Some time ago this Venezuelan administrator and electronic technician began his professional path divided into several areas. Today, 43 years later, he can speak with all certainty of the security market.
by Ana María Restrepo
From the union of Demetrio Cedeño Álvarez and Pilar Mercedes Cedeño Wolkmar was born 60 years ago in Caracas, Venezuela, Rafael Eduardo Cedeño Wolkmar, a man who has carved every step of his life with dedication, dedication and passion.
For him, study and work were the perfect mix to build a curriculum that today, has given him more satisfaction than he ever thought he would have when he began working at the age of 17 at the same time that he studied the Superior Technique in Electronics at the Industrial Technical School of Venezuela.
After several years of dedication and commitment, Cedeño completed his higher studies and applied his knowledge as an engineer in the NCR company, this being the first experience that allowed him to perform within the electronics sector. Over the years, his business faculties expanded as he learned about the sector and studied Management at the Santa María University, where he acquired new knowledge that combined with electronics allowed him to climb important positions within an organization and, as he himself affirms, evolve professionally and personally.
Building the future
Years later and thanks to the experience gained during all that time, Rafael founded on May 14, 1996 the company Security One Star, C.A. (S.O.S.C.A), which develops activities in the area of private security, providing its customers with an optimal security service and industrial, commercial and residential surveillance.
This new company allows the administrator to strengthen his link with the security industry and work as a team with his son and partner Rafael, who supports him in all economic activities; in addition to having a group of collaborators who help him in that business day to day within the security market in Venezuela.
For many years Cedeño took work as a way of life that combined with love and dedication to his family would give him more achievements than he imagined. 11 years ago, when he founded SOSCA, things changed him, his challenges increased and doing things better every day ceased to be a purpose and became an imperative. "This has been a path of rewarded risks, as well as admitted errors. It has been a journey of timely changes of speed," he says.
When the company began, this Venezuelan ventured into the business of physical security as a response to the insecurity that the country has experienced in the last 14 years, however, little by little, he has extended his actions to electronic security, with the vision of giving users solutions to their needs, because as he himself affirms "this is now as important a means for customers as for the technological era that evolves day by day, providing us with constant tools that seek to improve the service and results"
Values and commitments
Working daily under the premises of teamwork, continuous improvement and good spirits, have allowed him to consolidate the company internally and externally, building a story full of anecdotes with lights, shadows, defeats and victories.
One of these anecdotes and perhaps the most recent achievement of Cedeño within the organization, was the creation of the 'Perfect Order' program, which facilitates the achievement of objectives over all its operations, in order to measure the results and productivity of employees and customer satisfaction, managing to learn from the actions and mistakes of the present to avoid them in the future. Corporate success depends not only on the creation and implementation of good strategies that allow an efficient management of technical, physical, human and economic resources, but also on the constant practice of values such as honesty, communication, responsibility and good deeds, which combined allow to achieve collective triumphs in the work and personal environment for each of the members that make up the company.
Likewise, his personal and professional commitment to each of the internal and external audiences of the organization allow him to ensure that "a successful manager is one who takes risks, but first consolidates achievements. Sometimes he throws himself into the pool at night without knowing if he has water and relentlessly seeks financial and operational balance. That is, it proposes a model of democratic business organization that extends from the center to the periphery to give the latter a very high degree of autonomy."
Opportunities that cannot be escaped
Many people believe that having a good work development provides happiness, but the reality is that this personal environment, where relationships are connoted with affection, love, dedication and care, configures the life of our professional of the month, who manages his life as well as his company, configuring day by day strategies that help him achieve his goals and to surpass himself more and more with the purpose of making this world a friendlier place and with an easier path for her three children and her two grandchildren, Valeria and Diego.
The days of Cedeño are divided into physical places such as his home and his company, however his heart remains at home attending to his own and supporting them, giving them all the attention and time they require, because for him the strength and family union are the greatest satisfaction.
Generally, on weekends, Rafael along with his wife Gladys, their children and their grandchildren practice water skiing in Rio Chico, a place near the city where the tranquility and nature that surrounds them, allows them to share special moments that consolidate their family.
Enjoying the days of rest with your family, traveling, learning other languages and getting to know new cultures are some of the activities that this administrator combines with his work days, which begin from seven in the morning and culminate at approximately eight at night when the appointments and activities of his daily agenda are made.
Strategic position in the country
In Venezuela, the private security market is very broad due to the high demand for protection demanded by citizens due to the high crime rate, as well as the lack of resources and personnel suffered by public security forces. For this reason, and according to the National Chamber of Surveillance and Protection Companies (Canavipro), more than 400 companies have been created that operate in this field offering transport of securities, banking security, investigative intelligence services, information in telematics, electronic security, intrusion detection through images or remote control, location of fleets by means of satellite signals (GPS) and escorts of personalities, among others.
Currently Rafael Cedeño Wolkmar is the vice president of Canavipro, which was born in Venezuela to strengthen business security organizations in the country, stimulating the participation and representativeness of the sector in the issues inherent to the specialty.
Additionally, the president of S.O.S.C.A is part of a group of professionals in the security market in his country who gave strength to the birth of Suntech Venezuela, a subsidiary of Suntech Group Corporation, which will support the group's expansion actions in Latin America.
This expansion in Latin America facilitates that the security market has a technological revolution in countries with a growing population, where, according to Cedeño, the revolution of IP technology not only allows to change the living conditions in the aspect of security, but also transforms the relationship between supply and demand, by providing access to information to other economic sectors such as agriculture.
The evolution of the sector gives rise to many entrepreneurs like Cedeño advancing in the development of their ideas and their companies, in addition to providing the country and the Andean Region with the application of new security systems that are already being used in the world.
Today, Rafael considers that he has realized most of his dreams. "Where I am today is a direct result of the experiences I've had throughout my life, and obviously, a lot of those experiences are because of my cultural heritage. I am very grateful about it, the truth is that I was exposed to multiple situations and opportunities when I grew up. I think it's something of great benefit personally and professionally."
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