security specialist

specialist

retail sales associate

security officer

gsoc operator

Security Industry Specialists, Inc.

At the surface level, SIS seems to offer the dream entry-level job but in the end it is very soul-crushing. You are nothing more than a blue shirt-wearing number to them. They are deceptive in their training and recruitment process.

Starting off with the job interview, it is a very rushed affair. First you'll get an e-mail asking for a phone interview and when you pass the phone interview they will set up an in-person interview at their office.
The phone interview seemed much more intensive than the in-person so if you pass the the phone interview you're likely to pass the following interview as well.

In the second interview you'll be thrown low-ball questions and be hired on the spot, then they will rush you through some paperwork and you will be assisted by their HR clerks so be prepared to stay there an extra hour or two after the interview. You will also be expected to pay ~$28 for the finger printing appointment while you're there on their provided laptops so don't forget your credit card.

After urinating in a cup for them at a clinic for your background check and your fingerprinting you'll be put into job training. On your first day they will give you all sorts of information that will make you think joining SIS was the best decision you ever made. They'll show you the break room that is laden with every snack and drink imaginable and tell you that they provide it to employees all for free. But don't let that deceive you because in reality you won't ever be stepping foot into that break room since your assigned post will be at the client's building who will not be providing the same amenities for you. They'll also tell you that they hire only the best but a quick look at your fellow trainees will tell you that's a lie as well. They say that we're not security guards, we're security "specialists" but there's nothing special about what we do.

You'll be issued a uniform which includes the most uncomfortable pair of shoes that you will ever put on your feet. Its construction basically chafes the life out of your little toe and will make you want to put a gun in your mouth at the end of the day.

The job itself really stinks. It's not a boring security job. I wished it was boring. But it's not stimulating enough either. It's downright annoying. The radio will constantly be chattering and it won't be long until you're hearing the cursed thing in your dreams. Many of your coworkers will find ways to hide and avoid doing their work, leaving you to sit at their post while they take an extra 5 or 10 minutes of lunch. The day i decided to leave there was even a fight between two specialists, right in front of the client too.

There are benefits but I didn't stay long enough to find out how good they are. That said, at the end I only managed to rack up a few hours of paid time off which i was compensated for. Their paid time off rate is 1 hour for every 30 hours worked. I didn't think much of it at first but after doing the math, I realized how bad it is.

The average amount of time off a workplace gives is about 10-15 sick days and a separate 10-15 vacation days for your fist year of working. If you work for SIS full-time (40 hour workweek) for a year you will accrue a whopping 69 hours of paid time off. That's less than 9 days a year to be used for both sick and vacation time. Sure you can accrue more than that amount if you work more than 40 hours a week but why would you torture yourself that way?

I was in retail operations, so I sat a store in plain clothes all day. They try to tell you that apprehensions don't matter, but that's only a half truth. The full statement is "Apprehensions don't matter...but you still need stats." They repeatedly tell you they don't care about how many apprehensions or recoveries or such you get but at the same time have 'conversations' with you when you don't have any. When I was hired I was told that this company doesn't care about apprehensions and operate on 'intelligence.' and as long as you're getting intel sent out, you're good. How misleading that was.

They also will put you in deep trouble when you miss a theft. During my orientation I was shown security video of an employee not seeing someone stealing from the store and was immediately given the caption of "So this person is going to be fired." So you can't miss any thefts or you're likely to lose your job. The store itself (I can't say which as they consider clients confidential) isn't even particularly active with theft. Occasionally someone steals a large amount, but that's so few and far between. You'll be working 40 hours a week for events that come up maybe 2-3 times a month. If you can keep alert in those circumstances then best of luck to you. Your job is literally just catching shoplifting so if the store is empty or there's nobody stealing then you don't have any other tasks to occupy your time.

There's also the commute. It's a small team working 4-8 stores, so you will have to work multiple stores. Experiences vary, but I was assigned to 3 stores and was literally driving an average of an hour one way, 500 miles a week. They reimburse you for parking but no money goes to mileage. I've heard in other markets of people driving 2 hours one way, and it's just expected by management. You're surrounded by employees at the store you're contracted at but you aren't actually part of the team. It varies store to store but that could not mean anything and you're treated as the same as them, or you're viewed as an outsider and not even given access to things like the breakroom or the employees are afraid to talk to you. That's a moot point though since talking to employees potentially distracts you from whatever theft could be occurring and it's already been explained what happens then.

The company itself is run like a small company, which isn't always a good thing. Your team is a skeleton crew, your reporting system is literally typing up in Word and emailing instead of any sort of database, and you are required to handcuff every single person you try to apprehend, and anyone who's worked Loss Prevention in retail knows that things often get trickier when the suspect suddenly sees handcuffs. 

Within one year of the team being created the entire original team is gone, and supposedly turnover isn't much better elsewhere.

A typical day at work would include clocking in at 6am and going through a 20 to 30 minute briefing with the physical security team working in the field. In the briefing we go over events that have taken place within the past 24 hours such as break-ins, missed alarms, and knew adjustments made to site pages. Once that is complete, for the next eight hours I take part in completing phone calls to sites, dispatching many alarms, sending emails,creating lengthy desk journal entries and creating trouble tickets.
Since starting this job I have found that everyday working here is different. Myself along with my co-workers are constantly learning knew things and expanding our knowledge in new computer programs and places across the globe. I believe this because we cover so many sites as a team from from Europe, Asia, and the Americas and are always implementing new computer programs to work with. 
When working with a management team it is very important to have a group of managers that you feel comfortable with and can bring your work problems to with no hesitation.  Working at SIS i believe that we have that here. The managers are very personable as well as very professional and if i could, i would bring them along with me to the next career destination.
Your co-workers can make or break your work experience and of course you are not going to like everyone that you work with. I am lucky enough to say that i enjoy the majority of my co-workers, i am really grateful to be able to say that because working in environment that i am in, it is very important to have a strong team environment. Between sending emails, making calls, sending out alarms, creating trouble tickets and monitoring cameras things can get very hectic and from time to time assistance is need from co-workers.
When thinking about the that hard parts of the job i wouldn't say there are things that are very "hard" because i feel as if i do a great job at what i do. There are things that are difficult though, this being when there isn't a highly detailed pass down of information from one shift to another of previous events Or if there isn't a smooth briefing with the field security. When one of those two things happens it becomes difficult for the oncoming shift because we have no clue on current problems that are at hand. We don't know what steps need to be taken with problems and the steps that have already been taken so we end up in the dark.
The most enjoyable parts of my job are the personal connection that everyone has with one another and the group activities that take place among the co-workers inside and outside of work.

As most jobs do, they seem great in the beginning.  After 10 years with SIS as a special operations/ODO, giving them unlimited time and energy, being flexible and dropping everything at the drop of a hat for them to help them in a pinch, they reminded me that I am disposable.  I've spent 10 years giving them everything they asked.  I've left my family on vacations because SIS called and needed something urgent.  I've given them weeks rather than the originally scheduled "4 days at most". I've pulled them out of jams a hundred times because they needed someone at the drop of a hat, and I've never told them no.  And when I needed them to help me out a little, I'm told very bluntly "you're just a part time person, basically expendable, you're not guaranteed anything".  Couple that with knowing that after 10 years, I haven't gotten a raise, a bonus, nothing but a Christmas card, and learning that almost all new ODO's are starting out making between $5-15 an hour more than we are, really sets you sour.   

With all that being said, I have made some terrific friends, and SIS is generally well respected.  Most ODO's bite their tongues and appreciate the reasonably good hourly rate for usually extremely easy work.  It IS hard to complain on most counts, but thinking about the actuality of the matters, and the way you're treated overall is extremely irritating.  Knowing that you are expendable, being told as much, knowing that new ODO's are being hired in fresh and making more because you haven't gotten a raise in 10 years, is irritating.  Knowing that only managers get bonuses really irritates you.  Knowing that everything you do is done as cheaply as possible, meaning you'll take a garbage flight at 5AM with a garbage seat assignment because it saved them $12 over a 10 AM flight on a better plane and airline irritates you.  Knowing that you probably wont get the reward points for flights and hotels because they will use Expedia to book your travel is irritating.  The cost saving measures affect the person traveling more than anything, and don't you dare complain.  You're expendable.  You're just part time.  You aren't guaranteed anything.  Don't expect a words worth of recognition or appreciation from your managers.  You'll get an email talking about how much you're appreciated and how well SIS is doing thanks to your efforts (company wide) but don't expect to benefit from their success.  Only they California, Seattle and NY crew gets any perks like extravagant office parties. If you don't live by an office, you don't get to party and rub elbows.  Unless you're in LA or NY, don't expect to work any of the glam events that the website advertises either.  You won't be brought in for any of that either.

SIS Supervisors are questionable. SIS only gotten worse because abusive politics made up. Terrible place to work at, stressful hard time dealing with rude abnoxious SIS bully Supervisors. SIS favoritism is a huge role whatever is their fitting culture club convenience.
Admin Office Supervisors and often Watch Commanders are bias always un-reasonable when making-up implicit disciplinary judgment calls, and 'MAKE-UP STORIES".  SIS is absolutely the worst company you can ever go to. Do NOT work here. 
Not only do management have no respect for workers, but they NEVER care about worker well-being at all. They do a lot of sketchy things behind workers back. For one, talk to HR nobody does anything, sketchy thing SIS is that re-write their terms, completely different terms that employee signed originally.  When report the abuses SIS Mgmt. got angry and started to hate vindictive procedures against several 'targeted co workers that ended up being discharged. And then they made up stories justification. 
This review here to protect other workers from going into SIS industry worse treatment, to make sure other people don't waste their time at this SIS company. I hope everyone takes reviews into consideration. There are FAR more better jobs out there who respects and treats workers considerate. No one should have to be treated the way they're being treated here. 
Immature management, low pay, error paycheck extra hours,extremely hostile work environments, and an SIS HR department that feels more like the mob than a security company. The best advice a previous employee can give you is to find work elsewhere. SIS try to fuel their company with intimidation and scare tactics, lose clients like it’s a fad, and hire anyone who shows up for the interview. Be prepared for blatant favoritism and rude bully treatment.

The pay is fair (for the most part), especially in the physical security space. The questionable pay comes into play with my specific position: Application Support Specialist. 
We provide Physical Access Control System services on a global basis, using access control applications like Lenel and video management systems like Vidsys. The work walks the lines between customer services, technical support, Access Control Administration, and Access Control Engineering.
While the base pay of $29 an hour (non-negotiable) is very nice for a standard physical security guard in the area, those in the technical side of things are often paid a good deal more. 
We often have dealings with assistants to the C-Suite execs of our client, a global tech giant based out of Cupertino, CA. We assist with Global Security Investigations into HR, Employee Relations, loss prevention, and ethical violations. We help design the access control setups for new buildings coming online and decommission old buildings.

The job is challenging enough to be at least somewhat satisfying, though not challenging enough to be frustrating. If you are a top performer, though, and wish to pursue a more technical job, this is the pinnacle you can achieve with SIS. There is no higher technical job. Even the supervisor makes a salary that is less than we do if we work 4-5 hours of OT each week, on average.

Honestly, though...The lack of further growth and the limited pay and benefits are my only complaints. The work atmosphere is good. I love my team. I love my supervisor and managers. I enjoy the job. Not a BAD place to work, simply not enough room for growth, in my mind.

Absolutely NO communication from leadership on the most basic of things, turn over is ridiculously bad, the leadership has squandered their potential work force but alienating anyone that has any kind of experience in the job field or job site causing the most experienced and senior people to leave.  I have no idea who my supervisor on site even is, only time I ever hear from leadership when they need a spot filed on my days off.  Way to many part time employees who get to pick the hours they work and of course no one wants to work weekends.  Unless your friends with the leadership or a "yes man" there is no way your moving up at the site I work.  They would rather hire from outside or another site to new post instead of promoting from within.  Supervisors are young, immature and inexperienced in the field of security causing issues with the general public.  Management continues to hire young, inexperienced people who are given no direction on how to be a proper Security Officer and no one is held accountable when they mess up.  Management is more concerned with "filling numbers on the contract" then hiring decent people who take pride in their work and want to improve.  No matter how many years you have in the profession they will treat you like a child.  Sorry I'm kind of rambling through this review, but the site I work at is terrible and I would never work for SIS again after this experience, take your skills and experience to a different company for your own sanity.

I was super excited to work for SIS, but my very first shift they started their bs. You will be posted somewhere and without fail you will be told to move to another location, expected to walk across Seattle, in the rain, or snow, and even though they have vehicles available to assist you, management will expect you to walk across the city to the next location. I was moved on average 3 times a night, and up to 9 times in a 12 hour shift, walking to each location across Seattle. In February/March my post was decommissioned, with my shifts being completely changed, and I was forced to accept the change or resign. They claim and will tell others that it was my choice to leave. Originally I had planned to work with SIS for at least 5 years, but their shenanigans ended that.
There were times when I would call supervisors for assistance and none answered their phones (8 supervisor numbers unanswered at one point). Times when they purposefully misled specialists and lied to us. Rarely was there a time when management wasn't creating drama. There are some really great and amazing people working for that company and being treated very poorly. I was told by fellow specialists to stay quiet and accept the situation, because it's considered to be an easy job. Many are doing that just to keep working with SIS. 
It's a shame, because SIS misses opportunities to improve and work WITH the specialists and not against them.

This company prides itself on being above the minimum wage...for California. Seattle recently raised the minimum wage to $13.5-$15 dependent on if health insurance is offered.Nearly 2 years with this company and i still make only $15.50 an hour. That isn't to mention the schedule was changed over 11 times over the course of 3 months, often double booking and expecting 60+ hour work weeks without extra compensation. The company hires people whom either abandon post or just don't want to do their jobs at all. Nobody gets fired or suspended unless the client complains and even then, it is minimal that SIS will take disciplinary actions.As a rover specialist, the supervisors threaten to make you walk double if your coworkers don't fall in line regardless of if you are doing your job. To put it into perspective, i was recently in a car accident with spinal and leg injuries and the supervisor makes us walk most of the night. I work 3x12 hour shifts to which i walk a total of 40-45 miles every week. For only $15.50, they don't pay enough for physical suffering. Oh and no matter what they say, don't ever expect a raise; it will never come.

As a Flex officer I would either be covering a special event or I would be working as a Patrol officer. As a Patrol officer my job was to mostly conduct exterior door checks and interior door checks. As well as conduct hourly server room checks looking for temperature and humidity spikes.

As this was my first civilian security job i learned to differentiate my military training from public security. The job reinforced my ability to work as part of a team and my customer service skills.

Management was stern but mostly fair. First line leaders however let personal friendships coerce their decisions when it came to bringing on officers as full time and shift preference.

For the most part my co-workers and i enjoyed working together and felt confident in our ability to complete all tasks with efficiency.

The hardest part of the position was interacting with the corporate clients while following our operating procedures. Such as employees parking in an electric-car parking space only when they do not have one. Also different levels of management did not communicate effectively so directions and scheduling was not always clear.

The most enjoyable part of the job was the company in its self was a positive place to work.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Security specialist 1203 salaries reported	$21.60 per hour
Specialist 120 salaries reported	$24.66 per hour
Retail sales associate 82 salaries reported	$31.49 per hour
Security officer 70 salaries reported	$42.04 per hour
Gsoc operator 51 salaries reported	$25.82 per hour

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