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Joseph Arwady, President, Metro One LPSG and Diego Rodriguez, Chief Security Officer, Metro One Security Management discuss the new Specialized brand.
You both play key roles with the newly branded “Specialized” business. Can you provide some background on the origin of Specialized?
Joe Arwady (JA): Absolutely. Specialized is the new parent company to two companies and a new data lab we have named Aurix.
The two companies are Metro One Loss Prevention Services (LPSG) and M1 Global.
Both security units are national, with LPSG long being the domestic US leader in the retail security space. M1 Global currently extends to Europe, South America, Canada and Mexico.
It continues our pursuit of national and international security clients, outside of retail, in a range of vertical markets.
Aurix is the “technology engine” that drives all internal metrics and predictive analytics, along with external feeds from an unlimited range of “protection tools” – such as drones, cameras, visitor management systems, executive protection, threat intelligence, social media, access control, perimeter integrity, badge identification, satellite and GPS, tour confirmation and so on.
Diego Rodriquez (DR): I am the Chief Security Officer (CSO), part of our Specialized parent company.
My security background in the FBI includes Special Agent in Charge of the Dallas office and Assistant Director of FBI New York the largest FBI office in the country.
After leaving the FBI, I was Chief Security Officer at both Univision and New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York.
Over a year ago, I joined Metro One and have the opportunity as CSO to provide a unique perspective as a result of my previous corporate CSO experience and expand our current services in Specialized.
I have been able to build out my team with security experts in executive protection, advanced training, crisis management, threat intelligence and response, social unrest, threat vulnerability and risk assessment.
We also have an excellent set of partner firms that focus on very narrow specialties, such as technical surveillance countermeasures, AI camera and electronic detection, drone deployment, satellite positioning and surveillance, biometric access control, and link with partner security firms in Europe and Latin America.
Our role is not limited to direct intervention.
We create systems, train teams and build bridges – internally across departments and externally with clients – that enhance resilience, mitigate risk and safeguard reputations.
This dual focus allows our company to deliver not just services, but solutions that elevate safety and security into a true competitive advantage for our clients.
Who does Specialized serve?
JA: Our focus is exclusively on national customers.
Our service model is very different than the traditional branch of security guarding model that dominates our industry.
This branch model has not been updated in 175 years since Allan Pinkerton opened the first recorded guarding branch in Chicago, in 1850.
There were no national clients at that time, so the local branch concept made sense, as it does today for smaller, local clients.
We view it as a model that leans towards a commodity product, with each local branch attempting to address all the needs and wants of its more than 100 customers.
Our program is based on less, not more customers.
We recognize that large, national organizations face a range of protection challenges – unlike those confronted by local companies.
Can you tell me more about Aurix and predictive analytics?
JA: This is an internal data lab that captures a myriad of performance information and indicators, for virtually every position in our organization.
We call this a ‘purpose-based’ performance model. It is both predictive and prescriptive.
We focus on all of the variables that lead to the desired result.
When a trend line is declining, we need to identify areas for improvement and prescribe new tasks or behaviors to reverse the decline and move towards the desired results.
All of this is happening in real time and each of our customers has its own Aurix Performance Platform.
The client can log in and see our performance at its service locations.
Remember, these are national clients, so the portfolios are very large, with many locations – each client with a fully dedicated service team.
Can you provide an example of a specific performance indicator?
JA: When we start a new job, we set a Retention Target by position or job title. Each job title has a ‘retention goal’ or performance target.
The predicted annual retention rate is measured daily, based on churn (turnover). When there is zero turnover, the predicted annual retention level is 100%.
This may sound unheard of in an industry where 100-150% turnover is the norm, but our annual, 12-month retention rates range between 60-80%.
The ability to see where we stand on a real-time basis, with a predictive indicator and a prescription to fix any gaps, helps our employees improve performance and, in this example, our retention rates.
None of this would work without Aurix, which captures performance indicators in real time and then prescribes how to intervene with and retain at-risk employees.
Can you tell me about some of your recent engagements?
DR: One of our more recent interventions grew out of rising concerns in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, where Chief Executives are increasingly focused on both their personal safety and that of their senior leadership teams.
The assassination of Brian Thompson last December served as a watershed moment in this sector, prompting many executives to reassess their exposure to risk.
Our pharmaceutical client, who had previously hesitated to engage in full-time executive protection, began to recognize the vulnerability of their leadership.
While we had already conducted residential security assessments and occasionally provided an EP driver, the company had not taken the step of developing a permanent protection detail.
To address this need, we designed a flexible solution: we identified and hired an experienced executive protection professional, providing that individual to the client for a defined six to 12 month period.
This arrangement allowed the executive to evaluate the resource in real time while maintaining flexibility.
Within only four months, the CEO had developed such confidence in the officer’s professionalism and value that the client transitioned him to full-time employment.
This solution not only protected the client but also created a sustainable, long-term capability for their organization.
A second case underscores how our investment in advanced technology enhances both client outcomes and our company’s internal resilience.
Through our AI-enabled surveillance systems, our GSOC identified an abandoned toddler inside a locked vehicle.
An immediate alert was transmitted to our operations team, the client’s Asset Protection unit and local law enforcement.
Coordinated response efforts ensured the safe recovery of the child, who required only hydration, while the parents were located and arrested for child endangerment.
This incident demonstrated the life-saving potential of our integrated systems, but just as importantly, it highlighted how technology reinforces our broader role: internally, we leverage these tools to train our teams, strengthen our emergency protocols and embed risk awareness across the organization; externally, we remain technology-agnostic, collaborating with a range of expert vendors who focus on staying at the cutting edge within their verticals.
This allows us to design solutions that are both client-specific and future-ready, ensuring we can deliver the latest advancements in AI, biometrics, drone deployment and surveillance integration.
By combining operational expertise with a flexible, vendor-neutral approach, we create systems that not only safeguard our clients in critical moments but also enhance the company’s capacity to anticipate, respond and innovate.
I often say “technology by itself is not the end all be all”.
While it can process information and generate insights, it ultimately requires human judgment to interpret, validate and corroborate what is being reported.
The true value of technology is when it is paired with human expertise, ensuring accuracy, context and accountability in decision making.
