Securing the Client's London Headquarters

The client, The Millenium Group, needed to ensure that Allianz's London headquarters was supported by a trusted partner to deliver onsite security, an enhanced security policy, and consultative expertise.

Challenge

Allianz, a client of The Millenium Group (TMG) and one of the leading insurance and asset management companies in the world, needed to overhaul its corporate security operation and bring it up to industry standards. Allianz's London office needed a facility management (FM) supplier as part of a TFM model to provide security that could provide an effective, well-supplied security team. The client also wanted an FM partner that could support Allianz with operational expertise, in addition to effective service delivery.

The client’s security operation required a CCTV control room operation, a front-of-house security presence, building patrols, access control, and reporting capabilities. To support this, contract management was also emphasised, both for on-site coordination and productive client-supplier communication.

“Throughout this partnership, ABM has shown that is there is no ‘I’ in ‘team’ and continues to assist TMG in this contract, and hopefully in many more to come.”

— Sammy Ashry, Operations Manager UK & EMEA

ABM was tasked with the planning, mobilisation, and service delivery for this contract, while ensuring a minimally disruptive implementation process. As ABM was operating within the highly regulated insurance and asset management industries, demonstrating that the FM partner understood Allianz’s requirements was essential. Subsequently, forging a long-term relationship built on cooperation and excellent service was a priority for ABM’s mobilisation team.

Solution

Given the complexity of Allianz security requirements, and the relationship ABM would need to manage in order to build a productive operation, mobilisation was a critical stage. As a result, collaboration with Allianz and TMG throughout mobilisation underpinned ABM’s successful service delivery.

As a company within a regulated industry, Allianz must abide by strict recruitment policies to ensure that staff are appropriately vetted, such as accreditation and background checks which include the British Standard vetting process BS7858. To this end, ABM leveraged its substantial recruiting systems to deploy seasoned security specialists and upskill the incumbent site team that transferred over under the TUPE regulations. This also included an onboarding process to ensure that all staff were trained according to the client’s requirements, such as GDPR training and CCTV training for the site team.

As part of the mobilisation, ABM updated Allianz’s corporate security policy. The former set of policies and protocols were several years out of date and could not reliably support the client’s security operation. In addition to supporting daily task management, this updated security policy provided a foundation for future security measures.

Moreover, Allianz was keen to integrate additional technology into its security operation. For example, digital reporting, particularly for site patrol teams, was identified as an opportunity for increased efficiency. As a result, site reports are now delivered to stakeholders promptly and with greater accuracy (based on templated formats), accessed via app and web portals. This has since developed into a streamlined database of documentation that can be accessed by the client.

Allianz’s London office is a complex facility that needed comprehensive CCTV coverage. Given the sensitive working environment of the building and regulated nature of the industry, ABM implemented a GDPR-compliant control room staffed by trained specialists, both to monitor the building and coordinate with patrol teams. Moreover, the operation is trained to manage any new updates to GDPR compliance requirements.

As a result of collaboration and effective service delivery, Allianz’s London headquarters is now safer, more secure, and increasingly efficient as ABM introduces more training and technology to support the security team.

Benefits

• Operational implementation: Allianz has access to an integrated, well-managed security team that continues to meet and exceed target KPIs. Similarly, the client’s security team continues to meet its targeted KPIs.
• Increased operational efficiency: ABM has reduced Allianz’s operational requirements by approximately 60 hours - without compromising quality of service or building safety.
• Digitised reporting: Allianz now has a reporting system underpinned by a digitised workflow, which is aimed at faster turnaround, increased accuracy, and productive client communication.
• Updated security policies: Allianz’s security policies, once approximately four years out of date, are now compliant with SIA-accredited security practices. This continues to support the client’s operation and is also subject to change so that ABM can guarantee compliance.
• Technological integration: Allianz’s building patrol teams are supported with electronic reporting devices, which has increased the frequency of real-time incident reporting and provided the client with regular data.
• Upskilled security operation: Allianz’s security staff are regularly trained by ABM to ensure the team can continue to deliver essential services, remain compliant, and provide a safe working environment.
• CCTV control room coordination: Allianz’s office is now monitored by a control room team that is both GDPR-compliant and able to cooperate with security teams on patrol and overseeing building access.