Your People Are The Real Perimeter: The Human Element That Makes Safety/Security Work

Archive for the ‘workplace violence prevention policy’ Category

Your People Are The Real Perimeter: The Human Element That Makes Safety/Security Work

Posted on: August 12th, 2026

Imagine buying the most expensive, high-tech security system available for your business.  You install facial recognition cameras, badge-restricted doors, and top-tier monitoring and access control software.  You feel completely protected.

Then, an employee props open a secure back door with a rock to grab a breath of fresh air, leaving the building entirely vulnerable.

This common scenario highlights a fundamental truth in workplace safety & security: polices, plans and technology are useless without human buy-in.  “Prevention must create an environment where the workforce feels a part of the solution.”

True security cannot be forced from the top down.  To build a secure workplace, organizations must shift from a culture of strict compliance to a culture of active contribution. Employees must feel empowered.

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The Danger of “Top-Down” Security

Many organizations approach safety and security by handing employees a thick policy handbook during onboarding and requiring a once-a-year compliance video or computer-based training. This creates several distinct problems:

  •  Checked Boxes:  Employees view security as a chore rather than a shared responsibility.
  • Blind Spots: Management cannot see every hidden hazard or cultural tension on the ground.
  • Fear of Reporting: Without trust, workers stay silent about red flags to avoid “causing trouble.”

When security feels like a set of rigid rules dictated by executives, employees disconnect.  They become passive bystanders rather than active protectors of their workplace.

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How to Make Your Workforce Part of the Solution

Building an environment where employees feel ownership over safety requires strategic, intentional cultural shifts.

1.  Demystify the Reporting Process

Employees will not report erratic behavior, bullying, or security hazards if they fear retaliation or think management will ignore them. Organizations must provide clear, confidential, and multi-channel reporting options.  More importantly, leadership must demonstrate that every report is taken seriously and investigated with empathy.

2.  Move from Compliance to Engagement

Ditch the generic security presentations. Instead, implement interactive training that focuses on real-world small group discussions and situational awareness sessions and threat de-escalation. When workers practice how to react to everyday stressors or conflict, they build the confidence needed to act during a real crisis. Shifting from “reactive to proactive”.

3. Give Everyone a Clear Role

An employee handbook shouldn’t just list what not to do.  It should explicitly outline what an employee should do to maintain a secure environment.  Define clear, actionable steps for greeting strangers, securing work environments, engaging with disgruntled individuals, and escalating concerns.

4.  Close the Communication loop

If an employee takes the risk to report a security concern, never let it fall into a black hole. While details must remain confidential, follow up with the reporter to let them know the situation was handled, and how best to manage personnel security concerns. This transparency builds the trust necessary to keep the communication lines open.

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Prevention is a Partnership

Security guards and surveillance cameras can only do so much.  Your frontline workforce is your most powerful, agile and effective security system—but only if they feel valued and empowered.

By treating your team as partners in prevention rather than subjects of surveillance, you create an environment where everyone looks out for one another. True security isn’t something you do to your employees; it is something you build with them.

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About Author:

Felix P. Nater, CSC is the President and Owner of Nater Associates Ltd. a Workplace Security Management Consulting firm specializing in Workplace Violence Prevention, Violence Response and Crisis Management. Felix is a Certified Security Consultant, former U.S. Postal Inspector and nationally recognized speaker, trainer and coach, and co-author of Combating workplace Violence: Creating and Maintaining Safe Work Environments. He differentiates services delivered through a highly specialized, practitioner-based “inside-out” approach to workplace security strategy and workplace violence prevention, shaped by decades of direct, hands-on-experiences. His consulting practice serves manufacturing, processing, production, utility companies and public housing organizations seeking credible, practical, and sustainable prevention strategies.

His preferred title is “Human Resource Workplace Violence Prevention Security Management Consultant”.

His Unique Selling Proposition is – Helping organizations implement and manage workplace security with a focus in workplace violence prevention.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”.

Contact:

Info@naterassociates.com

Office: 704-784-0260

Website: www.naterassociates.com

What About Workplace Violence Prevention Policy Development, Can It Be Effective?

Posted on: June 13th, 2025

Before setting out to write the workplace violence prevention policy, we must understand what constitutes workplace violence and what we are trying to prevent. You should have an understanding about what you think would be necessary to consider in developing a violence prevention policy.

Workplace violence is a global public health problem that has already caused a serious threat to both the physical and mental health of everyone in organizations (Duan et al., 2019). Thus, preventing violence in the workplace is critically important, as suggested by the numerous books, articles, workshops, and seminars that have been available on the subject (Van Fleet & Van Fleet, 2022, 93-95).

However, all that advice has come from psychologists, physicians, and such.  What has been lacking is advice from those who know and understand management and organizations — advice that would not only reduce the threat of workplace violence but advice that, if followed, would also enable organizations to develop potential competitive advantages in terms of their personnel and productivity.  Look within your organization for such expertise, and if it is not available consider the value of retaining such services.

We must also consider the reality that prevention is not 100% preventable.  In a perfect world, organizations would identify individuals who would potentially commit workplace violence during the hiring phase and never hire them. Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world and people change overtime anyway. However, organizations can inform and educate everyone, particularly those in management positions, to know when someone may be on the brink of committing a violent act.

In addition, when preparing to write operate under the premise that OHSA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) captures workplace violence under Four Types/Categories (#1 criminal intent; #2 client to worker; #3 worker to worker; and #4 domestic (personal relations) under Four OSHA Categories: General Industry, Construction, Maritime and Agriculture.

A workplace violence prevention policy and accompanying plans with procedures should demonstrate the organization’s commitment toward ensuring the safety of members of the organization as well as customers, clients, and suppliers. Both management commitment and employee involvement are necessary for the development and maintenance of an effective policy/plan. The continued success and appropriateness of intervention strategies outlined in the policy can be monitored and adjusted with data collected at least annually.

Without a demonstrated commitment of management at all levels, others will not follow; and if management does not lead and others do not follow, then company policies will not succeed, no matter how well composed the lines are and how expensive the paper on which they are printed—they will remain “lost in space” when violence comes knocking.

Workplace Violence Prevention should not be an independent initiative but an organizational investment in creating and maintaining safe work environments with senior management leading the initiative through employee engagement.

About the Author:

Felix P. Nater, CSC is a certified security management consultant helping small & mid-size manufacturing, process, production, and utility firms implement and manage workplace security strategy with a focus on workplace violence prevention, and violence response (hostile workplace intruder). Felix is a retired U.S. Postal Inspector who previously worked on a U. S. Postal Inspection Service Workplace Violence Prevention Team and Major Crimes Unit. During his time on the workplace violence prevention team, Felix worked with local postmasters, postal service managers and senior executives to promote a culture of workplace violence prevention delivering training as needed and responding to a variety of incidents rendering risk abatement and risk management recommendations, and testifying at various city, county, state and federal criminal and civil hearings. Over the past 23 years as president and owner of Nater Associates Ltd, Felix has worked with small, medium, and large businesses and government agencies. He applies his Nater Associates Violence Interdiction Methodology as a part of his consulting process LI3CE (Leadership, Integration, Collaborating, Coordinating, Communication and Execution) in maximizing business and organizational independent capability to initiate and manage their programs. Felix is the author of Combating Workplace Violence: Creating and Maintaining Safe Environments with David and Ella Van Fleet, is a nationally recognized speaker and consultant, advisor and coach. He appears on a variety of podcasts as well as local and national news networks. Felix is retired from the U.S. Army Reserves where he previously served as the command sergeant major of a major U. S. Army Reserve Command.