BECOME PART OF THE SOLUTION
ISDA Membership Benefits Who We Are ISDA’s mission is to provide and support an international forum of protective services providers who share knowledge for the ultimate purpose of enhancing professional and business standards. ISDA serves the protective services community with an emphasis on secure transportation and security driving. Our members are security practitioners who supply protective services to corporate executives, highnet-worth individuals, military personnel, and law enforcement agents and officers. Who We Are Not ISDA does not train or supply drivers, EP agents, or secure transportation services. We do not promise jobs. Neither we nor anyone else has a silver bullet to help gain employment. It is up to each individual to prepare themselves. ISDA supplies the tools to accomplish that goal. What We Provide Our association offers Basic and Certified memberships. Basic membership requires no pre-qualifications. ISDA-certified membership requires the completion of a certification process. The process follows guidelines defined by credentialing organizations and standards that are recognized in all other
industries. The certification has been recognized by the corporate community for 40 years. We provide unbiased information to members and offer a platform for them to share their knowledge and express their opinions. We Seek Clarity ISDA seeks clarity and transparency in the protective services profession. Social media have twisted the security driving and executive protection professions into marketing terms with no regard for their defining skill sets. ISDA Brings Clarity to the Market With a proven 40-year track record, ISDA will leverage its professional experience and knowledge of social media to get that message of clarity to the market. ISDA founder Tony Scotti has thrived in the profession and created the most enviable client list in the industry without advertising.
ISDA’s message will be heard via the most powerful marketing tool available: WORD-OF-MOUTH.
Our goal is to help members succeed through education and a precedent setting networking, mentorship and marketing program
ISDA Membership Benefits For $75 a year, ISDA provides its members precedent-setting educational, mentorship, networking, and marketing programs and opportunities. ISDA has created a platform for members to use the most powerful and proven marketing tool available - word-ofmouth. Members can market their skills and services to more than 20,000 security practitioners.
Networking Benefits Successful networking requires finding those whom you need, to get what you need. ISDA encourages members who have achieved their goals to help others do the same. The association is the catalyst for those who need assistance and finding those you can help.
Marketing Benefits Market the Profession/Clarity ISDA has created a white paper explaining the benefits of security driving, secure transportation, and personal protection. The objective is to get the paper into the hands of the high-end security and human resources market. Market the members We welcome members and non-members to write for Security Driver Magazine (SDM) as a networking and marketing opportunity. Your article must be relevant to the protective services community and not be overtly promotional.
Educational Benefits
Mentorship Program
The Resource Center provides a constant learning environment for ISDA members, with subjects specifically designed to increase knowledge and marketability. The center is the gateway to the largest collection of educational resources for secure-transportation and protection professionals. New information is added to the center frequently and disseminated via blog posts, recorded webinars, videos, and white papers.
The impetus for the mentorship program is the state of the profession. For many, finding a career path is the most difficult task they face. There are no guarantees for success, but there is a path to success. ISDA acts as the conduit between ISDA members with experience (ISDA Certified members) and those who are seeking guidance and advice.
THE FACTS The market addresses the incidents that have the highest probability of occurrence. For decades statistics have indicated the overwhelming majority of security incidents involving corporate executives and high-profile individuals, including government and military, have occurred while the targeted individual was in or around their vehicle. The safety and security of the vehicle occupants during this most dangerous period of time has been and is the responsibility of the security driver - the market knows that.
The ISDA Separation - The Constant Learner The most common commodity in this country is unrealized potential - Calvin Coolidge You can spend more time on training that does nothing to increase your potential - or you could spend your time learning how to release your potential. Unless you can get your potential to the market place, all it is - is potential.
ISDA is an Association designed to release your potential.
We are in a time when there are more EP/bodyguards/security drivers in the marketplace than there is a market for their services. To differentiate himself, a professional must become a constant learner. A constant learner isn’t defined by a training curriculum. Rather, that person is marked by a perpetual curiosity, a demand to ask and understand, “Why am I doing this? Why is this significant?� They feel the need to acquire additional skills and to meet and exceed what is expected from them. The International Security Driver Association helps its members become constant learners by opening the door to their curiosity.
Why ISDA It is time for those that work in the industry to be recognized for their contribution and accomplishments they have made to the safety and security of those they serve and to the profession. The present EP/Bodyguard/ Close Protection training doctrine suggests that Security Driving is a secondary skill, many times described as an “add on”, or training you “may” want to consider after you have been to an EP training program. Those suggestions are false.
Consider the following: • We can all agree the objective of personal security is to mitigate risk • Those responsible for the security of others address the incidents that have the highest probability of occurrence • The overwhelming majority of security incidents against the principal have occurred while the individual was in or around their vehicle • Vehicle accidents are the number four killer of people • The job market seeks those with a skillset that mitigates that risk
The fact is the training community, does not determine the skillsets necessary to mitigate risk, employment or their order of importance; it is the job market that decides the skill sets required. The job market requires practitioners with a level of experience and that have been tested and measured to an objective standard.
How to Join ISDA Membership Requirements There are no membership requirements to join, although we do recommend experience as a security driver, executive protection specialist or a security transportation provider to get the most out of the membership. The cost of membership is $75.00 per year. How to Apply for Membership Go to isdacenter.org/membership Click one of the payment buttons to purchase your membership (PayPal or Credit Card). Note: Upon completion of payment you will be redirected to complete a registration form to create a username and password to gain access to the resources available to you as an ISDA member. If you have any questions please reach out to the ISDA Team at info@isdacenter.org.
ISDA Certification Most of the training offered in the industry is not for certification, it is training for a certificate. Although a training certificate is valuable, it is not a certification as defined by the credentialing organizations that are the standards in all other professions. The simple fact is that the training community does not set the criteria for certification. The quality and legitimacy of the certification is determined by the standards used to govern the program. For a certification to be recognized by the market it serves, requires a combination
of experience, and a certification process that ensures an individual has been tested and measured to an objective standard. ISDA offers to its members that are eligible, certification in Security Driving and Secure Transportation. ISDA is not like other associations - we do not offer training leading to a certification. To qualify for Certification requires a test of knowledge and verification of skill combined with a minimum of two years of continuous experience in the profession.
The Certification Process is voluntary. Practitioners can become an ISDA member and elect NOT to qualify for Certification.
The ISDA Certification is not for everyone; applicants must qualify for certification. The ISDA certification cannot be purchased; it must be earned.
Certification Benefits As an ISDA Certified Member you join an elite group of security professionals; a group the job market considers to be the best in their profession. Due to Certified member position in the market their professional needs are different than others. The ISDA Certification Center will meet those needs. Mission To increase corporate and private sector awareness of the value and effectiveness of Security Drivers and Secure Transportation providers specifically those professionals that are experienced and have been trained to an objective standard.
Benefits ISDA will promote the economic and general welfare of the Certified Members in the workplace. Recognition of those with longevity in the industry and those who have been trained and tested to an objective standard. ISDA will produce a database of Certified Members. The demographics will be made available to the business community and be used to promote the industry. The data will also be made available to the membership and participation in the database is voluntary. The Association will be a com-
munity for members to exchange ideas, solve common problems and interface with others in the industry. ISDA offers: • White Papers written specially and only available to certified members. • Webinars and educational material specifically designed to meet the needs of the Certified members. • Opportunities for certified members to write articles for publication in the ISDA Resource Center and in The ISDA Journal (Security Driver Magazine). • Use of the ISDA logo on websites and resumes.
Certification Process Certification Requirements • Must be an ISDA Member • Must have at least 2 years continuous experience as a security driver or an executive protection professional. • Have attended a protective driving training program* • Must have at least CPR, First Responder, and AED training
Step 1
Step 2
Verification of Experience
Advisory Board Notification
A candidate who meets the requirements must complete the online verification of experience form answering all questions accurately and honestly. Once submitted the candidate’s information, experience and driving training will be reviewed thoroughly by the Certification Advisory Board.
If you have met the experience, medical training and driving skill requirements, you will receive an email notification from the Advisory Board that you have been approved and instructions to proceed to Step Three: The Knowledge Test. If you are not approved the board will inform the candidate of the reason(s).
Mail in Your Experience Form
Step 3 Knowledge Test In order to complete this step you will need to purchase the Knowledge Test Kit from the ISDA Store. This Kit contains the ISD Certification Study Guide, and the Professional Drivng Techniques book that will prepare you for the Knowledge Test.
An alternative to completing the experience form online: Print and mail the completed form and copies of the necessary documents to: 43 Riverside Ave. Suite 418, Medford MA 02155.
* Vehicle Dynamics Institute A VDI Graduate with two years of experience, has completed two of the certification requirements, experience and verification of skill. To complete the certification process, they need to take the knowledge test and provide documentation of Red Cross first aid, CPR, and AED training. Why VDI? VDI provides ISDA with computer-generated documentation verifying a student’s skill has been objectively tested and measures. The VDI test methodologies comply with ISDA standards set by the Society of Automotive Engineers, ISO, NHTSA, and prestigious universities.
These objective standards are essential for certification. The laws of science dictate that in a vehicle emergency the difference between success and failure is measured in tenths of seconds, and/or an increase or decrease in steering angle of a couple of degrees, and/or a speed differential of 2 miles per hour.
move a principal from point A to point B in a safe and secure manner in a variety of environments. Although it is not a science, ISDA uses standard practices that have been developed over a 40 year span to define required Secure Transportation Skills. These skills include an in-depth knowledge and a measured level of skill to conduct route surveys; recognize and develop safe havens, alternate route plans, and develop emergency evacuation plans, along with emergency medical and surveillance detection skills.
Security Skills Standard
Medical Skills Standard
Security Driving and Secure Transportation is more than the act of driving the vehicle. It requires the skill and knowledge to
Standards set by the Red Cross in basic medical training such as CPR, AED, and first responder first aid training.
ISDA Certification Standards Derivation of ISDA Methodology The ISDA Driving Skill Certification Standards are derived from decades of research conducted by the Society of Automotive Engineers, ISO, and NHTSA. Their research has created an understanding of how drivers make decisions in emergencies and how long it takes them to make those decisions. These organizations have created minimum standards based on the Laws of Physics for measuring driving skill and therefore survivability in an emergency scenario. It is these scientific standards that are used in the ISDA Certification Process.
The Needs for a Scientific Standard
Contact Information International Security Driver Association, Inc. web: isdacenter.org email: info@isdacenter.org tel: 1-855-473-2669 Mailing Address 43 Riverside Ave. Suite 418 Medford, MA 02155
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