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Maintaining fluid communications is
key
by Kathy Powers, Lender Protective Services, Inc. - San Antonio
Lender Protective Services, Inc. is a licensed, female and family owned San Antonio based security company. The company began when brothers, Lee and Tracy, started providing off duty security services for local banks when the demand grew to more than two locations per day. As both men were involved with their law enforcement careers, Terri and I, as sisters-in-law took on the job of starting the company. Since both of us had owned other, separate, companies, we figured we would be able to handle the challenges that were ahead of us. Lender was incorporated in 1997 and received its license from the State in February of 1998.
In the beginning, the hiring of off duty peace officers was the most challenging aspect of the hiring process. Dealing with the different police agencies, in conjunction with the State rules and regulations, was very frustrating at times. After many hours and numerous phone calls, Lender has developed guidelines which seem to work well for all concerned.
When bringing on a peace officer, whether a full time paid or an �uncompensated regular� officer, Lender first identifies the status of the applying officer. Lender then processes the officer as a non-commissioned security officer. We do not schedule an officer until he/she has completed the entire application process, which includes two fingerprint cards, the Level I and II, both the state and Lender applications, pictures, and a current work permit from the officer�s agency. It is also explained to the officer that the uniform worn must clearly identify from which police agency he/she is from and a name tag must also be worn. Lender�s peace officers� roster pulls from more than 15 different police agencies, each with their own regulations concerning working off duty. It is up to the individual officer to be informed concerning his/her own agencies rules and regulations pertaining to this matter.
Our staff has grown from Terri and I running the business with our husbands working for us, to an office staff of eight, and an officer roster of more than 300. We believe the company�s continued success goes back to our mission statement which commits us to �provide the highest quality in security and our other services and to remain the standard of ethical business conduct, not only to our clients but also to the community.�
From the beginning, we knew that security was widely held to be a male dominated business. We believed that through hard work, commitment and perseverance we would be accepted, and I believe Lender has proven that belief to be correct.
Lender is an active member of ASSIST. In fact, we were one of the original companies of the South Texas Alamo Region. I feel one of the many goals of ASSIST, especially in this time of heightened security, is for each of the local regions to develop and maintain fluid communications between the various local law enforcement agencies, security companies and the individual clients.
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