Technology answers ROI challenge

May 1, 1999 12:00 PM, TINA D'AVERSA-WILLIAMS

The mission of corporate security is to protect corporate professionals and assets through preventive measures and investigation.Security systems are part of an overall security plan to protect assets, including equipment, material, information, personnel and property. In selecting security equipment, it is essential that product capabilities match facility requirements.

Access Control & Security Systems Integration's recent security manager surveys found:- Greater risks to corporate security tend to be internal in nature and are increasingly common.- People security, followed by asset and information security, are the most important types of security to executive management.- Lowering incidences of crime and violence is rated most important in justifying security costs.- Employee confidence level for safety, system price and return on investment (ROI) are the most important factors in choosing a system.

As corporate security responsibilities expand to include information security, the mission is the same. But drivers of the mission are changing. Technology and innovation have become the security manager's tools for driving successful corporate security. Luckily, technology drives costs down, helping to answer executive management's requirement for low cost and ROI.Historically, it has been cost prohibitive for many organizations to implement enterprise security systems that include integrated security, surveillance and access control, but this is no longer true. The costs of software and hardware have decreased dramatically in the last few years. Biometric technologies have become mainstream - securing computers and controlling access - because the cost has dropped significantly in the last two years. Card technology systems for access control and identification have become less expensive but more secure, more durable and easier to implement and manage. The list goes on, spurred by the cost effectiveness of software.Industry analysts predict that the cost of all security-related technologies will continue to decrease (without sacrificing quality) as technology advances.

Developing a security strategyBecause of increasing innovation and declining costs of technology, the mission and strategy of corporate security are easier to plan, integrate and implement than ever before. Every department needs a consensus statement spelling out its contribution to the company mission, its principal role, activities, and the direction it needs to be moving. By thinking through and debating with subordinates and higher-ups what their units need to focus on, security department managers develop a clearer vision of how to lead the unit. They also stand a better chance of gaining management support. Key factors to implementing a good security program -regardless of organization size or industry type - include:- Developing a clear, concise mission statement.

- Establishing direction-setting objectives.- Crafting a strategy, including the who, what and how of achieving security objectives.- Implementing through proper management.- Evaluating the implementation consistently and regularly.- Communicating the security strategy to all employees.The corporate security strategy adds to the overall business game plan by setting forth the actions, approaches and practices to be employed in managing the security of the organization. Larger companies include the security director as a part of the company's overall strategy-making team.

Implementing a security strategyThe security director's process for implementing the strategy involves:- Building a security group with the competencies, capabilities and other resources to carry out the strategy successfully.- Developing budgets to steer ample resources into the activities critical to strategic success.- Establishing supportive policies and procedures.- Instituting best practices and pushing for continuous improvements in how activities are performed.- Installing information, communication and operating systems that enable the security team to carry out their daily roles.- Tying rewards and incentives to the achievement of performance objectives and good execution of strategy.- Creating work environment and corporate culture supportive to security.- Exerting the internal leadership needed to drive implementation forward and to improve on how the strategy is executed.

Offering analysis and commentary on the security industry at large, our goal is to keep readers informed of the market growth and forward move-ment within the industry. The column is written by Access Control & Security Systems Integration publisher Tina D'Aversa-Williams, whose background includes work in market research and analysis.

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© 2008 Penton Media Inc.

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