Why Executive Protection Applies to You

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The tragedy involving UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has brought shock and sadness to the business world. This tragedy should serve as a wake-up call to C-suite leaders in organizations of all sizes that executive protection is a necessary precaution.

It’s not about ninjas or dark suited-men wearing squiggly earpieces. For some, protection involves increasing the executive’s awareness; for others, it’s training an assistant to watch for warning signs. For a select few, a full complement of professional protectors should be considered. 

Protecting what’s most important to you is a bespoke effort accomplished by creating environments at home, work and when traveling, that allow you to live freely  and do the things you want without compromise. Confidentiality of your personal information and activities is critical. Assistants, drivers, pilots and others around you must be part of the protective network managed by a professional. 

Making decisions that are best for you with the guidance of a protection professional is your best method for reducing your risks.

Here are a few reasons why executive protection is now mandatory.

1. Because it happens.

Everyone lives in the world thinking, “That won’t ever happen to me.” Many executives and C-suite leaders don’t think they are well-known enough to be a target. But you don’t have to work at a Fortune 500 company to consider protection. Thousands of companies around the world offer protection to their executives, whether they perceive themselves to be high-profile or not. The C-suite represents the company, and their well-being is an important asset. One key question to ask yourself: “How would the company be impacted if something were to happen to me?”

2. It happens everywhere.

When you’re a CEO or a person of high net worth or notoriety, you must constantly consider your private and professional lives. Executive protection isn’t just for the office. It also includes security for travel, home life and family. Protection professionals assess your vulnerabilities and create a customized plan that works for you and those you care about.

Imagine this: you’re leaving your daughter’s soccer game with your family. A former employee approaches with a gun. 

What is the next sentence in this story? 

Partnering with threat assessment experts or a third-party company can help you write a happy ending.

3. It’s better to be proactive than reactive.

Most companies create a marketing strategy, a business plan and an HR strategy. However, many of these same companies have never thought about a corporate security strategy. 

But you have a strategy, whether you know it or not. The difference is that if you are smart about it, you will base your strategy on a proactive risk analysis and work with an expert to cultivate a customized plan. The alternative that far too many choose is reactive. You wait and see if something happens, hoping it doesn’t, and only adjust your plan if something demands that you do. 

4. It protects shareholder investment.

For some CEO positions, board-mandated executive-protection programs come with the territory — or should.

The CEO is more at risk than others in the company due to their notoriety, with personal success and wealth details plastered all over the Internet. CEOs find themselves in the news for various reasons, and they might work in an industry in the public spotlight, or for a controversial business. With attacks on capitalism becoming trendier every day, all businesses are controversial in some circles. 

Board members and shareholders must consider the potential business impacts if something happens to the CEO: the company’s reputation, the media attention, share prices and impact on continuity. It benefits everyone to keep the CEO safe, so naturally, a board should choose to protect them. 

The CEO can be safer, more productive and even happier because they can enjoy the benefits and stress-free concerns of having a protection strategy.

Executive protection is a highly specialized field within the security industry. You want to choose the most experienced protectors to assess and create strategies for your safety and that of your family. A security company or consultant that specializes in threat assessment will assess threats daily, develop risk management plans and provide protection and education for you.