Being a “department of one” doesn’t mean going it alone. During his GSX 2025 session “An Army of One: Thriving as a (Solo) Director of Safety & Security,” security strategist Ken Carrasco shared a set of structured models and leadership habits to help professionals strengthen their impact when managing safety and security operations singlehandedly.
Carrasco began with a personal story illustrating how fear of judgment once limited his confidence when engaging executives. His takeaway: security leaders must shed hesitation and embrace vulnerability to communicate more effectively. “You must overcome that fear,” he said, “otherwise everything that follows doesn’t matter.”
Start with clarity and structure
Carrasco emphasized the value of assessment frameworks during the first 90 days in a new role. His approach begins by categorizing all observations into three domains — people, process and technology — before applying a traditional SWOT analysis to separate internal and external factors.
He then measures operational maturity against a four-step ladder: ignorance, negligence, compliance and operational excellence. The exercise, he said, helps identify the biggest gaps and opportunities early.
“I use this framework, especially when I'm unfamiliar with the vertical that I'm working in,” he said. “The idea is to begin to figure out what needs to be addressed first.”
Prioritize what matters most
Time management and resource prioritization, Carrasco explained, require discipline and self-awareness. Using the Eisenhower Matrix popularized by Stephen Covey, he urged attendees to spend the majority of their time in Quadrant 2: important but not urgent work that advances long-term goals.
“Time management tools aren’t for doing more in the same amount of time,” he said. “They’re for ensuring you do the most important things first.”
His daily strategy framework blends prevention, early intervention and response, allowing leaders to balance proactive and reactive duties. For security practitioners, this translates to combining skills and drills, data-informed decisions and accountability across teams.
