Monica Duperon Rodriguez felt a sense of dread when he stepped off a charter flight to the Serengeti in Africa for a work assignment.
“What came to my mind was: ‘This poor woman from the police department is standing in the Serengeti,'” she said. “I never in my life imagined myself being there.”
A layman might mistake the job that took him across the ocean as “bodyguard.” Professionals trained at his level in diplomacy, communication and planning earn the title “executive protection executive,” or EP agent.
said Ms. Rodriguez started his training early. As the oldest child growing up in a one-bedroom apartment supported by a single mother, she felt the need to protect her three siblings from the drugs and shootings in her Chicago neighborhood.
She spent three years in college while working a full-time job and taking care of her two young children. After some time off, she was sponsored by her local police department to attend the police academy because it needed female officers, especially Spanish speakers. He chose academia instead of completing his college degree.
Ms. Rodriguez has worked in law enforcement for 15 years, mostly here in Florida, first as a narcotics detective and a hostage negotiator on the SWAT team, and then as a corporal detective in the burglary division.
By working on a human-trafficking task force, protecting and interpreting for American missionaries in Guatemala, he made contact with people who connected him with an opportunity to work for a very high-value individual. . He was flown in for a day interview and only told the man’s identity when he landed. As soon as he got the job, he started flying on private jets with someone from an internationally renowned family.
Work: Executive Protection Specialist
salary: Varies by assignment, but some EPs can earn hundreds of thousands of dollars.
One thing to know: The job can be exciting and let you travel the world and work with famous families and A-listers. But be prepared to spend a long time away from friends and family.
Ms. could not say. Rodriguez who, as one of the main mandates of the job is discretion, is like second nature to him after his experience working undercover.
For several years, since her time in law enforcement, Ms. Rodriguez studied martial arts, training four hours a day, three times a week. He took jujitsu classes that cost about $100 a month, and trained in martial arts twice a week for $30 a session. This training, as well as his negotiation skills learned as a police officer, transferred to his protection work.
In law enforcement, he earns about $42,000 annually; in executive protection, he earns up to $200,000 a year.
“For me, education is very important,” said Ms. Rodriguez. “How you get it – that’s a completely different thing. College isn’t always the answer, but education is paramount to personal development and to really identify potential opportunities.
Mrs. Rodriguez, who worked as head of executive protection and global event security at LinkedIn and now runs him own business, says future EP agents may be currently working in the military or as EMTs, who have experience performing under stress. But the best people for executive protection work, he said, know how to shut down the high-intensity side of themselves to pick up on the etiquette, culture and expectations of clients who are typically accustomed to the world of luxury. .
“We have to learn how to be a chameleon,” said Ms. Rodriguez. EPs, he said, must use physical skills when necessary, but also know how to reduce tensions without causing a scene.
Amber Haddock also came from a law enforcement background when, just days after a 14-day executive protection training program, he flew into what was supposed to be a three-month assignment: guarding, without a gun or badge, a 17-year-old – old Middle Eastern princess living in Washington, DC, under the guise of being the young royal’s American host mom.
After the trial, the princess’s family decided to keep her as a contractor for two years. Delivered by Ms. Haddock the princess and her friends in her college classes and social events. On trips abroad, he flew with the young client in his private jet.
Female operatives often disappear from roles, portraying the executive assistant, the aunt or the nanny.
“We don’t exist, and then, when we do exist, things hit the fan and we evacuate the client,” Ms. Haddock.
Much of the work involves planning. Executive protection specialists prepare contingency plans, routes and backup routes. They find the nearest hospitals and “hard points” — their term for safe locations.
“What if you’re in Hawaii and your client starts a fire?” Said Ms. Haddock, referring to the Maui fire. “Do you know where to take them?”
Ms. Haddock, who lives in Texas and is the managing partner of the Texas branch of the Private Protection Agency, was in junior college for two years when Sept. 11 happened, and he felt called to service. He learned that the Dallas County Police will pay for part of his degree after he graduates from the police academy. He worked nights as an officer and went to college during the day, earning a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies and multiculturalism studies.
For most of her career, Ms. Haddock worked for Middle Eastern royal families.
When she started 15 years ago, “that was the only job, for female agents,” she said. Women are required, sometimes, because of family religious boundaries.
With the rise of women in the work force and more women in top jobs, she said, more female chief executives are asking for female agents, which is creating demand.
When looking for a job in executive protection, individuals can find full-time positions with companies, or work independently, taking on details (they call contract work) in teams or for clients as they arise, from dignitaries, celebrities or corporate leaders. Salary varies widely depending on location, client needs, threat level and other factors, but a full-time EP job can often pay in the six figures. A recent one security posting from OpenAI salary listed as $225,000. At her level, Ms. Haddock, “I don’t get out of bed for less than $1,000 a day.”
Miranda Coppoolse, a security behavioral analyst at MC Global Security Consultinghas worked as protection from a place of stability, having survived kidnapping, trafficking and abuse from a criminal gang.
“I don’t want other people to experience what I went through,” said Ms. Coppoolse, who lives outside Amsterdam and has an associate degree in security management, as well as training in criminal psychology, human trafficking prevention and counterterrorism. “I thought that with all my experiences in the past, I might be able to help other people. And so I started working out and training.”
He practices martial arts because it’s a form of self-defense that isn’t as obvious as carrying a gun, and he doesn’t have to deal with different gun laws when traveling.
“Close protection is not so much about weapons,” Ms. Coppoles. “I think EP is really about giving the sense of safety, most of all, to that client. And you can only do that when you have confidence.”
He worked all over the world, walking in mansions and A-list celebrity parties in Los Angeles.
“It’s an exciting life,” said Ms. Coppoles. “Life is tiring too, because you always have to be alert.”
Because EPs need to be physically present for jobs, they can go long periods of time without seeing their friends and family.
Ms. Haddock never had the goal of having a family of her own, “so this job allows me to move out into the world, and help other families in their lives,” she said. But she added that many women who worked at EP had successful careers and had families of their own.
Contracts can last for months, or longer with a schedule that can look like three weeks with two weeks off. Company contracts may have more standardized hours. Most clients use a trial period to make sure it’s a good fit for the EP agent and the client.
Work also provides ways to serve communities. Ms. is running. Coppoles an organization that works with victims of human trafficking. Ms. Haddock teaches self-defense through his social media accounts. Ms. Rodriguez escorted women who had to go to court to face their domestic abusers.
“When you’re a natural-born advocate,” Ms. Rodriguez, “that’s what you do.”
