Within the collective process of Workplace Violence Prevention and Intervention (WVPI), the employment of a robust Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) program cannot be stressed enough. BTAM is continuing to be adopted in many arenas throughout society: schools, businesses, communities, government agencies, non-profits, faith-based organizations, and more. Its utility is becoming increasingly recognized. After acts of mass shootings, and other extreme violence events, it’s common for warning signs to be uncovered that identified an individual was progressing towards their crime. A unique factor about BTAM is that it seeks to identify whether someone may be progressing towards intentional/targeted violence before an incident occurs. Organizations are commonly challenged with circumstances where one’s behavior is inappropriate or concerning, but it doesn’t rise to the level that allows law enforcement to intervene. This is the space that those responsible for BTAM commonly operate. Here’s three key concepts that are centric to implementing a BTAM program.

Threat Management Teams are proven to reduce risks and costs to the organization through more efficient detection and response.

Every new year brings the opportunity to refresh. From a Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) perspective, 2023 brings a fresh opportunity to look ahead at how Threat Management Teams (TMT) can continue to keep those in organizations and communities safe. A large part of BTAM is the ongoing programmatic development and upkeep over the—the Threat Management program. Threat Assessment is the process to identify the potential dangerousness of threats and threatening behavior, while Threat Management is the program that seeks to employ intervention strategies to ensure these issues don’t get lost over time—because behavioral issues rarely go away on their own. To that end, here are three things TMTs can do in 2023 to build upon 2022.

There tends to be a theme regarding Workplace Violence Prevention and Intervention (WVPI) training within organizations that lack a comprehensive program. Commonly, organizations have a WVPI policy. Many may also provide optional training and, on occasion, mandatory training. However, training often lacks key context. Namely, training may be provided about active assailant response while making little or no mention about the WVPI policy and other prevention considerations. To maximize the effectiveness of a WVPI program, policy and procedures must be paired with training to generate awareness and enterprise-wide integration. In other words, training is intrinsic to comprehensive WVPI.

As we empower individuals to build a strategy that protects their safety and security, it becomes apparent that it's one thing to tell them what it means to be proactive, use empathy and de-escalate, but understanding how to apply the tools and techniques is another. The true challenge lies in empowering an individual to become critical stakeholders in a safe work environment, one that's free from intimidation and violence. Without the benefits of training, one could easily find themselves immersed in a situation that seems unmanageable and out of control, which is the exact thing we are trying to prevent in the first place.

When you take a few extra steps to integrate safety and security strategies into your daily life, you’ll be better prepared to avoid common pitfalls and anticipate a range of possible threat scenarios. Personal vulnerability is easily amplified by distractions, preoccupations, and inattentiveness—all of which signal an easy target to someone with criminal intent. But when you remain alert to your environment, taking note of anything out of the ordinary, you’ll become “situationally aware.” And that’s important because acts of violence are often detectable before they occur…if you stay alert to the warning signs. There are simple steps you can take to stay vigilant, like staying alert to suspicious activity or behaviors in public areas. By becoming a hard target, you can make yourself unattractive to someone planning a crime.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence,10 million people a year are physically abused by an intimate partner, and over 20 thousand calls are placed daily to domestic violence hotlines. Recent statistics continue to show that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men will experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. An inability for a victim to interact with others seems only to empower an abuser, as demonstrated by the 30% increase in domestic violence cases during the mandated pandemic lockdowns. The lockdowns resulted in job loss and increased stress and anxiety levels, and deprived victims of what may have been their only safe haven—their workplace. It further isolated them from others who may have detected the signs of abuse or violence.

“Hey, good job on the presentation…you did surprisingly well.” “Why do you always dress like a granny?” “You need to do it as I told you!” “You’re useless!” “It’s your fault the project failed!” If you were playing the game show Jeopardy, these comments would fit nicely into a category titled “Examples of what a bully might say.” Disturbingly, a 2021 Workplace Bullying Survey reported that 79.3 million U.S. workers were impacted by bullying.

In today’s times, it’s commonplace to leave a job to pursue additional challenges, pay increases, more independence, or a different work environment. With companies competing to recruit skilled individuals, those opportunities remain on the upswing for those interested. At the same time, however, are individuals who harbor ill will and deliberately commit a malicious act toward their employer or the organization. It’s at that decision point where these individuals become known as Insider Threats.

A typical workday in the life of a woman is filled with cell phone calls, text messages, meetings, deadlines, clients, and countless other things. But oftentimes missing from that list of “must do’s” is personal safety. It’s something that should be prioritized throughout the day, especially if you’re employment requires traveling to multiple worksites or client locations or business travel. But in truth, it generally takes a back seat for many of us.

Organizations are repeatedly reminded of the growing trend of financial costs, injuries and potential fatalities caused by workplace violence. Whether it’s a story on the nightly news or an incident in or near your workplace, it remains an issue that employers can no longer ignore. The question, then, becomes, "what can organizations do to mitigate this problem?" Some employers are having trouble deciding how to initiate conversations on their level of risk for an active assailant, partly because of their concern that it may promote fear in their employees. With the sad realization that workplace violence is not going away, more organizations are making the choice to take positive steps to prepare their workforce. Nearly two million workers in the American labor force are reportedly victims of a workplace violence incidents per year?

Security Professionals: Is your organization taking measures to protect and train your personnel that don't work in your physical location? In this video CPPS' Dave Benson, MS, CTM covers how to protect your personnel in a hybrid work environment.

Did you know CPPS offers a training program made specifically for your hybrid personnel? Email info@cpps.com to review this program.

#workingfromhome #workfromhome #workplacesafety #safeworkplace #cpps #workplaceviolenceprevention

But what if it is something? CPPS calls those subtle, but important, indicators that point to the possibility that something’s wrong as Behaviors of Concern. Such disruptive, aggressive, hostile, or emotionally abusive behaviors generate anxiety and create a climate of distrust.They can even be indicative of someone who is on a “Pathway to Violence.”

In Response to the Growing Gun Violence Epidemic, Center for Personal Protection & Safety (CPPS) Announces the Release of Safe Schools Program

A unique and scalable solution to Extreme School Violence with CPPS' Tiered-Approach to Violence Prevention

An Inclusive Solution to the Violence Epidemic - Gun violence and acts of extreme violence are gaining a lot of media attention lately. As a security professional, you might be asking: What can my organization do to be prepared? Does my organization have a responsibility to protect our people? CPPS CEO, Randy Spivey answers these questions and more in this video.

Awareness is a choice. We can choose to keep our awareness at a disengaged level or learn to hone that awareness to recognize and react to concerning circumstances. In some cases, it’s intuitive, such as when we drive defensively to avoid an accident.

The story of the Trojan Horse lingers today. The large wooden object that the Trojans thought to be a sign of victory over the Greeks was gladly welcomed within the indestructible walls of Troy. Little did they know, the horse that they willingly received into the city caused their destruction. The walls that the Greek enemy could not overcome were ultimately compromised by the Trojans themselves. Why has this story lasted the test of time?

Watch this video with CPPS Subject Matter Expert, Dave Benson, MS, CTM. He covers Developing a Workplace Violence Prevention Program in Healthcare.

Security Professionals: CPPS has created a one-stop resource for developing a comprehensive Threat Management program and it's FREE!

Healthcare Security Professionals: Wondering what a comprehensive Threat Management Program looks like for your hospital or system?

In this weeks Expert Advice Video CPPS' Dave Benson, MS, CTM gives a great overview for developing your Threat Management Program.