The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the largest and most complex tournament in the event’s history, spanning three countries and 16 host cities. With that scale comes a wide range of risks that extend far beyond the stadiums, impacting employees, travelers, and operations alike.

Sara Pratley, Senior Vice President of Global Intelligence at AlertMedia, shares the key threats her team of analysts is tracking ahead of the tournament and how organizations can prepare for their potential impacts.

Risk categories highlighted:

• Physical security
• Cyber threats
• Disinformation
• Civil unrest
• Travel disruption
• Severe weather

To better understand organizational risks tied to the tournament, download AlertMedia’s 2026 FIFA World Cup Situation Report.

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Many organizations have strong risk functions, but when disruption hits, siloed teams continue to operate without a unified model. Bruce McIndoe, a global risk advisor with decades of experience, explains why this gap makes it harder to respond quickly and effectively when it matters most.

Bruce outlines how organizations can move toward a joint, multidisciplinary model by leveraging shared data and stronger coordination to help teams detect threats earlier, act faster, and protect business outcomes.

Episode highlights:

1. Why organizations struggle to move beyond siloed risk functions
2. How to create a shared operating picture to improve response speed
3. The importance of aligning risk reduction efforts to business objectives
4. What metrics leaders can use to measure operational effectiveness

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Threats toward business leaders are rising, and security teams are starting to see the shift firsthand. Bob Hayes, Managing Director and Founder of the Security Executive Council (SEC), shares what his team uncovered after analyzing new data on executive targeting.

In this episode, Bob explains what’s driving the surge in incidents, how executive exposure is changing, and why organizations may need to rethink how they assess leadership risk.

Key takeaways:

1. What new research reveals about the 313% rise in executive targeting incidents
2. The surprising shift in motives behind many incidents
3. How visibility and circumstance can quickly increase exposure
4. Why leadership risk often extends beyond the C-suite

For more insights, explore the Security Executive Council’s Executive Targeting Report and Beyond Incivility Report.

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Corporate security is at a turning point. With rising acts of violence and grievance-driven threats, protective intelligence is no longer confined to executive protection. Melissa Newberg, Global Head of Intelligence at Seerist, explains why it’s becoming the standard operating model for modern security teams.

Drawing on her experience building a protective intelligence program at Meta, Melissa outlines how organizations can shift from chasing isolated threats to analyzing big-picture patterns and trends to mitigate potential risk.

Episode highlights:

1. Balancing real-time social media monitoring with trend tracking
2. How to deliver stronger protection with limited resources
3. Why private groups, encrypted apps, and AI-generated content make online threats harder to spot

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Dell Technologies’ Global Security Investigations Lead, Bo Bohanan, says most breaches start the same way: someone convinces you they belong.

In this episode, Bo shares how his team approaches fraud prevention and investigations, and why Zero Trust is as much about culture and process as it is about tools and technology. From role-based access to physical tailgating, he offers practical ways to tighten security without crushing productivity.

Key takeaways:

1. What modern impersonation fraud looks like in the age of AI
2. How to reduce risk with smarter access rules and ongoing checks for unusual activity
3. Why fusion centers reduce silos by routing threat intel to the right teams

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Behind every Olympic Games is years of careful planning to keep athletes, officials, and spectators safe. As the 2026 Winter Olympic Games kick off in Italy, security efforts stretch far beyond the venues, spanning multiple regions, agencies, and international partners.

Nick Fanelli, Olympic Security Coordinator at the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), joins the show to break down how the U.S. prepares for one of the world’s most complex security operations.

Key takeaways:

1. How international partnerships strengthen threat prevention and response
2. Why long lead times and early planning are critical for complex security operations
3. What the most geographically dispersed Olympic Games in history mean for transportation security
4. Lessons corporate leaders can apply to large events and global travel programs

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Executive protection is evolving from traditional bodyguard work to a more intelligent, data-driven discipline that enables organizations to prevent threats before they materialize.

Steve Hernandez, CEO of The North Group, shares how modern executive protection programs rely on predictive intelligence, thorough threat assessments, and a clear understanding of the organization’s risk profile.

Listen to learn:

1. Why risk assessments are the foundation of effective executive protection
2. How organizations can rethink who needs protection as threats extend beyond the C-suite
3. What factors to consider when choosing between in-house support and external protection partners
4. How sharing an executive’s full risk profile helps overcome resistance to protection

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

You can find this interview and many more by following The Employee Safety Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.

Organizations faced a record number of interconnected threats in 2025, from global political volatility and multi-city protests to emerging technology disruptions and extreme weather events. The sheer volume and variety of incidents forced leaders to rethink how they monitor risk, protect employees, and maintain business continuity in an increasingly unpredictable world.

In this episode, AlertMedia’s Senior Vice President of Global Intelligence, Sara Pratley, unpacks the top threats and key trends from the 2026 Threat Outlook Report and shares practical guidance to help leaders build resilience for the year ahead.

The Employee Safety Podcast is hosted by Peter Steinfeld, SVP of Safety Solutions at AlertMedia.

Get every episode delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing at https://www.alertmedia.com/podcast/.