As well as welcoming and ensuring the safety of those who visit the mall, the operation also focuses on intelligence gathering to preempt any potential incidents. For this, we work closely with the local police to monitor social media - an invaluable tool for alerting security teams to possible issues such as protests, which are increasingly organised through online platforms. 

Fast paced growth

Over the past eight years, the team has been faced with significant changes at the site, such as the influx of "youth flash mobs" in 2013, the opening of the adjacent football stadium - which hosted games and the opening of the 2014 World Cup - and of São Paulo’s State Technological College, FATEC. 

In 2017, the mall also went through an expansion that almost doubled the number of stores. All of this had a direct impact on the number of people circulating daily in the site and, consequently, on the interventions of the security professionals. 

Security manager for Metro Itaquera Shopping, Edvilson Leite said: “After the expansion of the mall, the number of daily visitors increased by 30,000 daily, consequently increasing security risks. 

“The security team was reinforced, and continues to go through regular training sessions provided by G4S, focusing on customer service, and the use of examples of incidents that have previously taken place within the mall. 

“This is vital to guaranteeing that our customers can enjoy their time within the mall safely and without disturbance."

A focus on knowledge sharing 

“In order to develop proper training, we gather information about the dynamics and culture within the mall, to identify the client's real needs,” said Fabio Milani, Head of Security for G4S Brazil.

Keeping the team up to speed with the high standards that are expected requires continuous training, based both on known situations and potential incidents. The team at SMI has developed over 40 technical procedures to cover a range of potential situations that would require security interventions. These have been honed over the years, building on the experience of the team who first started working with at the mall in 2010. 

“We work with the training team to develop a complete agenda, addressing behaviour, posture, procedures and real examples of incidents that have taken place in other shopping malls. This allows our team to act on different types of incidents like theft, robberies, first aid attention and many other occurrences that are common in places with a high flow of visitors." 

The team can also draw on the wealth of knowledge and experience from the broader G4S Secure Solutions business, which operates in 90 countries.