A Huge risk? That's iJet's business

IN EARLY 2011, as Arab Spring demonstrations broke out, two addresses in the U.S. went into frenzied activity. One was the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) headquarters near Washington, D.C., where director Leon Edward Panetta and his team were preparing to brief the President and send global alerts to places important to the U.S. Some 70 km away, at the iJet headquarters in Annapolis, Maryland, another team of 60 analysts was independently trying to assess the situation. In the preceding months, putting together intelligence from the region, they had issued alerts that a crisis was brewing. They were now trying to chart the direction the unrest would take and how it would affect new areas.

iJet is a 15-year-old private company involved in preventing and mitigating threats to a company’s operations. “We’re the corporate equivalent of intelligence agencies [like the CIA]. It wouldn’t be untrue if I told you that at times they [the intelligence agencies] too are part of our client list,” says iJet’s 57-year-old founder and CEO D. Bruce McIndoe, who has led intelligence programmes for the U.S. government. McIndoe emphasises that iJet, whose annual revenue is around $100 million (Rs 602 crore), isn’t providing security for guarding installations. Rather, it’s selling intelligence to ensure safety of installations, employees, operations, and supply chains. In case of a crisis such as an environmental disaster or political unrest, it doubles as a call centre that can launch an appropriate response anywhere in the world.

McIndoe cites the example of an incident in Yemen. iJet had advised an oil company employee to avoid taking a particular route but he ignored it and was abducted. The rescue team (from the U.S. armed forces) used iJet’s intelligence inputs to free him. “Companies can do this themselves. But it will cost billions to build the kind of network we have,” he says.

One reason for betting big on iJet is its client list, which includes 105 Fortune 500 companies. Until recently, iJet’s operations in India were limited to services offered as part of its contracts with multinational companies. Earlier this year, it signed up one of India’s largest conglomerates as a client for travel protection, but it won’t reveal the name.

McIndoe says India appears to be peaceful but there’s no dearth of potential “situations”: A court hearing, elections, a cricket match, or even a festival like Holi can turn into a risk. For the last 10 years, iJet has been assessing these risks for multinationals. Now, along with partner Axa, the company is looking to get more Indian clients and hopes to have at least 10 by the end of this year. It has operations in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Chennai.

Pradeep Bery, medical director of Axa Assistance India, iJet’s partner in India, says audit of installations could be the key area. “Using sophisticated technology like aerial scanning, we can prepare a risk scenario and advise what needs to be done in case of an emergency. If the client wants, the deal can include evacuation plans,” says Bery, who was involved in the evacuation programme during the 2011 Japan tsunami and the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster that followed.

At the iJet headquarters, teams consisting of intelligence analysts track happenings around the world through media and the Internet. They also scrutinise data sent by 900 freelance “reporters” in 400 cities globally. Drawn from the security, health-care, risk assessment, and media industries, these reporters are valued for their knowledge of the regions where they work and the cultural context of the issues they deal with.

The teams analyse events or trends for the risks they may pose for clients and their people travelling around the world. They monitor 130 million trips a year, prepare pre-trip briefings, and arrange medical assistance in case of emergencies in these countries. iJet gets 90% repeat customers annually.

Depending on the size of the company and the services provided, iJet charges between $1,500 and $1 million. A company may subscribe to travel risk alerts only or opt for a package that includes services such as counselling employees’ families on security-related issues, evacuation in case of an emergency, and medical assistance in conflict or sensitive zones.

Last December, PE firm LLR Partners invested in the company. McIndoe declines to disclose figures, but if LLR’s history is any indication, the figure should be at least $20 million.

iJet is preparing to add the next layer to its portfolio: Internet-related risks. Considering the amount and complexity of data to be handled, McIndoe says it will be a huge challenge. But then, for a business that plays on chance, that’s nothing unusual.