In South Africa, the demand for security installation services is on the rise. Speaking to hundreds of customers a month we know first hand that operating a security installation business can be challenging - especially when it comes to managing customers, people, processes and technology efficiently. Margins are in constant focus, whether you’re discounting to win business or looking to increase profit. In this article, I’ll discuss five strategies that you can implement to improve your operational efficiency and increase your profitability.





Having a process doesn’t mean having a good process. Streamlining your process involves identifying inefficiencies in your current operations and finding ways to eliminate them. Start by mapping out your process on a board from the moment a customer reaches out to the moment they pay. Bring the team together to challenge each other on what can be cut or consolidated. Think about the controls you need and your customer experience. You may want to consider automating certain tasks or using technology to improve your workflows. By streamlining your processes, you can save time and money, reduce errors, and improve customer satisfaction.





Your people are your business. Making sure they have the right skills and tools to work smarter and not harder is a key lever for improving operational efficiency. This could include providing your teams with regular training on new technologies and products, as well as offering leadership and management training for your managers. Whilst it’s important the team knows the technical elements of security installation - ask yourself who (besides you) is thinking about how to run a better business. Investing in people improves their skills and knowledge, reduces turnover, and increases productivity.





In a world where Chat GPT is passing MBA exams and we’re sending people to Mars - this one should be obvious. By embracing technology, you can automate your processes, improve your communication with customers, and increase your efficiency. You may want to consider using job management software tools to manage your jobs, track your inventory, and analyse your efficiency. Accounting software helps you make sure you’re making money and not losing money on jobs and across your business. Payment portals help you get paid faster. FYI using emails and WhatsApp isn’t embracing technology! (see Streamline your process above).





Getting it right the first time saves you doing it a second one. Building in checks and controls in your processes will reduce the risk of your teams getting it wrong - and customers getting upset. Your business is built on trust. Quality Assurance can include regular quality checks, customer surveys, and feedback mechanisms. By focusing on quality assurance, you can improve your reputation, reduce rework, and increase customer loyalty.



Build Strong Relationships with Suppliers



It’s impossible to stay on top of all the developments of security hardware and be an expert on all things. By developing long-term partnerships with your suppliers, you can benefit from their expertise and experience, as well as their economies of scale. This can help you to reduce your costs, improve your delivery times, and ensure that you have access to the latest technologies and products.



Running a security installation business in South Africa can be challenging, but by implementing these five strategies, you can improve your operational efficiency and increase your profitability. By streamlining your processes, investing in training and development, embracing technology, focusing on quality assurance, and building strong relationships with your suppliers, you can take your security installation business to the next level.


Running a security installation business can be challenging, especially when it comes to managing customers, people, processes, and technology efficiently. 

5 Strategies to Improve Operational Efficiency and Profitability for Your Security Installation Business .

Sheldon Pawson runs Active Motion, a security solutions and installation business serving commercial and residential properties nationwide. Active Motion is a fast growing security installation business with offices in Johannesburg.

Sheldon started Active Motion with no car, no staff and no capital. Grit and resilience helped him win his first customer who took a chance on him. Today he employees 52 staff, manages 12 teams and serves over 3000 clients.

In the beginning operations were chaotic. Sheldon didn’t know what systems and processes he needed to grow - especially how he managed billing. Carbon copy job cards, paper, email, spreadsheets, word documents, whiteboards. Every morning was a run around trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together to work out what was going on and how to keep momentum going.

All of this took time. Time the team could have been spending on keeping up with the demand his business was attracting. Sheldon knew that as technology enabled his customers to tap into his competitors faster - he needed to find a way to get quality quotes out faster to win more work.

When a customer called he’d run to the file room to try and find a file which ofter wasn’t there - turning a five minute query into a two hour team effort.

In this time balls got dropped. Jumbled papers, emails and whatsapps were impossible to keep up with. Job cards got lost and left on site. Information wasn’t correctly captured and jobs weren’t signed for. Nothing connected the different parts across Active Motion with their clients and suppliers.

Sheldon needed a job management software to join everything together.

Sheldon started looking around for job management software - initially looking at a wide range of international job management software providers. They all had bits and pieces of what he needed but couldn’t find anything that fit the South African security installation space. Unit he met ServCraft.

ServCrat’s local South African team reached out and showed him a demo that ticked all his boxes for managing a security installation business.

Sheldon loved the fact that the local team understood what it was like running a security business in South Africa - and were so committed to helping improve his security installation operation.

ServCraft worked with Sheldon and his team to design the job card and ServCraft that worked for him and his business. ServCraft listened deeply to Sheldon’s suggestions and used them to build features that all ServCraft customers could benefit from.

ServCraft’s people and their passion to help him with the change made a big difference to the impact ServCraft was able to make.

Sheldon and his team were contacted by a ServCraft expert who took the time to understand the specific problems and processes in the security installation business - as well as the experience Sheldon wanted his customers to have.

From there they sat together and designed a ServCraft that worked for them. There wasn’t too much adaptation needed.

It didn’t stop there. ServCraft’s Implementation Coach collaborated with Active Motion’s team to design, plan and implement ServCraft across the business. This involved training the teams, testing the processes, and making sure they got the results they needed. Sheldon chose a date and went live.

ServCraft’s local team is in touch regularly with Sheldon - taking on new ideas, responding to questions, sharing how new features could help and providing training to Sheldon’s growing team.

Sheldon felt the impact of ServCraft’s job man as soon as he switched it on across Active Motion.

ServCraft’s scheduling feature and jobs list has transformed his control of his teams. Planning and managing what his teams are doing from one place is powerful and gives him complete control of his operations so he can manage risks before they turn into issues.

In security installation trust is everything. Emails, SMS giving customers a view of the jobs cards and pictures make it real for his customers and really add value. ServCraft helps his customers trust him even more by delivering a highly professional experience and keeping them in the loop across the job.

ServCraft is helping Active Motion grow from strength to strength.

See how ServCraft's job management system helped Sheldon grow his security installation business from selling out the back of his car to employing 52 staff serving over 3000 clients.

ServCraft Features Built For The Security Industry

5 Strategies to Improve Operational Efficiency and Profitability for Your Security Installation Business .

Case Study: Active Motion