Career transition from LE to Corporate Security

This week I was blessed to celebrate my 6 month anniversary in my new role with Universal Health Services which is a Fortune 300 Healthcare organization. My transition from law enforcement to this new leadership role has taken over 3 years and has included a tremendous learning curve and huge growth for me. I hope this article will help others who choose to make this transition do so quicker and reduce the mistakes we all make when making the transition.

I really didn't prepare well for transition. I did not even have a LinkedIn profile until 2017 I think. I certainly was not active on the platform. I had not had a job interview for 20 years. I thought my 30 years of diverse experience, patrol, FTO, K9, SWAT/Sniper, Narcotics, criminal investigations and digital forensics would make me a sought after asset for any organization. I hold records for narcotics seizures. I have developed law enforcement programs from the ground up. I have testified as an expert witness in death penalty cases. I have investigated cases ranges from theft to capital murder. I have helped build digital programs. I have led others through critical incidents and trained thousands in processes, procedures, and techniques. Although on the surface this is a great foundation, what I failed to realize is that if the organization looking for new blood did not know who I was, they would never know what KSA's I could bring to help solve the problems they have. The job space is crowded, especially since COVID has caused so many to become unemployed in the risk/safety/security sector. This is where the "R" word becomes the most important word in the transition phase.

"R" stands for Relationships. As cops, we have a unique network of people we have worked with that we trust, intimately, with our lives. We know how these people perform when the chips are down and saving human life is a split second decision. We have shared experiences that bind us forever. We have developed RELATIONSHIPS with them that secure our ability to be effective in our tasks. But when we want to move into the corporate world, we are joining a new group of professionals and often they already have contacts they have worked with before and those RELATIONSHIPS have already been cultivated. These folks have an upper hand on the open job roles because that groundwork has already been done. Using LinkedIn, you can look at the Relationship levels within an organization and you can see this with your own eyes. You can see where many people within an organization have worked together before at other organizations. FBI folks tend to hire FBI folks. State Department folks tend to hire State Department folks. Secret Service folks tend to hire Secret Service folks. Boeing folks tend to hire Boeing folks. This is extremely normal and if you take the time to look, it is prevalent.

So how does a local, county, or state cop get a leg up on the open roles when they appear? Developing Relationships with the hiring managers. These are the decision makers. Don't go into this endeavor with the goal of simply using them so you can get a job, this is a mistaken approach and frankly, it is morally wrong. Instead, approach it with the mindset that you are unique, your background is unique, what you bring to the table is unique. What you want to do is develop Relationships with them so they know what your background is, what you bring to the table, and if the open role and your background fits with the needs of the organization, you will get your opportunity for an interview.

I am a firm believer that the best way you can develop these Relationships is through face to face meetings. Obviously, this is limited so at least have a video call and at a minimum a phone call. I have at least 3-4 phone calls every week with individuals who are either seeking new roles and wanting advice or hiring managers who are asking about a connection I have on LinkedIn.

Takeaways; be active on LinkedIn. Focus on helping others and developing Relationships that help others. Share jobs that come across your desk. You are not a fit for every role but someone in your network is and they are looking for that new role. Helping others is really the foundation of Relationship building. Second, be yourself. Don't try to fit your round background into a square hole. Grow your skillset with training and upskilling. Do all of this while you are still on the job, at least a couple of years before you plan to leave LE. In fact, you should begin this process early in your LE career because we are only 1 call, 1 major accident, 1 injury away from retirement.

RELATIONSHIPS build trust and are the cornerstone of performance.

Stay safe, and cheers from the border!!!!!