Shopping centres deal with more members of the public than most businesses but, following security officer licensing, there is an increasing trend for those people who procure security services to believe that the service provided by all security companies is the same, and to view security as a commodity product. This does an injustice to the industry and could leave centres exposed in terms of their security provision. The choice of a security contractor should not be simply price driven, but in too many cases it is just that.

Procuring a service is significantly different from procuring a product and should be treated as such. There are no tangible, visual items to review and no set way to confirm whether the service you will get is fit for purpose. A service is an abstract entity that relies upon rhetoric and promises with regard to service delivery excellence.

Procurers of centre security services need to have a succinct tender specification document that clearly outlines each component of the expected requirements of the contract. To achieve this, centres need to ask themselves and - via the invitation to tender (ITT) - their security provider, the following questions:

? How do the skills and professionalism of the contracting company complement and strengthen the security function?

? Is the contractor management fully accountable for the service delivered and is this measured via a service level agreement?

? Is the service level agreement specific, measurable, accurate and objective?

? What standard and level of training and continuous professional development is provided?

? How does the potential contractor look after its employees' welfare?

? Has the contractor got robust IT systems to support the service delivery and management team?

? How agile is the contractor - how flexible, how innovative? Will their service be tailored to your centre's individual needs?

? How much empathy does the potential contractor have with your culture and your needs?

The ITT should also confirm details such as the full scope of services, quality of staff, the level of involvement from the management, operational requirements, exact format requirements for the tender submission, terms and conditions that will apply, cost factors and any company policies, issues or systems that must be incorporated into the contract.

In addition, a site briefing should always be conducted. The briefing gives tendering companies an opportunity to discuss the specification and tailor it if necessary, enabling the centre to evaluate a contractor's expertise and benefit from it. The site briefing also gives the centre a chance to reiterate the salient aspects of how the tender bid should be formatted.

Once requirements have been categorised in this way, it's then up to the contractor to ensure that they comply exactly with the format and information required in the bid specification. Most security contractors have generic tender response documents. However, it is vital to read the bid specification in detail and ensure that the response complies with the individual requirements of the centre.

At Equinox Security Management, we ensure that all questions are answered robustly and clearly, in chronological order and with supporting information to validate our ability to conform to the specified service levels and contractual requirements. These are important points that the client should look for when evaluating the response to the ITT. After all, if a contractor cannot follow specific instructions on how to complete a document, how will they fair in achieving the desired partnership?

A formal bid should always be supplemented by a presentation where, once again, the client gives specific instructions to the contractor on what elements of the tender bid they wish to explore in more detail. This also gives both parties the opportunity to test their thinking and resolve any outstanding questions. The contractor should always adhere to the format of the presentation and steer away from nebulous sales-orientated presentation styles.

If this process is followed, all tender bids can be prepared and analysed with ease. The contractor knows exactly what areas will be judged and the client can easily digest the information provided. In this way both parties can be confident that they understand not only the service requirements but each other, and that the chosen contractor will deliver the expected results.

Caroline Demoulpied is group business development director for Equinox Security Management.

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