Climbing the Career Ladder — From Security Professional to Payroll to IT Expert

Sean Nobles, Director of Platform Systems, Allied Universal®

Never in his wildest dreams did Sean Nobles think he’d become an expert in IT security solutions. His career began in the trucking industry where he held several positions such as dockworker, supervisor and quality control manager. 

In 2000, he decided to move into a more stable industry, so he accepted a position as a security professional with Securitas where he was promoted several times from field supervisor to assistant account manager, scheduling manager, operations manager and branch manager. 

He then joined U.S. Security Associates (USSA) as a manager of payroll, billing and collections, where he was in charge of all payroll functions in the West and led the roll out the company’s Electronic Time Keeping System (ETK) on a national level. This is when he first worked with his mentor Mark Mullison, Allied Universal’s CIO.

“Mark has a unique ability to see employee’s true skill set that we don’t see in ourselves,” Sean said. “He saw something in me and was willing to take a chance. Now, thanks to Mark’s belief in me, the sky is the limit for me here at Allied Universal®.”

After Allied Universal® acquired USSA, Sean permanently moved over to the IT team and was promoted to senior workflow engineer where he collaborated on the functional design and implementation of LISA, the company’s timekeeping artificial intelligence (AI) platform.

“The biggest challenge was learning a new career,” Sean said. “When I first came here, I was from the operation side of security, so learning the intricate intricacies of IT, although rewarding, was a huge challenge.” 

After Allied Universal® acquired G4S, he was promoted to Director of Platform Systems where he works as the functional architect of the LISA Platform. He also works with the field on WinTeam-related issues and assists on functional design of all new company systems and applications.

“I have never felt that not having a college degree was a hindrance as my team or supervisors never treated me differently,” Sean said. “If you work hard enough, you can achieve success here at Allied Universal.”

Working at Allied Universal® is a family affair as his wife, son, daughter and two of his nephew’s work at the company. Every chance he gets, Sean promotes Allied Universal® to his friends and family as the perfect place to build a career.

“Every day, I get the opportunity to help the operation’s team — making their lives a bit better/easier by offering them new highly advanced technology platforms,” Sean said. “I am here for the long haul — I can’t wait to see what LISA will be able to accomplish for the company and its employees.”