LA Confidential interviews Kent Moyer – CEO of The World Protection Group and 001 (WPG & 001)
I have never felt like a security person. I always thought I was a security artist. – KENT MOYER
Today we are speaking with world-acclaimed security and Executive Protection expert Kent Moyer, CEO of The World Protection Group and 001 (WPG & 001).
Q: Kent, can you tell us a bit about your background?
A: My fi rst job in this industry was working for Playboy, protecting Mr. Hugh Hefner and his family at the Playboy Mansion. Today, I am CEO of The World Protection Group and its luxury company 001, a luxury Executive Protection company that specializes in protecting high-net-worth and celebrity clients. I graduated from Wharton Business School in Advanced Management and also studied Strategic Management of Luxury Businesses at Wharton and the SDA Bocconi School of Management in Milan, Italy. I recently attended HEC Paris Business School to study with Professor Jean-Noel Kapferer in an Advanced Luxury course. One week was in Paris and another in Shanghai, China. I work extensively in law enforcement for over 20 years as a specialist in Executive Protection and Intelligence.
Q: Tell us about your new company, 001.
A: 001 is the American Express Black Card of Executive Protection and is the fi rst luxury company in the Executive Protection industry. Over the past twenty years, I have studied many luxury brands, such as Armani, Porsche, Bulgari, Tiffany & Co., and Pagani, and I wanted to reproduce the “Gold Standard Service” in the executive protection industry. It was created with The Ritz-Carlton Gold Standard of Service model, which espouses a style of sophisticated customer service in which each of our employees has been trained and whose principals have heavily inspired how 001 operates. It is a first in the Executive Protection industry.
Q: The World Protection Group and 001 are known for being the first Executive Protection firms to use drones. Can you tell us a bit about this?
A: The best Executive Protection companies must have the leading technology to protect our clients. Drones can be used in investigations. An example is a cheating spouse. Drones can gather 4K videos and pictures. Estate Security- Drones can do perimeter patrols and be used to stop an intruder. We have one drone that has a thermal imaging camera for night operations. We have a spotlight that can detect an intruder. We have one with a voice recording speaker that can inform the intruder he must leave the property immediately and the Police have been called. We use drones in the Risk/Vulnerability Assessments for properties that real estate agents sell that are valued at ten million and above. Drones can be used in route planning, the advance of locations. We support law enforcement, fi re, and city emergency services to provide extra support in any disaster.
Q: Tell us how you built your Drone program?
A: We operate under FAA part 107 governing commercial drone use. It was essential to build a first-class infrastructure. We use the best drones in the market (DJI drones), and all of our drones are properly insured for liability as well as clients. In addition to having drone pilots, I completed the best training with Dart Drones and have been certified as a drone pilot by the FAA. We created a policy and procedure manual. We are the first security fi rm in the United States to obtain a FAA fl y over top of people wavier and we also have a night wavier for night operations: einpresswire.com/article/491170233. We have a strategic fleet with many capabilities to fl y night and day, indoor and outdoor operations, a camera with thermal imaging for the night, and various attachments such as a strobe light, spotlight, and voice recording box. We use a parachute on top of the drone to fl y over the top of people. We have armed security trained FAA pilots and our agreements with clients have been prepared by law firms that are experts in drone law. Our pilots have FEMA training and disaster response training. We even advertise as part of our Executive Protection recruitment that we prefer FAA Remote Pilot Certificates.
Q: What is your opinion about law enforcement’s use of drones?
A: Law enforcement 100% needs to use drones. For example, it was a little over a year ago that there was a mass shooting at the Mandalay Bay Casino in Las Vegas. The gunman fi red 1,100 rounds, killing 59 people and injuring 851 more. If a drone (and drone pilot) had been available, it could have been deployed within minutes, fl own to the 32nd floor where the attack was coming from, identified the number of shooters and weapons, and communicated this information to the police command center or counter snipers. Drones should be in every patrol car and routinely used by private security. Drones can and will save both civilian and law enforcement lives by giving authorities a quick and safe look at an active situation, allowing them to come up with the best response plan using complete information. The biggest reason for Law Enforcement to use drones to save lives!
Q: How important is technology in Executive Protection today?
A: It is huge. The criminals are finding sophisticated ways to track your clients, hack into their devices, and threaten our clients. I always say that the technology we use in our open-source intelligence systems, Risk/Vulnerability systems, encrypted communications, and now our drone support is 15-10 years ahead of many law enforcement agencies in the country. Executive Protection is too far behind and the bad guys are using technology to defeat security and law enforcement. In closing, back few years ago in 2015, I was preparing to speak at multiple family office events in Silicon Valley. I was watching the news while reviewing my PowerPoint talk which included drones. A drone flew across the White House fence and landed at the White House. The Secret Service had no countermeasure drone plan. Imagine if the drone had a chemical agent, bomb, or weapon of mass destruction? Our combination of well-trained Executive Protection Agents and our latest high-level technology is what keeps our company from being the best in our industry.
