Security Talk
Striking a Balance
A conversation with Raymond Hankins, Chief Security Officer, Security Branch, at National Labor Relations Board.
Striking the balance of securing government facilities while maintaining an opening environment to the public, is a challenge many security leaders in the industry face. Here, I sit down with Raymond Hankins, Chief Security Officer, Security Branch, at National Labor Relations Board, to discuss those challenges as well as how physical and cybersecurity teams need to collaborate to build a robust security posture.
The National Labor Relations Board operates 50-plus public facing offices nationwide. How do you manage security measures to facilitate open government facilities without making them feel unwelcoming?
Hankins: Our facilities are designed to meet the physical security standards established by the Department of Homeland Security's Interagency Security Committee (ISC). These standards are intended to achieve an appropriate level of protection for people, facilities, and government resources while ensuring that members of the public are treated with respect and dignity as they access government services.
Facility Security Committees – comprised of building tenants, security organizations, and the designated building official – work collaboratively to assess risk, vulnerabilities, and potential consequences. Together, they identify and implement appropriate security measures that reduce risk while maintaining an open and welcoming environment, making federal facilities more resilient and less attractive as targets.
As new and emerging threats are identified, such as those posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), security measures are evaluated and updated to address evolving risks. In addition, annual compliance reporting across the federal community provides valuable benchmarks and best practices that help agencies identify and address areas for continuous improvement.
“One of the biggest challenges is that physical security and cybersecurity professionals often approach risk from different operational perspectives.”
What are some of the challenges of getting physical security staff to think in terms of cyber (and vice versa)?
Hankins: One of the biggest challenges is that physical security and cybersecurity professionals often approach risk from different operational perspectives. In the physical security realm, the priority is immediate life safety and asset protection. Security personnel are trained to quickly determine when an incident occurred, assess the threat, and take immediate action to protect people and secure the environment. Decisions are often made in real time, where seconds or minutes can make a significant difference.
Cybersecurity professionals, on the other hand, frequently need additional time to identify the source of an incident, determine the scope of a compromise, preserve evidence, and implement mitigation measures that do not inadvertently create additional vulnerabilities. Their response is necessarily more analytical and methodical because of the complexity of today's cyber threats.
The challenge is helping each discipline understand why the other operates the way it does. Physical security professionals benefit from understanding cyber risk and how digital systems support modern security operations, while cybersecurity teams benefit from appreciating the urgency of physical security incidents and the need for rapid decision-making. As physical and cyber systems continue to converge, success depends on building a common understanding of risk, conducting joint planning and exercises, and recognizing that both disciplines share the same objective: protecting people, information, and critical assets.
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