Our Best Advice Q&A series rolls on with Jason Knott, data solutions architect and evangelist at D-Tools and former editor-in-chief for SSI. The former chairman of the Security Industry Association’s Education Committee reveals the best advice he’s ever gotten, gives a few pointers to security industry pros on the rise and singles out the person to whom all others should always listen.
Security Sales & Integration: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Jason Knott: “Show up.” Years ago I recall hearing that piece of advice from an industry veteran who was being recognized for his decades of service. He attributed a great deal of his success to just “showing up.” He said when you show up when and where you said you would and do what you said you were going to do, you are immediately ahead of many of your competitors.
I believe that is true and that reliability goes a long way in any industry, but particularly in security.
SSI: What advice would you give to those looking to achieve success in the security industry?
Knott: It sounds cliché but getting involved elevates your knowledge and industry connections. When I first got in the security industry in my early 20s, I drove once a month to the Greater Los Angeles Alarm Association meetings in Burbank, fought L.A. traffic monthly to the Orange County Alarm Association meetings, and went to the California Alarm Association events in Palm Springs and San Francisco.
Those years of soaking up the knowledge from industry icons helped me put my best foot forward. It was never “just a job.”
Getting to know what security integrators go through on a daily basis helped guide much of the hopefully insightful direction I offered over the years at SSI and other industry publications, including CE Pro, Commercial Integrator, Campus Safety and MyTechDecisions.
I wanted… needed… to be part of the industry, not just an onlooker. In later years, that same mantra is what led me to D-Tools, where I can use the data we collect in aggregate across the industry to provide benchmarks to guide suppliers and integrators to more success.
SSI: If you could point to one person in the security industry and tell up-and-comers: “Make sure to listen to what they have to say,” whom would you pick and why?
Knott: This question reminds me of an old episode of “Gilligan’s Island,” where Ginger Grant (“the movie star”) says she is thinking about “Rockery Hudpeck” because she can’t decide between Rock Hudson and Gregory Peck.
If I could similarly mesh about 20 names together of security industry icons, I would do so to answer that question thoroughly.
But alas, if I must select only one, I recommend seeking out Kirk MacDowell, president of MacGuard Security Advisors. I have known Kirk for more than three decades and his expertise in all facets of the industry—whether you are an integrator or a supplier—is monumental. He is always willing to listen and to share the good and the bad.
Click here to check out all entries in SSI’s Best Advice series!
