Find news and information for the executive corporate security director, CSO, facility manager and assets protection manager on issues of policy, products, incidents, risk management, threat assessments and preparedness.
Issue link: http://sdi.epubxp.com/i/941796
42 Security Dealer & Integrator / www.SecurityInfoWatch.com February 2018 nectWise for our internal and external projects and services delivery." e next step is to set up a help desk that can handle basic customer inquiries and perhaps advanced tech- nical support (internal and external), depending on your size. "Security product platforms are beginning to integrate health monitoring APIs into tools like ConnectWise, so it is only a matter of time until the MSP model is the only thing that will make sense to our IT savvy clientele," Lanning says. Lastly, Meltzer recommends deter- mining the mapping of available as-a-service solutions given the exist- ing security technology infrastructures and needs of an integrator's particular and unique clients. The Vendors' Role Security industry manufacturers have a role in supporting the managed ser- vice business model – especially those with cloud-based offerings. e idea is to use digital tools and automation to reduce or eliminate manual effort in supporting products, thus enabling integrators to focus on serving and adding value for customers. Both customer network usage and security video usage can change over time, and under the as-a-service model, integrators need the means to be proactive in ensuring customer sys- tems continue to perform as intended. "Standard IT tools can't present the security systems-specific information that is needed," explains Ken Fran- cis, President of cloud video com- pany Eagle Eye Networks. "Eagle Eye provides integrators with a dashboard graphing 13 cloud video system per- formance metrics for that reason." Customers do not generally have insight into how their network and video usage profiles change; thus, an integrator can leverage capabili- ties such as Eagle Eye's dashboard to provide that information and help the customer plan ahead for expansion. Eagle Eye also manages its on-premises appliances, performing updates and security patches automatically while notifying integrators of the updates. Axis Communications has a history of working in the hosted video mar- ket, anchored by its Axis Video Host- ing System (AVHS) platform. Accord- ing to Steve Burdet, the company's North America Product Manager, the company is developing "a new cloud- based service engineered from the ground up, called AXIS Guardian, targeting video service providers" that will eventually replace AVHS. e service, Burdet says, is cloud- hosted by Axis, enabling the company to update/evolve the system and ser- vices faster to meet the needs of inte- grators and customers. "AXIS Guard- ian has central device management functionality that includes camera automatic firmware updates. Guardian also has alarm receiving center integra- tion with more integrations to come in the future." Expect Axis to find ways to expand automatic firmware updates to other types of camera deployments. Early successes in managed services have highlighted two main points regarding integrator adoption of the managed services model and their relationship with security vendors: 1. Vendor products/services must support the "as-a-service" model; and 2. IT-style tools are needed to effec- tively and profitably deliver services at any scale. ere is an abundance of untapped opportunity via managed services for tech-savvy, customer-savvy integrators. Integrators should take the initial steps of assessing their current capabilities and knowledge, gauging the customer landscape, and determining required internal changes to sustainably sell and deliver managed services. ■ » Ray Bernard, PSP CHS-III, is the principal consultant for Ray Bernard Consulting Services (RBCS), a firm that provides security consulting services for public and private facilities (www. go-rbcs.com). He is the author of the Elsevier book Security Technology Convergence Insights available on Amazon. Mr. Bernard is a Subject Matter Expert Faculty of the Security Executive Council (SEC) and an active member of the ASIS International member councils for Physical Security and IT Security. Cover Story Both customer network usage and security video usage can change over time, and under the as-a-service model, integrators need the means to be proactive in ensuring customer systems continue to perform as intended.