Industry Spotlight: Protection Agent Mark “Six” James

Icon – Behind the Bodyguard Business holds a spotlight where we feature someone in the Executive Protection, Security or Investigation industry.  Our hope is to provide some insight into our profession and also show newcomers & the media that people from all walks of life and all parts of the globe do this type of work with honor and pride.   No it’s not like the movies, but it can be rewarding, thrilling, and yes, sometimes fun.

Agent Name: Mark “Six” James

Company Name: Panther Protection Services

Website: www.pantherprotectionservices.com

Home city: Atlanta

What made you decide you wanted to get into the Protection industry?

As a former corporate executive I use to fly around the world and when I travelled abroad, I had people assigned to protect me.  I got to see what good protection and bad protection looked like.  Most of it was just plain bad or a good operator assigned to the wrong detail.  I actually got started in the protection business teaching legislators, judicial members and business executives how to shoot for personal protection.  Many of the legislators during campaign season would ask me to travel with them as my firearms skills made them feel safe when they were out on the campaign trail.

I learned early in my professional career that most long-term careers are built on personal strengths used by people who enjoy what they do.  I have always enjoyed firearms, martial arts and helping people.  So Executive Protection seemed like a good fit.  When I was in corporate America, I always enjoyed building high performing teams, and owning a protection agency gave me the ability to do the things I enjoyed while still continuing to help others.

What are some of the differences between working as an Operator and a trainer?  Do you prefer one over the other?

That is a hard one to answer.  As a trainer you have greater impact as a whole as you help others continue to build their skills, and serve others.  As a trainer you are a force multiplier.  When I am working as an Operator, I can only help one client at a time. As a trainer your skills scale. However there is nothing more personally rewarding than when a client tells you, that you make them and their family feel safe when you are around.  No matter how much I train, I will always continue to work directly with clients, as it helps me keep my training contemporary by staying in the profession as opposed to being around the profession.  Both are hard work and whether they are a firearms student or Executive Protection client, they are both clients and you work to serve them, and if you don’t do a good job, you don’t have repeat customers.

Can you share a bit of one of your best experiences in the industry so far?

The first day, I started working with a client who was a professional athlete I was interviewing him and going over our safety briefing in his hotel room. Before we got ready to go to our big event, I gave him a distress word, a distress sign, and showed him if things go bad and we were involved in a deadly force situation, how myself or a member of my team would move him out of the harm’s way.  He said, no one had ever done a safety briefing with him in the past or had every talked about distress words or signs.  Before we got ready to go down stairs, I took off my coat and got miked up.  He said “I didn’t even know you had a gun on.”  I told him that is why they call it “concealed carry”.  He laughed and said, “I got the damn secret service working for me!”  We have worked together for three years now and counting.

To someone coming up after you in the industry, what advice would you give?

Remember we are in the service business, it is not about you, it is about your client.  The moment you forget it, your client will remind you.  Take time out to invest in building you.  Stay hungry, keep training and work on building all of your skills, (advanced work, tactical medicine, firearms, martial arts, study up on the laws in the states you work in, evasive driving etc.).  Remember Executive Protection is a profession, not a hobby; you should be doing something in your profession every day.  Professional athletes train 5 – 6 times per week, Doctors practice medicine every day, attorney’s either research the law or litigate every day, take that same commitment to your development.  Build your skills and the money will come.

Personal Protection Specialist Mark “Six” James can be reached at (404) 349-9117 or Email:  mark.james@pantherprotectionservices.com

Safehouses and Panic Rooms for Executives

Securityinfowatch just wrote a great article on the value of safe houses for corporations and executives.  Long thought of (if thought of at all) only for the uber-rich, the safe house is a valuable security precaution for protecting a very precious commodity for a businesses–its senior leadership.

“Corporate safe rooms — fortified environments that act as a protective refuge in the event of a home invasion or other threat — are an increasing necessity for people and organizations of all interests. And, while films and television programs continue to mythologize safe rooms as an indulgence for the super rich or eccentric, actual events tell a different story: safe rooms are and have been an integral part of corporate structures and residences worldwide, an otherwise well-kept secret that immediately captures the public’s imagination.

Daily new headlines confirm these threats, and rare but brutal attacks against executives underscore the harsh reality of life in a dangerous world. Far from being a luxury, safe rooms are often seen as essential for businesses across the economic spectrum”.

A knowledge of Panic Rooms and their benefit to clients is another tool for the Executive Protection Professional in successfully providing 360 degrees of coverage.  ~ES

To read the full article, click HERE.

Referral Season

Like most corporations, ICON goes after new business in a variety of ways, however during our 12 years of existence, our biggest impact has always come from word of mouth.  A dedicated program that compensates for referrals is our way of saying thank you for continuing to mention our product & services.  Simply put, send a lead that turns into solid business and we will issue a predetermined commission on the referral. 

 And while everyone might not have the inside scoop on the next American Idol, keep in mind that a variety of people and businesses use our agencies services for:

•  Executive & VIP Protection
• Investigations & Background Checks
• Training Courses
• Products like the ICON Apparel and Paper Target  lines.

 Sounds like a win all the way across the board!

 For more information on the referral program, click HERE.

Corporate Takeover Magazine Interviews ICON CEO, Elijah Shaw

It’s always kind of cool when your a fan of someone’s work and realize you are on their radar as well.  That was the case of  me and The Corporate Takeover, which describes itself as a “business magazine and lifestyle dossier for the modern gentleman”.   I’d say I’m pretty modern so I could see the fit, but I was surprised when I found out the managing editors were already familiar with my some of my work.  Several weeks later, a interview was set up which covered a wide range of topics from politics, to economics to  staying sane in the pressure filled world of the Executive Protection Industry.

Corporate Takeover:  How do you prepare for high risk assignments that take you to countries where there’s an increased threat of violence? And at one point would you have to say to a client, ‘Ok, this is too dangerous’ and advise against visiting a certain location?

Elijah Shaw:  The high risk assignments are where you really need to be focused. 90% of the job is in the planning, so you take care to minimize your clients exposure to harm. Depending on the type of client, resources might go from unlimited to a shoe string budget, so you just have to make due with the hand you are dealt. There are times, for example, when an entertainer has to make a public appearance, even when faced with a higher threat level, and the recommendations I make leads me to butt heads with other decision makers. Sometimes you can’t get away from that, but that is ultimately why a service like mine is used.

For the full interview, click HERE.

Stalker & Paparazzi Detection Course

Ok, so I’ve had to keep this under wraps for awhile, but I finally get to let the cat out of the bag:

December 2 -7, 2009 sees the introduction of a new training course focusing on none other than Stalker & Paparazzi Detection.  In the same way that the underlying principals of Executive Protection form the framework of the Celebrity Protection Course, the Stalker & Paparazzi Detection Course is at its essence, Counter Surveillance Training.  In light of that I brought in an expert in the field, Ivor Terret the CEO of Israeli-based Multi Tier Solutions, and an international authority on counter surveillance, surveillance detection and covert executive protection.   

 Together, we will present a unique 5-day course focusing on profiling and identifying stalkers, potential kidnappers and paparazzi in the business, celebrity and high profile VIP industry sectors. The course will offer real world examples and scenarios that will present students with the tools they need to more effectively protect their clients in the real world. 

COURSE HIGHLIGHTS

• Operating covertly in the world of Executive and VIP protection
• Case Studies
• Stalker Pattern Recognition
• Covert Methods to confirm or deny stalker surveillance
• Covert Methods to confirm or deny Paparazzi surveillance
• Counter Surveillance
• Covert Protection Methodologies
• Protection Intelligence
• Covert and Low Profile Risk Mitigation

For more information click HERE.

Forbes 2009 Billionaires List

Forbes Magazine list there annual Billionaires list for 2009. (With Mr. Gates in the #1 spot).

For the full list, click HERE.

Please excuse me while I sit down to do some marketing.

ICON CEO, Elijah Shaw Honored with Business Award

On June 25, 2009 Icon Services Corporation CEO, Elijah Shaw will be receiving the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal’s Minority Business Owners Award. The award celebrates the diversity of business and recognizes business owners, corporate executives and advocates who were nominated based on a number of factors including business growth, success in the marketplace and community involvement.

For more infomation on the the award, and presentation dinner, click HERE.

Related Article: Business Journal Profile

ICON Inauguration Security Services

Yep, Back at it again…

The Teams are on the ground and moving around.

For celebrities, private individuals and corporate executives attending functions associated with the 2009 Presidential Inauguration, ICON can provide you with premium security services.

For more information visit www.DNCSecurity.com or contact 651-695-8778.

(One day i’ll have to share with my Blog readers how I almost got the Obama account before he hit the stratosphere –and the Secret Service.)

ICON CEO Elijah Shaw Profiled in Business Journal

I was recently featured in the latest issues of The Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal regarding our agency’s services of providing Executive Protection and Investigation to Corporate Execs and Celebrities.

You can read an excerpt of the article by clicking HERE. (unfortunately you have to be a subscriber to the Business Journal to read the whole thing, but the issue is on newsstands now.)

The Cost of Protecting a CEO

Forbes.com covers the high cost of providing security for some of the nations biggest CEO’s.

“America’s largest corporations are paying millions of dollars a year to protect their C-level talent, particularly the CEO. That personal security, as described in compensation reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, includes everything from computerized home systems to use of company aircraft domestically and internationally, both for business and personal matters.” Click on the text for the full article.