The inaugural New Zealand Outstanding Security Performance Awards (OSPAs) event took place at the Aotea Centre in Auckland on Friday 27th May 2022 as part of the ASIS NZ certification dinner.
Security professionals gathered to celebrate the very best from across the sector with dinner and a presentation. The response to these inaugural awards was overwhelmingly positive and the standard of entries was outstanding. All those that were selected as finalists and winners demonstrated that they really are the absolute best and should feel extremely proud.
New Zealand OSPAs Award Winners 2022
The complete list of awards winners is:
Outstanding In-House Security Manager/Director
Brent Mirfin – Evotek Technologies
Brent has led Evotek Technologies for over 30 years – he has developed a customer centric service business that is focused on delivering tangible commercial benefits to its customers via the integration of high-end technology products with core customer systems. Brent’s commitment to excellence and to supporting his people and workplace safety has been unwavering. His focus on the training and development of employees has resulted in a business with exceptionally low employee turnover, and industry leading technical qualifications and skills.
Outstanding Contract Security Manager/Director
Pete Mason – Optic Security Group
Pete Mason is Optic Security Group’s New Zealand Operations Director. He is an inspirational technical delivery leader, team focused and committed to delivering exceptional service on a 24/7 basis. He lives by his personal motto “solutions not problems”. As Operations Director, Pete leads project delivery teams and large-scale projects across the length and breadth of Aotearoa New Zealand, including the national Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ) electronic security enhancement project for the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment (MBIE).
Outstanding Contract Security Company (Guarding)
FIRST Security Guard Services
FIRST Security directly employs 2,200 security personnel across 28 branch offices, 220 patrol vehicles, and hundreds of client sites throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. FIRST Security is a values-driven organisation which has striven to exhibit the highest levels of leadership in the safety, security and care of employees and the communities they serve during the COVID-19 pandemic. FIRST were appointed as the national provider to the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment (MBIE) of security guarding to New Zealand’s 32 Managed Isolation and Quarantine (MIQ).
Outstanding Security Consultant
Lincoln Potter
A security consultant who transitioned into security training and facilitation before undertaking full time studies in the security sciences. He achieved the highest undergraduate security qualification in the NZ security industry (NZQA L6) and the ASIS International Physical Security Professional (PSP) Board Certification. A Security professional for 30 years, having been the Chapter Vice Chair and previously treasurer for ASIS NZ. Awarded the NZSA Security Consultant of the year award in 2016 and an ASIS International Meritorious Service Award 2018, in recognition of his work to foster the spirit of goodwill and professionalism within ASIS International.
I would like to thank Martin and Christine (the OSPA team), the Judges for their kind consideration of my nomination, the sponsors (Team Software and Optic Security), ASIS NZ and everybody that attended this most auspicious event.
I am very grateful and humbled to receive such a significant award.Lincoln Potter
Outstanding New Security Product
My Vaccine Pass – Gallagher
Gallagher is supporting customers to keep pace with the ever-changing COVID-19 regulations in New Zealand through their My Vaccine Pass integration, which enables access control customers to link a user’s My Vaccine Pass status and expiry to their access credential – improving site security, by only allowing fully vaccinated people access. Judges felt this product was a ‘game changer for the government’s nationwide response to managing COVID-19.
We’re excited to see our My Vaccine Pass integration named Outstanding New Security Product. We’re proud of our development team, who acted quickly to bring this integration to life, responding promptly to our customers’ need to keep pace and streamline vaccine pass management during a time of ever-changing COVID-19 regulations. Gallagher
Outstanding Security Partnership
Evotek Technologies and Visual Networks
The partnership between Evotek Technologies and Visual Networks brings together two industry leaders who combine their complimentary skills to design, install, commission and provide on-going support of bespoke, high quality, high value technology integrations that work as per the design brief and operate efficiently on the customers own networks without impacting any core customer services. Judges felt that there was clear evidence of a longstanding partnership which had district benefits for customers.
We are very grateful to OSPA and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. To be selected from such a great group of professionals really was the icing on the top. Particularly pleasing after navigating a very challenging 2 years of Covid disruptions. This does mean a lot to us and we are very proud of our achievements.David Bell, CEO, Optima Investment Group Ltd
Outstanding Security Officer
Sione Tusini-Rex – Platform 4 Group
In 1997 Sione Tusini-Rex was employed as a security guard at Westfield Manukau City. He rose to where he is currently Supervisor of the same site. He has chosen to remain at Manukau as he is an integral part of the wider Polynesian community. Sione brings family, spiritual, and cultural values to the workplace. These values have propelled him to senior medic, first response coordinator, incident supervisor and health and safety coordinator. Sione has achieved the challenge of integrating a shopping center into a peaceful family and cultural center for the wider Polynesian community in South Auckland. Judges felt he was a stand-out performer in a difficult role.
Outstanding Female Security Professional
Trish Thompson – Gallagher
Over the past decade, Trish has been a driving force behind several of Gallagher’s major product innovations. Trish’s commitment and enthusiasm for her work is praised by her colleagues. Her passion, combined with her security knowledge and ability to clearly articulate her views, drives her influence as a thought leader. Her knowledge and skills are well regarded within Gallagher, where her influence sees her actively helping to shape the future direction of the security business.
It’s always wonderful to feel that what you do makes a difference in the world, and for those of us working in security that it intrinsically makes the world a better and safer place. I feel very honoured to have received the award and will certainly treasure it.
I’ve been very fortunate to have had many opportunities within Gallagher to work on exciting new security products and even new generations of technology that lift our ability to help people feel safe at work and help security professionals achieve outcomes with ease and feel confident in their decisions.
Anyone who works in new product development will know it’s not an individual sport! It’s often a long and demanding process from the spark of an idea that resolves an unmet need and then bringing that idea into a form that we can deliver into people’s hands. So, I would like to acknowledge the amazing team of dedicated and incredibly capable people that surround me at Gallagher.Trish Thompson, Gallagher
Outstanding Young Security Professional
Stella Donachie – Red Badge Group
Stella joined Red Badge in January 2019 as part of their Graduate programme. Stella was brought in as an intern to support the event security team through the busy summer months. In the 3 years since Stella took on the intern role, she has shown her level of maturity through operational growth and ability. Red Badge management saw the potential in Stella and toward the end of her internship she was offered a permanent role as Operations Coordinator in the Events and Venues Security team. Excelling in this role and pre pandemic shut down of events Stella was promoted into the Operations Management role within their Events and Venues Security Team.
Lifetime Achievement
Nicholas Dynon
Nicholas is an international security professional. He is Chief Editor of Defsec Media’s Line of Defence Magazine, New Zealand Security Magazine and Fire NZ Magazine, and a licensed security consultant. With a 14-year government career in immigration and border security, Nicholas has served as a diplomat and a military officer. He has also held senior communications and engagement positions in the border and private security sectors. Nicholas galvanises academia, central and local Government and industry. Judges felt Nicholas had been the catalyst for major positive change within the industry, had outstanding leadership and had made a significant contribution to the industry over many years.
The event organisers would like to thank all those who have helped to make the first ever New Zealand OSPAs event such a success including: all the supporting associations and judges; sponsors – TEAM Software (headline sponsor) and Optic Security Group (category sponsor) and media partners – NZSM and International Security Journal.
