What's your job about?
Security Consulting Group (SCG) is a security and communications consulting firm that provides specialised security and risk consultancy services both nationally and abroad. There are offices in most major capital cities with a growing team of leading industry professionals who focus on complex high-security environments in Government, Defence, Justice, Transport and many more. The business is particularly proud of its Security Construction and Equipment Committee (SCEC) Endorsed Security Zone consultants who can provide advice for or on behalf of the Australian Government. SCG works closely with clients to provide a well-rounded approach to their individual security needs, operational environment and risk context. This means that SCG can deliver and implement innovative security solutions from project inception starting with security threat and risk assessment, security audits and gap analysis, security master planning, Physical and Electronic security design engineering through to technology and design reviews. This could range from operational risk/threat management reports to CCTV surveillance, Electronic Access Control Systems, and Perimeters such as fences and detection systems.
My job is to assist the wider team with their various projects and engineering design, engaging with clients or inspecting sites. This could be detailing a security design for a major data centre provider or government agency, reporting on site conditions and progress to ensure it meets the design intent, meeting with clients to discuss their security needs or just attending events with suppliers to engage with new and up-and-coming technologies. Most recently on a project I had to attend a site and inspect the existing conditions for a new fit-out by the client and implement a security design based on their existing security controls while matching their specific security requirements. I had to consult with senior consultants to help design an appropriate system, coordinate drafting resources and deliver a design and report to the client in a short time frame.
What's your background?
Born and raised in Sydney, that includes my schooling; pre-kinder through to university at Macquarie. I was always on the move and involved with sports, this was an issue when it came to schooling as my priorities were not always purely academic. With this background many people expected me to go into the sports medicine field, but I ended up pursuing a paleobiology stream out of High School. Then 18 months in I swapped to engineering and fell into a love of building and fixing things. I made lifelong friends, met my now wife and was able to engage in a memorable experience in my final year of uni where I participated in a community engagement program with a group of other legends from my uni in Peru called ‘Peru’s challenge’ where I was able to develop a clean energy strategy for a community over there as well as assisting the project by helping build a new home for a local family. Also Machu Pichu, Rainbow Mountain and stuff…
Out of university, I started working for a specialist medical gas company working on complex medical gas systems for large-scale hospital projects. I stayed with this company for 3 years before the need to chase my field crept up on me and I found myself at SCG as a mature grad hoping to pursue my degree and feed my inquisitiveness. Over the past year, I have learnt that security is so much more than just CCTV cameras and a fence. There are threat intelligence considerations, security strategies, defence in-depth principles and equipment as far as the eye can see. I am extremely lucky to have landed in a role where I can learn so much from those around me and soak in all the experiences not only from those in my office but from the wider team and broader industry.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Of course, but you need to have the appetite. What I have learned is that security is not a job it’s a way of life and those around me don’t just work in security consultancy they live and breathe it in everything they do. There is support from everyone in the business and everyone is willing to help.
Everyone will say that great characteristics or skills to have are communication, teamwork and initiative but I think those are a given in a fast-paced environment. I believe what it takes is to:
What's the coolest thing about your job?
Not to sound to cliché but our team. Everyone is so open, inclusive and supportive. Everyone has different backgrounds, life experiences and previous employment which makes such a great and diverse group who often have conflicting viewpoints which leads to great discussions and conversations. As a grad it’s great to be that fly on the wall when the heavyweights discuss designs and concepts, soaking up all that knowledge is priceless. As a grad, you are paired with a senior consultant who guides you and can answer all my silly questions. Apart from that, there is such a diverse palate of work to get involved with including designs with the freedom to discuss every aspect of the project and get into the finer detail.
3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...