Truth is, he’s an expert polygrapher
With top credentials, 20 years in business and clients such as police and Hawks, his track record speaks for itself
WHEN Jacobus Loots started his polygraph business in the 1990s, he was the first of his kind entering a sceptical market in Port Elizabeth. But after 20 years at the helm of Accurate Assignments in Newton Park, his experience has earned him the trust of clients at national and international level.
Can you give me some background on yourself and how and when the business was started?
I was born and raised in Port Elizabeth and completed my tertiary education through the University of South Africa and the University of Cape Town.
I have university credentials in criminology, security management, advanced security management, business management, occupational health and safety, theology and counselling.
I qualified as a polygraph examiner in the USA in 1998 and in 1999 I completed advanced and specialised polygraph training, also in the USA.
This year I am celebrating 20 years in the polygraph profession.
What is your core service?
My business provides professional truth testing services, mainly in Port Elizabeth and the surrounding areas.
We specialise in investigative polygraph exams in relation to internal business crimes.
We also do a lot of pre-employment polygraph exams, as well as periodic polygraph exams of employees in high security jobs.
Where was the idea for a polygraph service born?
When I was in government service in the early 1990s we had a theft incident in the office and we were all frustrated by not being able to find the culprit.
Someone mentioned a “lie detector”, but we were shocked to find out that there was, at that stage, no formally educated expert available in the private sector. I subsequently did my research, identified a business opportunity, located an accredited training institution in the USA, and went overseas for my training. The rest is history!
What makes your business unique?
Extensive experience and a solid reputation of professionalism, honesty and integrity.
If someone wanted to copy your business model, how would they start?
To qualify as a polygraph examiner, one needs to have a relevant honours-level degree and would then have to undergo postgraduate training as a polygraph examiner in the USA, UK or Israel, where fully accredited polygraph schools exist. After qualifying, an internship period is required, and thereafter independent practice is possible.
What are some of the biggest inhibitors your business faced before getting off the ground?
Start-up funding and making polygraph testing part-and-parcel of everyday business life. Before I started, my banker at the time told me that polygraph testing would never be a viable business. I ended up dipping into pension money to get started. Today, polygraph testing is firmly established all over South Africa and the profession is an essential part of the private sector safety and security industry – and, ironically, the banks also make use of polygraph tests now!
What are some of your biggest challenges in your particular industry?
At present a big challenge is that several new rookie polygraph examiners have entered the local market and are providing services at cut-throat rates to get business.
Such examiners have little work experience and may therefore do work of a lesser quality or questionable validity, which could have major legal and ethical implications not only for their clients, but for the polygraph profession as a whole.
It is a huge challenge to get potential clients to understand that they should not make decisions on price alone when selecting a polygraph examiner, but should rather look at the qualifications, experience and proven track record of a potential service provider.
What is the best advice anyone ever gave you about success?
Success is about impressing yourself, not others. For me, success means achieving a good name and a good reputation.
What kind of advertising do you do?
Our clients do most of the hard advertising work by word-of-mouth.
The only other advertising is by means of our website and limited internet search engine advertising.
What are some of your highlights in running your business?
Several years ago, the police made use of my services to test police officers, even though the police had their own polygraph unit who could have done the job.
Another highlight was when I worked side-by-side, on several occasions, with members of the Hawks during rhino poaching investigations at several private game reserves in the Eastern Cape.
How many people do you employ?
To keep our pricing competitive, we are a small operation of five people. We run a very lean and efficient office.
Do you have any plans for expanding the business, and how would you go about this?
Although it is very difficult to expand a business which requires very specialised training, skills and equipment – all of which requires a huge financial investment in the right calibre of person – I am in the process of recruiting and educating someone to eventually become an additional polygraph examiner in my business, to ensure service continuity when I’m not available.
What is the biggest lesson you have learnt from your business journey?
Client loyalty is crucial to the continued success of a business over the long-term.
What do you think are the three key traits of a successful entrepreneur?
Passion, competency and efficiency.