We live in tough times that demand situational awareness regarding safety and security not only in our personal lives but in our professional lives as well !
Dinesh Elangovan, our next pathbreaker, Global Security & Investigations Professional, is responsible for protecting employees and company assets, which also includes background investigations, security audits/training, commissioning and decommissioning security infrastructure, and handling travel security operations.
Dinesh talks to Shyam Krishnamurthy from The Interview Portal about being fascinated with criminology, and having a clear vision of working in this sector, which led to a career in corporate security.
For students, don’t be afraid to take risks, but be calculative and hardworking to achieve the same. Trust in your abilities. Only you can help yourself during bad times and tough times. Always have a plan B, but work 150% to make plan A successful.
Dinesh, Your background?
I was born and brought up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. My parents were first-generation graduates in the family. Father studied at school by walking 4 to 5 km from a remote village. My mother also did the same. My parents always felt that only education will help and wanted me to study in one of the top schools. I had to write a school entrance exam to get admission for the first standard. I wrote the exam and the exam was tough. I cleared the exam and got admission to the school. My parents’ dream of enrolling me in a good school was fulfilled. I was an average student in studies but never failed in any subjects and at the same time I liked playing all sports in school. I also enjoyed participating in school competitions. Sometimes I won and many times I did not, but I kept participating. At school, I always had two questions (1) Why are people like this? and (2) Why does it always happen only to me? So, during my tenth standard, I came to know about Psychology and wanted to study psychology after 12th standard.
What did you do for graduation / post-graduation?
As I liked to study psychology during my 10th standard, I always did some things to see how people react. During my 12th standard, one of my friends bought a Michael Jackon music CD for rent and he asked me to go to the store to return it. That’s when I saw the name Sherlock Holmes -the famous detective. Those days we did not have active internet or mobile phones or YouTube, so we had to buy either books or CD’s. Crime novels were my new curiosity after watching Sherlock Holmes CDs and I wanted to know more about investigation and Crime. In those days, a Criminology course was available only in 3 or 4 colleges in the country and only for post-graduation. So, I had to study for a bachelors (After 12TH) and then study post- graduation. So, I pursued English Literature for graduation and Criminology for post- graduation in Chennai. My curiosity grew more to understand how criminology is globally accepted.
I also had the opportunity to study at UK, so I availed educational loan and studied Secondary masters in Criminology in UK. Presently, I am also doing part-time PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice in Chennai. In my opinion, Education and Experience are two parallel lines that will help all to be abreast of situations.
What made you choose this career? Can you tell us how you ended up in such an offbeat, unconventional and uncommon career?
Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, Arthur Conan Doyle and Shakespeare were the most important influencers, I also liked the Police Siren. Police siren was very good to hear and whenever police officers came, we all saluted and respected them.
I started developing an interest in subjects in Criminology. Subjects like psychology of crime, sociology of crime, crime prevention, forensic science attracted me.
I had to write an entrance exam to get an admission for the program in Criminology. I cleared the exam to study Criminology and Criminal Justice from the famous Madras University.
How did you plan the steps to get into the career you wanted? Or how did you make a transition to a new career? Tell us about your career path
I finished English Literature for my graduation and Joined Criminology for post-graduation. During my 1st and 2nd year in Criminology, I actively participated in all conferences and interacted with all. During the second year, I got an opportunity to present a research paper in the criminology conference. Every presentation requires good homework and preparation. So, before the conference, I spent one full month working on my research topic and it was hard. My hard work paid off with good results.
Students from all over India presented their research papers, but I excelled and I received an all-India Gold Medal.
As part of our field visit, I along with my college mates visited police stations, prisons, courts etc. and all these visits gave me a good opportunity to see and learn. These experiences helped me clear an interview for a job in a US based company.
As I had a clear vision that I want to work in this sector, I selected this field and studied accordingly and I am working in the same field (Corporate Security) that I wanted. All the Criminology experience is helping me in my current work.
Being in the Safety, Security and Risk industry, its paramount to understand various Regional, National, and International Situations. An analysis has to done on every information from a 360 degres perspective. Time and information are vital for quick decision making. To avail the information, public relations and networking is mandatory and this can be received from multiple sources like government news updates and from various similar interest groups. OSAC group is one such Advisory group combing the leaders from various IT companies. I was a member of the OSAC group for few years and had the opportunity to contest and win the post as Secretary of the group.
How did you get your first break?
I attended almost 15-16 interviews but did not get a job because many did not know that there is a field called criminology. I had to struggle, but I believe everything happens for a reason. I got a job offer in a call center company because my English was good, and also because I had an English literature degree. So, I joined the company and worked for one and half years until I got a job in Corporate Security.
What were some of the challenges you faced? How did you address them?
Neither My parents nor my relatives or my circle of friends knew about Criminology. I had to take risks in selecting a different study path by being a trendsetter in my family and among my relatives. I had to make everyone understand that I had made the correct decision.
During those days, there were no job options available for students finishing Criminology. Civil service or lectureship were the only job options and not all succeeded. I took the opportunity to work in a call center for a year until I found better options. I improvised my English language and this helped me to clear an interview in a US based Company for Corporate Security.
Where do you work now? Tell us about your current role
I work in the Corporate Security sector and I love what I am doing. Everyday is different and interesting. My job involves protecting employees and company assets, and also includes Background Investigations, Commissioning and decommissioning Security infrastructure, Managing an integrated Command center and Travel Security Operations. I also do some investigations, Audits and Training to ensure all is correct at work. Every day I learn something new and I face new challenges. To address these challenges, I keep updating myself about the current situations. I like to be proactive and ensure all are already planned to face difficult situations. I prepare and prepare and think out of the box to be active in my job.
What are the skills required for your role? How did you acquire them?
Every skill is cultivated by facing new situations. Some situations are good, some are not good, but we get good experience and that’s how we develop our skills. A skill is not acquired from books but from a set of actions. For example, I developed speaking skills by participating in school and college competitions. Many other skills come from getting trained and implementing the training on the job. To acquire skills, one must be ready to challenge himself or herself and not be afraid of losing. Skills get better when we face tough situations.
How does your work benefit society?
I teach and train in life safety and fire safety. I am in a job where not only the employees but their families also get benefitted by these training sessions. Some ask for advice on how to be safe in public and social media. We also focus on women safety while traveling and on crime prevention. So, all my experiences are put to use to ensure and empower the society. Many times, I am called as a speaker to engage the society and I do it to the best of my capacity.
Tell us an example of a specific memorable work you did that is very close to you!
During Corona, many companies did not have enough situational awareness regarding safety and security. So, through a WhatsApp group, I was able to coordinate in helping them. This was recognized by the US government and I was awarded the Distinguished Achievement award. I am the only Asian to receive this award.
Your advice to students based on your experience?
We have to be prepared to face various situations. We will not know what will happen when, but being prepared will help us face situations with confidence.
Don’t be afraid to take risks, but be calculative and hardworking to achieve the same. Trust in your abilities. Only you can help yourself during bad times and tough times. Always have a plan B, but work 150% to make plan A successful.
Take suggestions from all but you decide the outcome. That’s how leaders are made.
Show everyone respect and treat all the same way like you want to be treated. At the end of the day, it’s people who will support and stand to help us.
Future Plans?
To author a couple of books
Aim to become one of the renowned leaders and experts in my subject matter.
Conduct voluntary awareness programs in schools and colleges on life safety, Fire safety and topics pertaining to motivation that will add value to society.
Here is a link to my profile :