Top 10 under 40: Jeff Hannah, JH & Associates

Before founding JH & Associates, Jeff Hannah originally joined the security industry because he had aspirations to be a police officer.

After working as a mall security guard for some time, Hannah discovered that the policing side of the industry was not for him. Instead, Hannah decided to stay with security and after years of haed work, he launched his consulting agency.

“I like consulting, because it always changes and there’s always a need to learn new things,” Hannah says. “You identify a need, you build a product around it, and then you go and see if somebody needs what you built.”

As a consultant, Hannah shares that he uses his skillset to help companies that often do not have the luxury of employing somebody full-time that is entirely focused on security, as every organization to some degree has some security need.

“I end up working with a lot of people in companies where there’s somebody who’s in charge of security, but they’re also in charge of other tasks,” Hannah says. “I’ve been able to provide my skillset and my time to make sure that the organization gets what it needs.”

Being able to offer consulting services to other companies has been a highlight for Hannah, adding that he benefits from the flexibility of the industry.

“I love consulting,” Hannah says. “I love the freedom of it, because I really have a lot of control over what I do and what I focus on.”

As Hannah looks ahead at his career, he would like to take on a large national role, and help to build a security program for a large organization. “I’ve done that on a smaller scale and various roles throughout my career and it’s really rewarding,” Hannah says. “I’d love to do it on a bigger scale now that I have more experience.”