15 March 2024

OSINT 2: When is it Time?

Wonder why some companies don't have a more proactive OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) operation inside their own institution, looking at and analyzing potential “Threat Intel” across their global domains?

While there are very expensive services that can package up exactly what you are looking for, sometimes it just takes a little more time and the right “Sources."

You could get a service at x-iDefense or even a more wide range of collection capabilities from the likes of x-Cyveillance to assist the in-house OSINT operation.

Throw in some Stratfor, OSAC and one or more variations of Symantec or Qualys or Seerist and you have it mostly covered. Except for one thing.

Plenty of "Gray Matter.”  How many qualified analysts do you have on your team?

We might agree that there is more information out there than anyone could possibly imagine accessible with a few clicks and keystrokes.

Yet the easy part is the collection and the filtering or storage. Making any sense of it all with the relevance you seek is the "Holy Grail" for you, today.

Yet that might change tomorrow.

It's the consistent development of a new hypothesis and testing it that determines who will get the next new piece of information ready for OSINT.

And still the question remains. Will this be better kept a secret, or out in the “Wild"?

The argument usually isn't whether the results of the test should be published, it's more about when to publish.

Open Source Intelligence is going to be around for some time to come. The tools are getting even better to find and process massive volumes of information.

Think AI.  Think GPU.

The only real impediment will continue to be those who want to wait and hold on to it, a little longer…

09 March 2024

SPRINT: Folin Lane to Cislunar...

It was the year 1997 and there was another client meeting at the headquarters of Navy Federal Credit Union in Vienna, Virginia.

Traveling through Tysons Corner on Route 7, the Spring colors from Dogwoods were in full bloom. The Navy Federal HQ was tucked away in the woods just a short ride down Chain Bridge Road (123) past Westwood Country Club then a left onto Folin Lane.

The IBM Personal Computer was just now quickly replacing the old CR terminals sitting in the "Teller Windows" at 80+ branches in port locations across the USA and the world.

With NFCU overseas members branches today in Bahrain, Cuba, Greece, Guam, Korea, Italy, Japan, Singapore and Spain the Internet and use of banking protocols outside proprietary computing networks was just in it’s infancy.

Meeting up that early Spring day with NFCU key IT executives and our fellow Noblestar Team of outside Software Quality Assurance (SQA) experts such as David, Gia and Howard, the topics on that days agenda was the automated testing for bugs.

"No not Cicadas. You know, Vulnerabilities. Software Errors. Cracks in the Code."

Places that credit union software systems might be broken, running across the new IBM PCs networked to replace the terminals (CRT) from Annapolis to San Diego to Guantanamo to Italy.

Our innovation then in Software Quality Assurance, was about writing automated scripts that would rapidly test software.

The testing scripts developed by our Team in the SQA software, would help simulate hundreds of real people working at their new IBM PCs doing deposits, transfers and withdrawals as just one example.

Members of our Armed Forces who were NFCU customers (members), were counting on the IT personnel in Vienna, VA to help their branch managers keep their systems up-time-all-the-time, without vulnerabilities to the swarm of growing cyber exploits via the Internet.

So what?

True innovation begins with discovering a problem-set that has high value. Then figuring out if it can be solved quickly. A SPRINT.

To find a real solution to the problem-set that allows for the widget, the software, the process or the vehicle to do its job. What it was designed to do.

Whether it is software running on the IBM PC at the Teller Window at NFCU in Guam in 1977 or the sophisticated cislunar software running on a Space Force Lunar Lander on the Moon in 2024, what matters most?

Our United States next generation abilities to use software to more rapidly discover problems and test new versions is even more vital.

Now imagine, humans working with new AI-powered software applications to augment our abilities to discover and rapidly solve new sophisticated problem-sets, a galaxy away.

This is already our SPRINT destiny…

02 March 2024

Critical Infrastructure Protection: Resolve to be Ready...

CxO’s in corporate enterprises are ever more concerned about emergency preparedness and the continuity of their enterprises.

Now that threats to government and business operations are becoming ever more prevalent, organizations must plan for every type of business disruption from hardware and communications failures, to natural disasters, to internal or external acts of terrorism.

Being forced is never as appetizing as being induced to do anything. In order for changes to take place, the environment must reward investments in preparedness and safety.

Consistently the conversations are not about “if” something is going to happen, it is about “where” or “when” it is going to happen.

In order to introduce new changes in process or design that impacts the physical or operational aspects of critical infrastructures (to reduce terrorism risk), it is important to better understand how these change levers can provide the incentives for owners.

Therefore, it is imperative we initiate a proactive hedge against the inevitability of a loss event occurring in the future.

First however, we must understand the character of terrorism risk in critical infrastructure and some of the anti-terrorism tools currently available to help manage that risk.

The recognition by insurers that owners will continue to invest in terrorism risk reduction and building safety with the proper incentives is vital to overall risk management of critical infrastructures. Think “Ransomware” or even Colonial Pipeline.

The assessment of terrorism vulnerability in key structures identified as soft targets can be a key component of the rating of risk for a specific structure.

In order for owners to benefit from the potential of reduced premiums from direct insurers they must be able to demonstrate a combination of risk mitigation measures and programs to help improve the survivability of the infrastructure or to reduce it’s vulnerability to certain threat profiles.

These need to be exercised on a continuous timetable with extensive documentation, training and reporting.

In order for insurance brokers to accurately represent their buyers mitigation programs and measures to the direct insurers, they must have a foundation of knowledge about the structures physical vulnerabilities.

However, even more essential is the understanding of the operational and human attributes of the building that are contributing to the proactive tactics to prevent losses and further exposures to potential terrorism risk.

If this step takes place, the insurers can better evaluate these operational and human elements to determine the value and effectiveness of these tactics so that they can be considered for premium reductions.

The building itself, two miles from The White House, 10 Downing Street or the Eiffel Tower, has little chance of moving outside the high-risk zone for terrorist events.

The only methods for reducing risk exposures are to dramatically impact the operational and human elements of the building to mitigate hazards and increase the survivability of the people and systems that are resident.

As landlords and other interested real estate finance industry partners move towards new standards to mitigate terrorism risk and protect critical infrastructure, the necessity for state-of-the-art tools and systems to mitigate those risks is paramount...

23 February 2024

CERT: Make a Difference in this World...

Since the beginning of time, weather has been unpredictable. So has man.

When was the last time you witnessed the aftermath of a natural disaster?

When was the last time you saw the devastation from the Fateh-110 family of short-range ballistic weapons?

The continuous examples of risks to our world could generally be put into two major categories, 1) those we as humans can control and 2) those natural risks that we can’t control and shall have to live with.

Our spectrum of "Operational Risks" across People, Processes, Systems and External Events is vast and endless.

Where do you as a leader in your organization spend most or your time and resources to try and mitigate risks:

  • Natural Disasters and Weather (External Events)
  • People and Processes

Why?

Do you think that you are able to make a difference with those risks that you might be able to control?

Which is it - A) controlling the weather or B) influencing human behavior. Pick one.

What might happen if we devoted more time and resources to “B”.

How might this investment have a risk reduction impact and reduction in annual loss events to your family, organization, community, college or government?

Complacency or ignorance will continue to plague us and will make the world a more dangerous place to work and live.

Just listen to your own local news for a day. What will you learn?

Now, learn what you might do to make proactive difference.

This is one great place to begin: Community Emergency Response Team CERT.

Similar to the Community concept, why not apply this just cause of continuous training and learning to a Corporation, a Church, a Synagogue, a Campus, a Club or a Cinema.

“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.” Albert Einstein

17 February 2024

Antares: Innovation from Country Roads to Cislunar...

It was early February 1971 and three High School best friends consistently car pooled to do a little early morning “Country Roading”, in the white Pontiac LeMans on the way to school.

This was just a circuitous route down tree lined roads and around vast farm lands in the Midwest USA.

We were always set to arrive in the school parking lot, just in time to make it to our locker and then to 1st period before the bell rang.

Our dialogue on Capital Avenue SW and West on Beckley Road, quickly turned to the prescience of the Apollo 14 Antares Lunar Lander and it’s planned descent to the Moon in a few days time on February 4th.

Country roading this early morning gave us guys a chance to catch-up, then map and sketch out where we would rendezvous to watch together the Apollo 14 coverage of Commander Alan Shepard, Command Module Pilot Stuart Roosa and Lunar Module Pilot Ed Mitchell.

Before we as young teenage students ever knew what true innovation was really all about, we were about to see and read about it in the national news.

And little did we anticipate that when you encounter the “ABORT” signal, you sometimes have to just improvise. Test. Improvise. Test.

“After separating from the command module in lunar orbit, the LM Antares had two serious problems. First, the LM computer began getting an ABORT signal from a faulty switch. NASA believed the computer might be getting erroneous readings like this if a tiny ball of solder had shaken loose and was floating between the switch and the contact, closing the circuit. The immediate solution – tapping on the panel next to the switch – did work briefly, but the circuit soon closed again.”

Software engineering and Software Quality Assurance (SQA) is a continuous cycle of development, testing, errors, changes, testing and deployment. The software teams at MIT knew this first hand.

“A second problem occurred during the powered descent, when the LM landing radar failed to lock automatically onto the Moon's surface, depriving the navigation computer of vital information on the vehicle's altitude and vertical descent speed. After the astronauts cycled the landing radar breaker, the unit successfully acquired a signal near 22,000 feet (6,700 m). Mission rules required an abort if the landing radar was out at 10,000 feet (3,000 m), though Shepard might have tried to land without it. With the landing radar, Shepard steered the LM to a landing which was the closest to the intended target of the six missions that landed on the Moon.”

As our United States continues our next generation of the commercial race to the Moon, we can only anticipate future “ABORT” signals. Prototypes. Testing. Innovation.

After so many years working in global places where Software Quality Assurance was mission critical, you finally will learn as a professional, that it is never finished. It is never perfect.

So what?

Our USA will always be a leader because we have already been there, with humans actually operating on the Moon.

We know what will be challenging and why a hypothesis might end up being changed and adapted.

As our next human race to the Moon continues and our cislunar challenges are encountered, we know that we must continuously improve and innovate.

The same strategy shall also work here for you today on Earth, in your own small town…around your own dinner table each night…

Godspeed!

10 February 2024

Analytic Priorities: Crossing the Digital RubiCON...

The governance of information within the government enterprise or the private sector enterprise remains very much the same. Both are subjected to a myriad of laws to help protect the civil liberties and privacy of U.S. citizens. Yet the data leaks, breaches and lost laptops keep both private sector and government organizations scrambling to cover their mistakes and to keep their adversaries from getting the upper hand. Again, the governance of information is the core capability that must be addressed if we are to have effective homeland security intelligence sharing to defeat the threats to the homeland 100% of the time.

The stakeholders in the information sharing environments will say that they have all the laws they need to not only protect information and also to protect the privacy of and liberties of U.S. citizens. What they may not admit, is that they do not have the assets within the context of their own organizations to deter, detect, defend and document the threats related to too much information being shared or not enough. These assets are a combination of new technologies, new education and situational awareness training and the people to staff these respective duties within the enterprise architecture.

Operational Risk Management is a continuous process in the context of our rapidly expanding corporate environments. What is one example? People traveling to emerging markets to explore new business opportunities or new suppliers that will be connected by high speed Internet connections to the supply chain management system. These boundaries of managing operational risk, have not only expanded, they have become invisible.

Ru·bi·con
1. a river in N Italy flowing E into the Adriatic

2. Rubicon, to take a decisive, irrevocable step

This "Digital Rubicon" before us, to take on a more "Active Defense" in navigating the risk across international waters of e-commerce, privacy and legal jurisdictions will forever shape our future. The decisions made on what constitutes an adversarial attack in the cyber domain, will not be as easy as the dawn of the nuclear age. Policy makers today have to weave the potential implications into a sophisticated decision tree that crosses the complex areas of intelligence, diplomacy, defense, law, commerce, economics and technology.

The new digital "Rule Sets" are currently being defined by not only nation states but the "Non-State" actors who dominate a segment of the global digital domains. The same kinds of schemes, ploys, communication tactics and strategies are playing out online and what has worked in the physical world, may also work even better in the cyber-centric environment. Corporations are increasingly under estimating the magnitude of the risk or the speed that it is approaching their front or back door steps.

The private sector is under tremendous oversight by various regulators, government agencies and corporate risk management. Yet the "public-private" "tug-of-war" over information sharing, leaks to the public press and Wikileaks incidents has everyone on full alert. As the government has outsourced the jobs that will take too long to execute or that the private sector already is an expert, operational risks have begun to soar.

As the private sector tasks morph with the requirements of government you perpetuate the gap for effective risk mitigation and spectacular incidents of failure. Whether it is the failure of people, processes, systems or some other clandestine event doesn't matter. The public-private paradox will continue as long as the two seek some form of symbiosis. The symbiotic relationship between a government entity and a private sector supplier must be managed no differently than any other mission critical resource within an unpredictable environment.

Once an organization has determined the vital combination of assets it requires to operate on a daily basis, then it can begin it's quest for enabling enterprise resiliency. The problem is, most companies still do not understand these complex relationships within the matrix of their business and therefore remain vulnerable. The only path to gaining that resilient outcome, is to finally cross that "Digital Rubicon" and realize that you no longer can control it.

The first step in any remediation program, is first to admit the problem and to accept the fact that it exists. Corporate enterprises and governments across the globe are coming to the realization that the only way forward is to cooperate, coordinate and contemplate a new level of trust.

26 January 2024

Operational Risk: Volatility of Change...

What is volatility and how could this be an operational risk in your particular institution or organization?


The threat of "Volatility" depends on what is being measured. The stock price. The return on capital. The key is that you want to reduce volatility in most cases.


It scares some people. Long term investors, employees and customers.


Volatility is the standard deviation of the change in value of a financial instrument with a specific time horizon. It is often used to quantify the risk of the instrument over that time period.


Who likes volatility?


Volatility is often viewed as a negative in that it represents uncertainty and risk.


However, volatility can be good in that if one shorts on the peaks, and buys on the lows one can make money, with greater money coming with greater volatility.


The possibility for money to be made via volatile markets is how short term market players like day traders make money, and is in contrast to the long term investment view of buy and hold.


So volatility is in the "eye of the beholder". The point is that some people thrive on it and others are better off with that smooth and predictable future.


Risk in a financial institution is defined in terms of earnings volatility. Earnings volatility creates the potential for loss. Losses, in turn, need to be funded, and it is the potential for loss that imposes a need for institutions to hold capital in reserve.


This capital provides a balance sheet cushion to absorb losses, without which an institution subjected to large (negative) earnings swings could become insolvent.


How much capital is allocated to Operational Risk is a measurement issue. The decisions an institution makes in managing Operational Risks is not risk versus return, but risk versus the cost it takes to avoid these threats.


The key determinant of an institutions risk factor against operational failures is not the amount of reserve capital, it is the performance of management.


In fact, in a few spectacular cases of operational failures, incremental capital would have made no difference to the firm's survivability. It comes back to strategy, safety, security and soundness.


How volatile are your earnings? At the end of the day the question is about management controls and measurement.  What if your measurements were not earnings, but the number of workplace accidents and acts of violence?



How effective are they at mitigating operational risks in the areas of the institution that can't be insured?


Look at places where "Change" is happening in huge volumes and at a rapid pace and you will know where to begin.

13 January 2024

Trust Decisions: "Lake Anne to Davos"...

The 2024 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos Switzerland kicks off January 15-19. Are you traveling this weekend on your way to attend?

The 54th event theme this year is “Rebuilding Trust”.

On Jan 18 at 11:00 CET the session titled “Technology in a Turbulent World” will include CEO panelists from OpenAI, Salesforce, Accenture and Pfizer.

Why?

Flashback to Reston, Virginia in the 2012-2015 time frame, one of the most brilliant people on the topic of trust was across the table asking for relevant feedback.

While several meetings over coffee at home or near the plaza on “Lake Anne”, together, we were reading some of the early drafts of his anticipated book- “Achieving Digital Trust: The New Rules for Business at the Speed of Light”, byJeffrey Ritter:

“Despite decades of research on organizational trust, behavioral sociology, marketing, artificial intelligence, user interfaces, and human relationships, the vocabulary and tools needed to build digital trust simply do not exist. So, within these pages, I share with you a new portfolio of tools and resources:” (Page 24 / Achieving Digital Trust by Jeffrey Ritter).

The “War on Trust” of information was already on the way in 2012, and yet it was well over a decade since our organizations algorithms were exploring the digital universe.

Each night, downloading terabytes of World Wide Web content, for clients reporting and analysis.

“From the Board Room to our modern day asymmetric battlefield, Jeffrey Ritter’s Achieving Digital Trust will open eyes. It provides us with a reference model that management and software architects have been seeking. The survival of the Internet as we know it is currently at stake. This book provides a look into the transparency of «Trust Decisions» and how ensuring digital truth will shape our global governance for decades to come.” Peter L. Higgins, Managing Director & Chief Risk Officer, 1SecureAudit

And next week in Davos, the global key topic is “Rebuilding Trust”?

Think about who you have trusted in your life. How did it begin? Why does it last?

You just never forget sitting across the table from someone you actually trust.

Talking together face-to-face about topics of interest or working on a new innovative solution to a problem-set for all mankind.

Picture it. Looking at each other in the eyes and asking them: Why do you believe it?

  • One person is a high IQ, highly educated international lawyer and Oxford professor on the evolution of the Internet.
  • One person is from a small town and a college graduate / athlete, who started in business at the digital dawn, years before the Internet was born.

As we mutually reflect on the past, and imagine the future of our world on Earth as we continue to explore our Moon and beyond, we shall always remember.

At the 2015 World Economic Forum in Davos, Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce observed:

“The digital revolution needs a trust revolution. There has been an incredible shift in the technology industry. . . . We’ve gone from systems of record to systems of engagement and now we are about to move into a world of systems of intelligence. But none of these will retain form or have referential integrity unless the customers trust them. Trust is a serious problem. The reality is that we all have to step up and get to another level of openness and transparency.” (Page 32 / Achieving Digital Trust)

Godspeed!

05 January 2024

Global Risk Economy: Follow the Money...

Operational Risk in the global economy is migrating to places that 10 years ago would not have been easily forecasted.

New countries, financial institutions and software technologies have changed the playing field for our risk management executives.

Why is this happening?

One example is the movement of employment to more emerging markets where corporate tax rates are lower and the supply of talented workers with specific skill sets is prevalent.

The simple movement of people and systems to those new countries creates new found risks that may not have been as pervasive in the past for the institution.

Another example is the evolution of new computing platform paradigms such as the emergence of "The Cloud" or “Infrastructure-as-a-Service".

This outsourced IT model not only provides economy of scale in terms of just in time computing power but also the more economical licensing models.

Operational Risk within the confines of the global workplace will continue to follow what countries are attractive and where these people and the systems are now operating from.

Along with this migration of responsibilities of vital corporate processes to other cultures and countries comes the risks associated with potential lack of safeguards, both legally and to the physical protection of key corporate assets.

In the United States, our “True International Economy" explains why there are tens of millions of employees now working for US-based corporations outside the country.

Once you have accepted this fact, your personal risk mindset may also change.

How many U.S. organizations have now moved their Corporate Headquarters to Dublin?

How many American companies now have personnel in foreign countries reviewing online “Social Media” content with the assistance of AI?

"You may have heard the phrase "Follow The Money" in several contexts in the past."

Whether it was Watergate investigations in the 70's or now the 2020’s and the new “Global War in Space”.

The real-time tracking of where money flows, can be a core indicator of where Operational Risk managers need to keep their radar focused and on high alert.

Operational Risk Management (ORM) in the next decade will take on a whole new international meaning and significance than it currently does today.

The risks associated with people, processes, systems and external events will become even more exponential…

15 December 2023

Acknowledgement: Who or What & Why in Your Life...

Approaching the end of another challenging year in your particular life, there are many opportunities for acknowledgments.

The real question is, how many have you given in 2023? How many have you received?

Acknowledgement

1a: the act of acknowledging something or someone.

b: recognition or favorable notice of an act or achievement.

2: a thing done or given in recognition of something received.

As you think about it, who or what do you wish, that they would acknowledge you for your service or contribution?

If your efforts were for another person you know personally very well, that may have even more relevance.

  • Maybe it was a meal. Maybe it was a ride. Maybe it was a financial contribution.
  • Maybe it was a chore or effort around the house or a work project.
  • Maybe it was a prayer.

"Acknowledgement" is more valuable than you may ever know and realize in building and maintaining vital and valued relationships in your life.

Giving a sincere acknowledgement to someone or another entity for their service or the contribution, is vital only if you really care about maintaining and growing this relationship into the future. Or is it?

There are many reasons why you may continuously provide service or contribute something of value for someone or something else.

Are you being selfless or is it true reciprocity?

Is it between two people? Is it between two teams or businesses? Is it between two countries?

How are you personally acknowledging another? With words. With money. With deeds. With a written note. With a smile.

So what?

You see, your acknowledgement matters more than you may ever know or understand.

Is your particular relationship growing more valuable or is it just not reciprocal in nature?

Why?

This is a good time of the year to think more about who and how you will be acknowledging others in your life.

Walk outside or look out the window at the sun rising on the horizon in your neighborhood tomorrow morning.

What or who are you so grateful for and who will you acknowledge this coming year…

Thank you for reading this!

08 December 2023

Homeland Security Intelligence (HSI): The "New" Ecosystem…

It was the late Spring of 2011 in the Northern Virginia suburbs when it was gaining momentum.

Our small non-profit council group would meet almost weekly after our respective daily roles in the NCR.

Our INSA conference room was located off North Stuart Street in Arlington and there together, we would collaborate for a few hours face-to-face.

Depending on what direction you were coming from, the evening commute by Metro or car from Reston and Tysons Corner might be easier than from Springfield or Alexandria in those days.

After all, the roads and rails had all been laid on the former paths of our American natives and early settlers horse trails through the winding woods and across the rivers.

Our "Council Members" goal for these designated three dozen professionals and Subject Matter Experts, was to define “Homeland Security Intelligence” (HSI).

We were in Arlington, VA to produce a thought leaders White Paper publication that would address all of our diverse insights after a perilous decade since 9/11.

Our particular Sub-Team of 7 people was focused on the full integration of the enterprise (The Ecosystem) and it was to become another deep dive into our nations “Lessons Learned” and the new opportunities for future collaboration.

“Homeland Security Intelligence" is information that upon examination is determined to have value in assisting federal, state, local, tribal and private sector decision makers in identifying or mitigating threats residing principally within U.S. borders.” - INSA

As our small “Ecosystem Group” of 7 converged each week over the summer, on the key topics and issues to improve the connections of our intelligence enterprise, a set of new insights were discovered and new lasting personal relationships were born.

These “Community Engagement” concepts, to include those in key geographies of our country along with a “Whole of Nation” approach with properly qualified and trained U.S. public citizens, continues to this very day.

“The system will require unique, and not yet identified, analytic frameworks, knowledge management, collaboration tools, and training that include built-in safeguards for privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties protections for U.S. persons.” Page 11-Intelligence To Protect The Homeland…taking stock ten years later and looking ahead…INSA

A decade plus later in 2023, our own United States has accomplished so much resilience and yet we realize that this remains an infinite challenge going forward.

The “What” and the “How” are incorporated into so many integrated systems to this HSI enterprise today, including:

  • Biometrics.
  • Video Surveillance.
  • License Plate Reader technologies.
  • Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV).
  • Open Source Social Media.

And now even AI.

So what?

As human beings our curiosity and our knowledge ecosystem requires that we truly understand the “What” and the “How”.

Unfortunately, this is only the extent that today our “AI” has in its own understanding.

"AI will not accurately grasp the “Why” for some time to come into our future. Go ahead, ask it yourself."

At the time, many of those who were in our conference room in 2011 defining “Homeland Security Intelligence”(HSI), still did not even have a full understanding of the software Internet algorithms, that were then defining the only ten+ year old “Dark Web”.

Today, our community engagement initiatives as “Human Beings” in a room together, around good old fashioned conference tables, looking into each others eyes, shall remain our only chance of staying informed on the trusted continuous reasoning of “Why”…

Godspeed!

02 December 2023

Extraordinary: Always Be Ready...

The G700 private jets were taking off from Winchester Regional Airport (OKV) and they roared just overhead as we approached the small business park off Front Royal Pike & Airport Road.

It was a another glorious Virginia Fall week, with the Maple and Oak trees in full colors.

The next training course was scheduled to begin at 08:00 sharp and you could feel the butterflies in your gut as you pulled into the small tree lined parking lot.

The 72 hour on-site course to achieve a “Personal Protection Specialist” (PPS) Certification (32E) in Virginia was just one facet of a continuous journey to learn more about what the definition of “Extraordinary” really means:

Extraordinary

adjective

1a: going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary.

2: employed for or sent on a special function or service.

Over the next six days we would be in this class room and also out in the local community applying new skill sets in real time. Day and night.

Our key areas of instruction, innovation, mastery and testing included:

  • Personal Protection Orientation.
  • Virginia Code and DCJS Regulations.
  • Assessment of Threat and Protectee Vulnerability.
  • Legal Authority and Civil Law.
  • Protective Detail Operations.
  • Emergency First Aid and CPR.
  • Advances.
  • Surveillance Detection.
  • Defensive Preparedness.

Why?

So our instructors will observe our behavior, coach us in the moment of action in order to improve towards true achievement of “Extraordinary” service.

The mindset and all of the innovative professional skills that are learned this week, shall stay with you forever.

So how does continuous learning and practicing these skills as a "Quiet Professional" over a decade ago, apply to our particular world in 2023?

As just an illustrated example, perhaps you are responsible for transporting your Principal client from a hotel to the airport in an unfamiliar California city at the end of a two day corporate event.

Some may call it pre-planning, and yet it is referred to as the “Advance”.

You have never driven the route before and based upon the amount of orange cones and detour signs already witnessed, you know it could be a challenge. There is no chance for errors.

As you take a first look in Google Maps at your proposed starting point and destination, the route looks unusual. Heading South for a few miles to make a U turn when you know your airport is to the North seems curious?

So to get a local perspective, you then approach the “Hotel Concierge” and ask them for the best route to the airport from their point of view.

They immediately pull out the paper Map of the area and show you the path North along the local North bound detours to provide you on a visual orientation.

Fast forward to check-out. You are now in the vehicle transporting your client with substantial luggage while they continue to deal with the growing barrage of message alerts on their iPhone.

15 miles North and 25 minutes or so later after keeping the visual orientation in mind with your Google Maps talking in the background, you safely arrive on time at this foreign airport.

As a PPS in your particular role of your small team, business organization or agency, just continue to remember this.

You learned and trained to be “Extraordinary”.

“Always Be Ready”…