The FINANCIAL — Security Company ALGANI has been successfully conducting activity in the sphere of security provision for 12 years already. The company employs 1,300 guardsmen and security officers, with different skills and qualifications, in order to suit the demands of its existing customer base. At the same time, ALGANI owns 65 cars and 6 motorbikes, a pool which is regularly updated. Its cars are on constant patrol around the city. If an emergency is to arise, one is likely to be close-by and able to resolve the situation.
Security systems, in general, are categorized into two main components – guards and equipment. These two often work in conjunction, therefore, quality should be guaranteed in both aspects in order to ensure efficiency.
“ALGANI has been expanding at a rapid pace. In order to keep an edge over its competitors, the company decided to upgrade its upper management staff, operating systems, and continues to improve the qualification of its employees. It could be said that me being hired by ALGANI was a part of this updating process, as I worked in a very prestigious financial consulting company at a similar position to the one I’m currently holding here. With growth, the company faces new challenges and opportunities. This December, on the 21st, we’re moving to new headquarters near Vakhushti Bridge and we’re very much looking forward to it,” said Zviad Akhvlediani, former Managing Partner & Executive Director at Grant & Thornton and Akhvlediani Consulting, Executive Director at ALGANI since 1 October, 2017.
“Patrol routes mostly depend on the density of customers’ properties within a particular territory, as well as the overall criminogenic situation within the space. We decided to add motorcycles to our park, as, during rush hours, it is nearly impossible for cars to get to their target location on time. A quick, operative response to threats is the paramount concern that safety service companies should have. If guards arrive 40 minutes after an incident, it is nearly impossible for them to take efficient steps.”
“Our price range is diversified, in order to suit the needs of the many different segments of our potential customer base. We value our service individually, according to the category and the characteristics of any given structure. We choose our personnel according to the needs of our specific customers.”
Mr. Akhvlediani highlighted the specifics of the Georgian security services market. “Currently, there are around 40 private safety companies on the Georgian market. Out of them, around 10 are active. ALGANI, according to multiple studies, is the leader among them. Some of the advantages we have over our competitors include extensive experience, professionalism, operative work, high responsibility and safety. Our main goal is to satisfy the interests of our customers and have rigorous quality control. There’s also a public organization, Security Police, which has the highest turnover out of all entities.”
“Private safety service companies could use a little bit more flexibility than the current legislature offers. For example, employees of private security services companies do not have the right to carry a weapon, or conduct any detective work. This was recommended by the EU as well – giving security services companies more freedom and promoting the development of private enterprises within the sector.”
“It should be mentioned that there is a very low supply of personnel on the Georgian market, therefore we almost permanently have vacancies open. Considering how much talk there is about lack of jobs in Georgia, able men and women should look more closely into this sector.”
“When it comes to the statistics, in October, we had 937 cases of real alarms, 1,074 in November. This means that we receive around 34 emergency calls per day, therefore nobody should underestimate the importance of having good quality safety systems in place. We often give recommendations to our customers on how exactly they can have adequate amounts of safety for their structures at a minimum price possible.”
“Interestingly, incident rates are pretty similar throughout the day. In October, 447 real alarms came during PM hours, while 498 occurred during AM hours. In November, the numbers were 519 and 556, respectively. One would expect crimes to be much more concentrated during PM hours, as a larger portion is nighttime compared to that of AM hours, but it did not prove to be the case.”
“In the nearest future, we plan to create a training centre, where safety personnel will have an opportunity to raise their proficiency level and receive a certificate. At the same time, we aim to build upon the current regional infrastructure and make our service available to even more corners of Georgia.”
