Introduction

At the London 2012 Olympic Games the company was originally awarded the huge security contract, but couldn't fulfill its promise of 10,000 security personnel and subsequently the UK’s military was drafted in as a replacement. The resulting furor in the media and fines and costs incurred by failing to complete its contract should have affected the company badly however this hasn't been the case.

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Highlights

G4S is a global leader and it was formed from two of the world’s leading security service companies (Securicor and Group 4 Falck) to create the largest security service company in the world. The group handles a number of operations within the services sector via its subsidiaries, ranging from event management to security, to facility operation.
G4S has been involved in a number of high profile scandals in recent years, one of the largest beings its failure to provide its contracted number of personnel at the London Olympics in 2012, causing a large scale backlash against the company initially in the UK.
The company appears to be unaffected by these high profile scandals and despite some initial drops in share price the company has recovered and has been producing a solid profit so far in 2012. However there are long term tests such as the renewing of contacts that will determine the strength of the company after these scandals.

Your key questions answered

* What is the nature of the G4S business?
* What happened in the London 2012 Olympics scandal?
* How has the company responded and what have the consequences been?
* Why has the company been protected from any major loss of earnings and how has the company retained its strong position?