The verdict in three sentences
A private security firm with 400 officers and 90 sites that still schedules in Excel loses money every month on overtime, unbilled extra hours and licence compliance risk. A custom rota and patrol platform costs EUR 30,000 to 70,000 excluding VAT in 2026 (roughly GBP 26,000 to 60,000) and ships in 12 to 18 weeks. The return comes first from overtime control: up to 3% of payroll recovered.
What the spreadsheet cannot see
With 400 officers, the scheduler juggles collective agreement rules, 11-hour rest periods, 48-hour weekly caps and professional licences that expire (CNAPS cards in France, SIA licences in the UK). A spreadsheet blocks nothing: an officer with an expired licence can be posted to a sensitive site and nobody notices until the audit.
Hidden cost lines break down as follows, as a 2026 order of magnitude for a firm of this size in Paris or London:
| Loss item | Mechanism | Estimated annual impact |
|---|---|---|
| Unplanned overtime | Last-minute cover paid at 125% or 150% | EUR 250,000 to 420,000 |
| Unbilled extra hours | On-site extensions never logged | EUR 60,000 to 120,000 |
| Scheduling time | 2 full-time schedulers on spreadsheets | EUR 95,000 loaded |
| Client penalties | Uncovered post, late shift handover | EUR 20,000 to 50,000 |
| Licence risk | Officer without valid licence, fines up to EUR 7,500 per breach in France | Hard to quantify, licence of the company at stake |
| Employment disputes | Rest breaches, missed allowances | EUR 15,000 to 40,000 |
Modules and their 2026 price
Guarding software does not need to do everything. It must secure deployment, prove attendance and feed payroll and invoicing. Here is the breakdown we quote for a company of this size:
| Module | Function | Budget excl. VAT |
|---|---|---|
| Rota and agreement rules | Cycles, rest, caps, conflict alerts | EUR 9,000 to 18,000 |
| Officer register and licences | Licence numbers, expiry dates, fire safety qualifications, automatic blocking | EUR 4,000 to 8,000 |
| Geofenced mobile clock-in | Shift start by geofence or on-site QR code | EUR 5,000 to 12,000 |
| Electronic occurrence book | Patrols, incidents, photos, signature, client export | EUR 5,000 to 12,000 |
| Shift swap marketplace | Open shifts pushed to qualified available officers | EUR 3,000 to 7,000 |
| Payroll and billing export | Payroll variables, hours per site, Sage or Silae integration | EUR 4,000 to 13,000 |
| Total | Full project | EUR 30,000 to 70,000 |
Running costs then amount to EUR 600 to 1,200 per month (hosting, maintenance, minor changes). For comparison, sector SaaS tools charge EUR 4 to 9 per officer per month, so EUR 1,600 to 3,600 monthly for 400 officers, with no adaptation to your internal rules.
A realistic 12 to 18 week schedule
| Phase | Duration | Deliverable |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping and business rules | 2 to 3 weeks | Matrix of agreement rules and sites |
| Mock-ups and field validation | 2 weeks | Scheduler and officer app journeys tested |
| Rota and register development | 4 to 6 weeks | Live rota with licence checks |
| Mobile, clock-in and occurrence book | 3 to 4 weeks | Android and iOS app |
| Pilot on 15 sites | 1 to 3 weeks | Adjustments, supervisor training |
The pilot on a subset of sites is essential: night officers and supervisors spot in ten days what no workshop ever surfaces.
Mini case study
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Nadia, operations director of a guarding company in Saint-Denis near Paris, manages 400 officers with a loaded payroll of EUR 14 million a year. Overtime weighs 9% of that payroll. With a rota that anticipates absences and a shift swap marketplace, the target is to cut 3 points, i.e. EUR 420,000 a year. Even with a cautious 1% assumption, the gain reaches EUR 140,000. The project costs EUR 58,000 plus EUR 11,000 of yearly running costs: it pays back in under six months, not counting the EUR 60,000 of extra hours now billed thanks to the time-stamped occurrence book. A London firm of the same size sees a similar ratio.
FAQ
Can the software check professional licences automatically?
The register stores each licence number and expiry date and blocks deployment on the due date. An alert fires 90 days before expiry to trigger renewal, which removes the risk of a post held by an unlicensed officer.
Is geofenced clock-in GDPR compliant?
Yes, provided location is captured only at shift start and end, not continuously. Allow 2 to 3 days of work for the impact assessment and staff representative briefing.
Can we keep our current payroll software?
Yes. The rota exports variables (night hours, Sundays, meal and uniform allowances) in the format of Sage, Silae or Cegid. This connector costs EUR 4,000 to 8,000 depending on the number of pay codes.
How long does it take to train 400 officers?
The officer app takes 15 minutes to learn. Supervisors attend a 2-hour session and schedulers 2 days. Rollout runs in waves of 50 to 100 officers.
Do we need an in-house server?
No. Hosting with a certified European provider costs EUR 150 to 400 per month, with daily backups and availability above 99.9%.
Let's scope your project. We map your rota, agreement rules and sites for an indicative budget of EUR 30,000 to 70,000 and go-live in 12 to 18 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
