now moving, but professional private security companies should be more involved.
People expect the police to take care of them and their events, some of which are very large, like exhibitions, concerts and such.
Dubai Police are supervising the city, yes, but they cannot be involved in each event 100 per cent. Some public events require many security guards, so the demand there is increasing.
We know that private investigation is a huge market in some developed markets. Is this something that your company would branch out in? Do you see demand for this in Dubai?
Even if there is demand, the law does not allow such activity in this country. To hire a security company to follow or investigate a spouse and other things like this is private. Only in some cases is it allowed, but it needs the approval of the government.
Our services are prioritised, we sign with clients who need security, whether it is for VIP individuals or events. I don't think the law will allow private investigation even in the future.
How would you rate the level or quality of services provided here, compared to those in developed nations? How much further does this market have to go before it can be considered world-class?
If we combine all the companies in the market right now, the gap between developed countries and us is a lot.
But if we look at the professional companies here, there is hardly any gap. Four to five years ago, the gap was big. But now, I don't think there is a gap.
However, we are still in the early stages. We are doing our best, but there is always room for improvement.
Was there a positive impact on your debt collection or recovery in the past year or so as the market saw tough financial conditions?
Yes, there was an increase. If I say there was no effect it would not be the truth.
What methods are you allowed to employ for such services and were they effective?
We operate within the law. No force is used, only follow-ups are done.
If a security person goes to a person's office that owes money, eventually he will pay because he doesn't want to be bothered every day.
In your personal experience, what was the biggest security challenge that you had to face?
There is a challenge in every security situation. In my 37 years of experience, especially during sensitive services such as with the CID (Criminal Investigation Department) and anti-terrorism, there have always been challenges, but we deal with them with preparation and organisation.
The largest security challenge was during the World Bank and IMF (International Monetary Fund) meeting that took place in Dubai during 2003.
This was the first meeting of its kind that took place in the Middle East.
The situation was tense in the GCC and over 19,000 government officials and diplomats were visiting.
As the top person in charge of the security for that event, I prepared for four to five years.
I attended top-security level meetings across the world to observe the security set up and we all worked very hard.
The result was excellent. It was rated as the best hosted country for that meeting.
If you work hard, you can handle any situation, even big events such as this. But if you don't organise and think about the small things, even small events can go out of hand.
Do you rely more on local expertise or do you learn from international professionals as well?
We hire both local and international professionals for our training centre. We don't think we know everything.
There is a lot to learn, and we can learn from everyone, whether it is from professionals of this region, or from Europe or America.
