Martin Smith
Corporate Security Manager
ManpowerGroup Public Sector
Falls Church, VA USA
“I convinced myself that the best revenge would be to be successful and make something of myself.”
Milestones
My road in life has taken me all over.
When I found myself homeless at 17 I had to quit school and get a job. My first full time job was working in a septic tank fabrication plant in their steel shop where I learned how to weld.
I worked for 2 different Pre-Cast plants where I learned machinery operation, loader and forklift operation, crane operations, blueprint reading.
Agricultural equip. dealership. perform mechanic work in house and on farms. learned to drive Semi Truck hauling large farming equipment. Assembled equipment and machinery.
Worked for large construction firm. Drove trucks and became the warehouse manager / supervisor of the drivers and responsible for fleet of vehicles and warehouse inventory. Recession caused 10K pay cut.
Began night school for GED. When I scored 97 percentile for science it motivated me to explore going to college. Attended night school while working: 5 yrs to get a 4 yr degree while raising 4 kids.
I learned the skills of purchasing agent while working for the construction company. This started me on a path to seeing myself working in an office environment.
Tried a part time job at Kay Jewelers to see if I would like sales. I didn't. I am not a salesman.
After college I began working for gov't. contractors and have grown my career working for different firms. I've now been doing what I do for over 20 years earning top dollar in my field.
Education
GED
Career
Corporate Security Manager
Contract and Personnel Security Compliance
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Government
Business
Working Independently
Day to Day
I work for a large company and interface with fellow professionals within and without the company I work for on a daily basis. My responsibilities include contract compliance and personnel processing. My responsibilities also include training others and in today's environment, that is done by webex, conference calls, email, etc... I am considered a Subject Matter Expert in my field (SME) and often get calls to help others understand the requirements, processes and procedures they must follow.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for high school students
Never ever do drugs, get in trouble with the law or do anything on the internet or social media that can come back to haunt you. Always be thinking about the Security Clearance you are going to need down the road. Focus your studies on business and Intelligence related subject majors.
Recommended Education
My career is not related to what I studied. I'd recommend this path instead:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Parents:
"I was told I would never amount to anything"
Challenges I Overcame
Financial
First-Generation College Student
I was raised in an abusive environment
