The Cipher Brief spoke with Hans Kanold, CEO of SafeHotels Alliance, a standards organization for hotel security. TCB spoke with Kanold about the siege of the RadissonBlu in Mali, the difficulty in preventing terrorist attacks, and the importance of the human factor in keeping a hotel safe.
The Cipher Brief: In light of the hotel attacks in Mali, could you give our readers a better understanding of what it takes to secure a hotel in a dangerous security environment?
Hans Kanold: It’s almost impossible to stop terrorists from attacking a hotel. Even in Mali, where you naturally have heightened security awareness because of the threat level, it is difficult to prevent these types of events from happening.
We at SafeHotels Alliance believe hotels need to be both proactive and reactive in their response. It’s very important hotels undertake all necessary security preparations, utilize a crisis management team, and put communication procedures in place beforehand. Being proactive allows a company to effectively handle an incident like this and minimize the damage to property and personnel.
It’s a challenge for hotels to balance security requirements with the need for a welcoming environment. As such, many hotels still view security as an unwanted cost and as such are conservative in their spending in this area. In my view, however, hotels that follow good security practices gain a competitive advantage because travel managers and tour operators prefer these hotels. Hotels that understand this view security as an investment. It creates a more comfortable stay for the guest, of course, and makes the hotel more attractive.
TCB: Your company, SafeHotels Alliance, established the Global Hotel Security Standard ©. Can you tell us more about the standard and what criteria go into your evaluation of the security of a hotel?
HK: Absolutely. We established the global hotel security standard in order for travel managers and tour operators to be able to identify hotels that work properly with both the safety and security issue. About 15 years ago, we identified that there was a demand for a uniform standard. For example, some hotels had their own standards while others used a standard set by the local governments and local laws. It was extremely difficult for a travel manager to know what that standard was, what the laws were, and how they policed.
Over a period of 18 months, I managed a project group of international experts from the security trade, hotel industry, and travel management organizations who agreed on a set of criteria. This was done to balance the demand (from travel managers), the ability to deliver (from hotels), and the way it should be delivered (from security experts).
We take a number of measures into account, such as security routines and procedures, the number of security cameras, alarms, and security awareness among staff. We also look at fire security, first aid equipment, first aid training, locking systems, and crisis management.
The human element is extremely important. Often when we investigate an incident in a hotel we’ll find there was a lack of awareness and training among staff. You can build in as many security features as possible, but if the staff isn’t properly trained, there will inevitably be problems.
TCB: How does your criteria vary across different security environments, particularly like the one in Mali?
HK: We started out 14 years ago with one standard, which we called the SafeHotels Certificate. But over the years the threat levels increased and the level of security needed in a variety of destinations changed. Now we have three levels of certification: the SafeHotels Certificate, the Premium Certificate, and the Executive Certificate.
In certain locations, only basic security measures are needed. In other areas, where the threat is elevated, a Premium standard is needed. That means more equipment, more surveillance, and a variety of other security measures are needed. Executive Level hotels require the most security. Intelligence is also very important as it allows hotels the ability to increase security as the threat level rises.
For example, when the attacks occurred in Paris, many hotels reacted differently. For example, the Radisson Hotel successfully completed a total lockdown of the hotel within minutes of the attacks. The hotel took immediate measures to ensure the protection of their guests.
TCB: When an attack on a hotel occurs, how do hotels adapt in response?
HK: First of all, security work starts from the ground up. First step to mentally and actively be able to handle a terrorist attack is to be able to handle a heart attack. A terrorist attack is almost impossible to protect against. So we focus on everyday security, and how to protect guests from ordinary criminal activity that goes on in any hotel. When an attack like the one in Mali occurs, we know that a certified hotel has requirements in place to respond. For example, in terms of communication, Carlson Rezidor, the parent company of RadissonBlu, was very quick to release a press release, set up a phone “hot line,” and the crisis management team was very quick. Calson Rezidor hotels generally have a high standard, although the RadissonBlu in Mali has not yet begun the certification survey process.
However, the Internal Quality Assurance Program within Radisson is reviewed and approved by Safehotels. One of the strongest statements, mounted into the Radisson Blu culture, is “Always Care” and I would say CarlsonRezidor carry the highest level of security of all international hotel chains.
I am fairly certain that once people start to investigate what happened in Mali, they will realize that the hotel’s preparedness probably minimized the damage done and loss of life. I don’t have the details, but it is likely the staff saved lives because of the training and procedures put in place.
There is a huge difference between a hotel that gets attacked that has no routines, regiment, training, and a hotel that is prepared. It is definitely difficult. Hotels take measurements and prepare as much as possible, but if terrorists wants to attack a hotel, they will succeed. You can make it more difficult, but if they have a target, they are going to hit it.
A travel manager from a large company once said to me, “We have policies for our staff when they rent cars. We want them to drive a car filled with airbags when they get into an accident.” SafeHotels Alliance has exactly that function. We want our colleagues to stay in hotels that have installed as many “airbags” as possible—controlled by a third party certification organization—if and when an incident occurs.
TCB: What advice do you have for hotels operating in dangerous security environments?
KH: Training, training, training. Employees need to be prepared and observant. They should establish a good reporting system, and staff should feel comfortable reporting suspicious activities out of the ordinary. For example, if you have somebody staying in a room for a couple of days who doesn’t allow you to come in and clean the room, or if you smell something in the corridor, the staff should feel comfortable reporting that to senior management.
