In the past, when businesses needed to secure their premises and assets in different locations across the country, they would have to deploy individual guards to man those places. Today, the security landscape continues to evolve with the emergence of technology, globalization, migration, geopolitical shifts, changing nature, balance of power and new knowledge driven by Artificial intelligence (AI), which have all increased the world’s vulnerabilities.
As such, the global economy is changing approaches to tackling security issues beyond just the physical way of assigning personnel as guards, rather, to deploying digital security tools.
Even though the Nigerian economy is still challenged with several security maladies ranging from kidnapping, insurgency, banditry, militancy, cyber-crime, Bokoharam and farmers-headers conflicts, it sure is not left out in the global revolution of security businesses.
One of such success stories for Africa’s most populous nation in the transformation of security business is its foremost private security company, Halogen Group, under the watch of Wale Olaoye, group managing director of the firm.
Olaoye took over the helm of affairs in Halogen exactly 10 years ago. Prior to that time, he occupied the position of the Managing Director of the company and was recognised as one of the primary drivers of the security implementation that saw the birth of mobile technology companies in the country. The company is credited with designing the security plans that enabled ease of operation for telecommunication companies such as MTN and the then Econet (now Airtel), to work successfully in the country as it worked with the Telcos to install mast in very remote areas in the country.
Aside the telecommunication industry, Olawole and his team worked in developing creeks infrastructure for the International Oil Companies (IOCS) during the time of the Niger Delta Crisis.
At that time, the firm was strictly into physical security where people were manned at gates. However, there was the realisation that the business environment was changing with the use of technology, drawing lessons from global contexts and replicating them to the local environment in Nigeria.
When Olaoye assumed position as CEO of the group, he flagged off the transformation agenda, which helped in repositioning from the traditional physical man-guarding business to employing no less than 3000 Nigerians, moving from a static company to an end to end global premium risk management company. This helped to put food on the table of many Nigerians as well as empowering Nigerians and equipping the next generation.
Reforming the Nigerian Security Business
Halogen at inception, started with 20 individuals who went to police college for training in 1992, today it has grown to employing more than 20,000 Nigerians and more than a million Nigerians have passed through its system in those years.
The firm has also focused on building and supporting the local economy in leaps and bounds as most of its inputs, gadgets and uniforms are produced locally. Beyond that, the firm over time has led the industry to ensure that its standard operations has changed for good, by ensuring that the regulations are now well entrenched around technology, electronic security, investigation and background checks, advisory response, telemetry and alert system, to help in tracking down one of Businesses biggest threat; cybersecurity.
It also developed products cutting across the lengths and breadth of the industry value chain for physical asset, static asset, virtual asset, mobile asset for individual, businesses and homes.
In 2007, Halogen became the first Nigerian security company to be certified by International Standard Organisation (ISO).
According to Olaoye, “the certification is phenomenal given the number of years we were able to do all these and today not only are we moving our industry across our sub region, we are poised to become the reference point in enterprising risk for cybersecurity”.
Leveraging and Investing in Technology
Halogen has taken the fore front when it comes to leveraging and investing hugely in technology in driving the security business. In 2017, the firm develop a technological hub where it partnered with two of the country’s universities (Babcock and Obafemi Awolowo University), to develop a certificate discourse management, and professional MBA to train and develop the capabilities of the youthful population in the fight against cyber security.
“Technology is one of the three legs on which Halogen stands,” according to Olawole. “It has created a raise to our world and is used as a tool to proffer solutions that also protect. One of the key differentiators of Halogen is the response capabilities that come with our use of technology.”
The Olaoye led-transformation of Halogen Security
Today, what was once seen as Halogen Security Company Limited has evolved into Halogen Group; Six technology- driven group of specialist operating companies offering integrated, end to end security solutions to the world. The transformed Halogen Security Company Limited has grown into a global best practice security solutions leader, leveraging cutting edge digital technology, deep local knowledge, vast geographical reach and a motivated, highly knowledgeable team of security risk experts to provide safety in today’s open and continuously volatile world.
Halogen Group’s six operating companies are: Avert Halogen – digitally connected remote surveillance & monitoring services; Avant Halogen – identity management, risk consulting and resourcing; PS Halogen – manned guarding and event management; Armour X Halogen – virtual and cybersecurity; Armada Halogen – secured Mobility and Academy Halogen – Halogen School of Security Management & Technology.
The Philosophy of the “Power of One” With the philosophy of the power of one, the group is now one super security chain of businesses while the six operating companies act as sister organisations, working independently but cooperatively as one, under the parent – Halogen Group.
According to Olaoye, the power of one is at the heart of the new Halogen group as it means that in every area of its business, it has the ability as Halogen group to use any of its companies to manage clients’ risk no matter the circumstance or location.
“We are wired to provide an end to end cover to our client s with the power of one. With one of the operating companies, you are able to leverage on the capacity of the group. We manage your business, assets and deliver safety across board with one contact point and we address your entire risk management needs.
He noted that the value proposition of safety in an open world enables it to provide comprehensive security protection, with a view to enabling every individual be all they can be. “For this reason, Halogen Group describes its reason for being in a 3-prong mantra; to propel achievement, to forestall threats and to take away the burden of security- related anxiety. To achieve these, the company listed 3 pillars – knowledge, technology and emergency response capabilities as central to its solution delivery approach,” Olaoye added
Halogen management recently said, “with the transformation, Halogen has invested aggressively in developing the infrastructure and tools to provide end to end security solutions that comprehensively address the security risks which businesses and individuals, and indeed the whole nation face today. With the evolution of a digitally connected, open and continuously volatile world, security risks and needs have changed in step with deep and radical changes in lifestyles and business dynamics.”
Halogen further explains that, it embarked on an aggressive programme of business re- engineering, necessitating deep and profound changes in the way the company designs and delivers security risk solutions. “We are poised to further deliver world class valued solutions across the security industry’s value chain. At this moment, our commitment is to changing the direction of the business to where the global pendulum of security dynamics is swinging,” it says.
In all, the Group has competence in people risk management, physical security, electronic security, virtual & cyber Security, telemetrics, travel security, outsourcing, background checks and polygraph examination. Other areas of Halogen’s focus are security education inclusive of training- for organizations, businesses, government establishments and individuals.
