Institutional Knowledge and Turnover in the Executive Protection Industry: The Value of Longevity and the Cost of Attrition
Trust, discretion, and experience are key pillars of effective security in the high-stakes world of executive protection. Beyond technical skills and tactical proficiency, one of the most invaluable assets a protective services team can possess is institutional knowledge and team synergy—a deep, nuanced understanding of the protectee, their surrounding ecosystem, operational patterns, organizational culture, the intersection of business and personal life, and the unique preferences and routines of the principals they protect.
However, the executive protection industry grapples with high turnover, which can significantly erode institutional knowledge, leading to operational inefficiencies and increased security risks. It would be an oversimplification to attribute turnover to a single cause, as it can occur for various reasons and differs from program to program. While programs built around retention and longevity are not easy to develop or implement, improving them is essential for long-term success.
The Value of Longevity in Executive Protection Teams
Executive protection is not just about providing a visible security presence; it requires a proactive approach built on anticipating risks, understanding behavioral and lifestyle patterns, and integrating seamlessly into a principal’s lifestyle and an organization’s goals and operations. When EP agents remain with the same organization or protect the same principal for an extended period, they accumulate a wealth of knowledge that enhances operational effectiveness in many ways:
1. Deep Understanding of the Principal’s Lifestyle
Long-standing agents are intimately familiar with the principal’s routines, travel preferences, known associates, business activities, and risk profile. This knowledge enables them to anticipate needs, preempt threats, and ensure continuity in security planning. Regardless of their experience, a new agent will take time to reach this level of awareness or effectiveness within their team, increasing the potential for oversights or miscalculations.
2. Stronger Coordination with Support Teams
Effective protection requires coordination with internal and external stakeholders and partners. A team with low turnover builds stronger relationships with these entities, facilitating smoother communication and collaboration. When turnover is high, these relationships must constantly be reestablished, creating gaps in security operations, information, communication, and natural organizational flow. All of these factors have an impact, whether seen or unseen.
3. Enhanced Situational Awareness and Threat Detection
Institutional knowledge extends beyond personal preferences, including site-specific security protocols, known threats, and past security incidents. A tenured agent will recognize subtle anomalies in an environment, whereas a new team member may overlook critical details that could indicate a developing threat. This awareness also extends to proactive intuition and planning. Plans and operations often change depending on the nature of the activities the principal is involved in, and unexpected attendees or circumstances can challenge those plans. Having historical data and knowledge to adjust accordingly is invaluable.
Understanding a principal's tendencies, acquaintances, friends, family, and business relationships, all influence an agent’s effectiveness in identifying potential risks.
4. Cost-Effectiveness and Efficiency
Organizations often invest heavily in training EP agents, from advanced driving and medical response to intelligence gathering and counter-surveillance techniques. Hours of onboarding and internal team training have astronomical intangible and bottom-line value. High turnover results in a constant cycle of recruitment, training, and adaptation, which is costly and time-consuming. Retaining experienced agents reduces this burden and ensures a high level of operational readiness at all times.
The High Turnover Problem and Its Consequences
Despite the clear benefits of longevity in EP teams, the industry is known for high turnover rates due to burnout, financial opportunities, leadership changes, client preferences, budget constraints, the pressure of a no-fail sector, and poor workplace culture and inclusivity. This revolving door of personnel presents serious challenges, including:
1. The Financial Cost of Turnover
Replacing an EP agent involves significant financial costs, including recruitment, training, lost productivity, and operational disruptions. According to research from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), turnover costs typically range from 50% to 200% of an employee’s annual salary, depending on role complexity and level of specialization (SHRM, 2022). The higher the position, the higher the turnover cost.
For example, Qualtrics’ employee experience research suggests that replacing a specialized position, such as an EP agent, can cost a company anywhere from $75,000 to $150,000 per agent, factoring in onboarding and institutional knowledge loss (Qualtrics, 2023). If an EP firm or end-user spends $20,000 on hiring, $20,000 on training, and loses $50,000 in productivity per departing agent, with a 10% turnover rate in a 20-person team, factoring in Executive Protection, Residential Security, and Drivers, the total annual turnover cost could exceed $180,000 (SHRM, 2022).
2. The Intangible Costs of Turnover
While financial costs are more straightforward to quantify, intangible costs associated with turnover in executive protection are equally important yet harder to measure. These include:
Erosion of Institutional Knowledge – Every departing agent takes with them an irreplaceable understanding of the principal’s habits, security risks, and emergency protocols (SHRM, 2022). Even with structured handovers, this loss of experience and insight can take months—or even years—to recover.
Loss of Principal-Agent Trust – Executives and high-net-worth individuals value continuity in their security teams and prefer stability over a revolving door of security staff in their space. Frequent personnel changes can disrupt rapport, leading to decreased cooperation and security effectiveness (Forbes, 2023). Trust between a principal and their protective agent is built over time, and turnover undermines this relationship and the protectee’s and organization’s tolerance for inconsistency.
Disruptions in Team Cohesion and Operational Flow – A protective detail is a collection of individuals and a coordinated team. High turnover can weaken coordination, causing lapses in security planning and response times (Security Management Magazine, 2023).
Disruption of the Protectee’s Ecosystem – Imagine a family with an executive protection program to simplify this concept. Each family member has different tolerance levels, and all are affected differently by turnover. Young children, for example, may struggle with constantly seeing a new stranger in their personal space, creating discomfort and anxiety. Parents, who are also protectees, may experience added stress and distraction due to the same change their children face, making security feel less seamless. Additionally, key household staff, such as nannies and executive assistants, may have reservations about new security personnel, further disrupting the household dynamic. The entire ecosystem is thrown into disorder by the change of key security professional, making continuity even more critical in executive protection.
Mitigating Turnover and Preserving Institutional Knowledge
While some degree of turnover is inevitable, organizations can take proactive measures to retain talent and safeguard institutional knowledge:
Competitive Compensation and Career Growth
Work-Life Balance and Mental Health Support
Structured Knowledge Transfer Programs
Cultivating a Team-Oriented Culture
Conclusion:
When comparing larger security firms with a broader, macro focus to more specialized, boutique firms like Rescor Group, it’s clear that turnover in larger firms often leads to "sloppy band-aid" solutions that cost more in the long run. While larger companies can provide more immediate solutions, their focus shifts from addressing underlying cultural and management issues to offering surface-level fixes that meet numbers and shift requirements. This approach compromises the integrity and effectiveness of security programs, leaving clients with temporary solutions instead of lasting results.
Case Study:
Rescor recently assisted a client in auditing their existing embedded security program provided by a non-competitor after red flags prompted a confidential review. The results were surprising. The client discovered legal discrepancies with the security licenses of agents working for the vendor they hired and directly for their executives, prompting a request for an explanation and resolution. The outcome revealed complacency, lack of oversight, and blame-shifting toward a client. While the unlicensed security agents were ultimately to be removed, the vendor quickly and reactively replaced them with agents still in training—and then billed the client for the “on-the-job training” required to onboard the replacements over several days. Simply put, the vendor was initially at fault and legally out of compliance. However, the solution came at the client’s expense, without proper justification or explanation, and the same premium was billed plus OJT costs. What was also missing was a standardized onboarding process or operating procedures for the training they were billing for. The client, not well-versed in protective services programs during the initial vendor selection decision, had ultimately hired a vendor charging an industry premium for what amounted to "snake oil.” This was only discovered by an industry professional brought in to manage the existing program—a common scenario in such situations. Larger agencies will often take your money, subcontract the services to a lower bidder, and have minimal detail oversight. Clients don't always realize that even though they are paying for a top-tier provider's services, the agents working are sometimes taking a wage that has been water downed by numerous subcontracts with no direct oversight of their training or credentials.
In this instance, the hidden cost is traced back to someone without a security background and industry insights hiring a protective services vendor based on word of mouth. This snowballed into over six figures of losses. This is the true cost of poorly managed turnover and general program inefficiencies.
The Rescor Difference:
At Rescor Group, we understand that poorly managed turnover, lack of oversight, insufficient foundational program structuring, and superficial security solutions can have far-reaching consequences. Unlike larger firms that prioritize volume over quality, we focus on the details, ensuring that every program is crafted with transparency, accountability, and long-term success. Our commitment to excellence begins before our embedded programs even kick-off, ensuring that every detail is in place with complete transparency and operational understanding on the client’s side.
By fostering strong relationships and maintaining a proactive approach, we identify and address potential issues before they arise, allowing our clients to focus on what matters most—without the "band-aid fixes" or unexpected complications, which are far different from normal business operations.
We recognize that the cost of poorly managed turnover isn’t just financial; it can also undermine security integrity, erode client trust, and disrupt the continuity of critical protection services. Our focus on talent retention, continuous training, and a strong security culture ensures long-term success, safety, and peace of mind. We provide tailored, proactive solutions that meet the unique needs of our clients, ensuring that the product expected and promised is the one delivered—every time. Our clients only pay for the product they expect and that we, as a team, deliver—not a quick, short-term fix that only leads to long-term complications.
At Rescor Group, we don’t just meet expectations; we exceed them. Our proactive approach, commitment to retaining top talent, and fostering continuity ensure that we provide long-term security solutions that our clients can rely on. This guarantees peace of mind and lasting success for the people and assets we protect.
