Javier Nery Rojas is a retired military officer who for 18 years has focused his energies on working in the field of private security.
by Alejandra García Vélez
As a support for the management and the person in charge of analyzing the information of the environment in order to prevent situations that may affect the normal development of the company, go to the CPP Javier Nery Rojas, the outstanding professional of this edition.
Rojas is a retired officer of the National Police of Colombia, born in the capital of this country, Bogotá, in 1971. He is also a lawyer, with complementary training in other disciplines, such as business administration, police administration and criminalistics.
His passion for academia has led him to bet on constant training, in different careers that complement each other perfectly to help him be a better professional.
In fact, he is currently pursuing an MBA at the Universidad del Mar (Chile) and has taken various courses in countries such as Mexico, Brazil and Chile, where he has learned from other realities always with the aim of applying his knowledge to Colombian companies.
Of course, one of the titles that has given him the most satisfaction is the one that is directly related to his main passion: security. In that field it has the
Certified Protection Professional (CPP) of ASIS international, is also a member of that Association, as well as the forum of Latin American security professionals and accredited security advisor (SVSP).
Experience
Just as studies have marked his professional development, the experience gained during his years of work have allowed him to do an increasingly better job. Rojas has 18 years of experience in the implementation and control of comprehensive security systems, security management, risk analysis and management, loss prevention and
executive protection.
His professional work has also been focused on specialized security investigations for losses, the training of personnel at the managerial level in security,
physical security, it and crisis management, as well as working with the BS, ISO, BASC, C-TPAD and OAS management systems.
Currently, he serves as Physical Security Manager of Alimentos Polar, he is also an international speaker on safety and security issues.
In addition, he works as a university professor in postgraduate programs, in the subject of security management, in universities such as the Nueva Granada Military, San Buenaventura de Cali and Cartagena, Pontificia Bolivariana de Medellín and in the Graduate School of the National Police of Colombia.
But the beginning of all this occurred in 1996 when, after retiring from the Colombian National Police, he entered the area of private security in a security company specialized in the canine environment.
Vision
After 18 years working in the area it can be said that Javier Nery Rojas has a clear vision of the reality of the industry and the needs that users seek to satisfy by having a professional in this area within their company.
For Rojas, "a security director must be the main support of senior management in everything related to the planning, design, control and monitoring of the organization's general security program."
But it should not stop there, on the contrary "it must also act as the person in charge of searching, analyzing and processing the information of the environment (mediate and immediate), which may affect the operations, the patrimony or the continuity of the operations of the company," explained the CPP of the month.
Likewise, Rojas stressed that employers today are not only looking for security professionals, but also need to have the proven competence of people certified by reliable evaluation bodies, such as CPP certification.
"Companies now attach a high degree of importance to the hiring, relationship and promotion of security professionals with credentials, who are prepared to face the demanding security challenges of today and anticipate the challenges of tomorrow," said Rojas.
The guest for this edition also highlighted the additional knowledge provided by the certification to support the work performance of security professionals, noting especially the topic of security management and business management.
He also highlighted the contribution of the certification to fields such as strategy, planning, organizational behavior, leadership, risk analysis and security studies. In addition to the planning, design, implementation and monitoring of physical security systems.
Likewise, it considers important the approach to issues such as the design and development of personnel selection, protection of executives and high-risk people; information security and computer security programmes and countermeasures; the planning, preparation and response to emergency situations and crisis management, as well as the foundations given to implement private and criminal investigation techniques.
Thought
The responsibilities of a CPP can be many, but our professional of the month believes that the most complicated tasks that must be faced are oriented to everything related to the protection of life and integrity of people. While in second place would enter the protection of the heritage of the organization.
However, in his opinion, the biggest challenge is to be one step ahead of the criminals, taking into account that "the people who can affect the interests of the organization, are not only outside it, but in some cases the most important threat is within it," says Rojas.
Therefore, he emphasizes that security must be a commitment of all members of the company. "People must know, understand and apply safety rules and protocols by conviction, which is achieved only by making them aware of the risks that surround them."
Rojas added that "the main task of the CPP is the creation of a true culture of safety, which commits all members of the organization to the security objectives of the organization."
Perspectives
Another important point is the integration process between electronic security and public safety programs led by PPPs.
In that sense, Rojas' opinion is oriented towards recognizing that the CPP must demonstrate its ability to develop physical security programs in order to identify possible vulnerabilities. But he also believes they should recognize the importance of electronic security systems applied to an organization's overall security program.
The professional of the month pointed out that private security services have a growing field of action. "In Latin America there is a large market for these services, technology and management systems must be applied to make the results more cost-effective, effective and efficient," Rojas said.
Finally, he highlighted the importance of constant training as a way to achieve a better industry. "Development and technological advances affect all areas of knowledge equally, security professionals are no exception, they must remain in force in the market updating their knowledge and improving their professional skills, which is only achieved with practice and academic preparation."
