Report about the EPS Certification by IBSSA Mexico

Executive Protection is perceived very exciting, not for the faint hearted, full of thrills and all the action one would expect from a Tom Cruise movie, but nothing could be further from the truth, since it is demanded of EPs to be at the job 120% (they’re there before the principal, and leave after he has left), long hours and very little shut-eye, did we mention a very high risk environment? EPs are all that stand between threats and their principal most of the time.

The lack of a standard in the industry has led to a very poor image of EPs, and the proliferation of Mikey Mouse (Rambo) companies that promise to have Super Men at the service of their protected, which turn out to be nothing more than a great show.

The EPS (Executive Protection Specialist) standard was created to allow trainers throughout the world to develop training programs that adhere to the common knowledge obtained from thousands of case studies and training programs, a standard that sets the basic skills any EP should be able to do his or her job.

The Certification Process

Not to be confused with a certificate, the basic difference from a certificate and a certification is the following: - a certificate is given for attending a certain training course whilst a certification is obtained through passing a series of exams on the subject being taught - the certificate is issued by a private entity, the certification is issued by an authorized association, that is in turn holder of the standard against which subjects are measured.

A certification requires that the trainer, often a third-party, can measure consistently three things: Skill, Knowledge, and Experience. The results of this measurement are then compared to the basic standard and if the student passes, the association, not the trainer, issues a certification of skills.

The EPS Certification certifies that any given person can perform the job of EP proficiently, with the very basic skills required, but without it, we can never be sure if this person, even when he/she claims to be Captain America, can do the job right.

15th October 2017

Here are some photos of the operational part of the courses – driving, shooting and first response part of EPS: