PSA Promotes Relationships, Relevance and Revenues at TEC Event
Top security integration leaders and talent gathered for a weeklong immersion to refine their business and technical skills.
PSA President and CEO Bill Bozeman (center) presides over the State of the Integrator panel session during PSA TEC.
WESTMINSTER, Colo. ― Selling solutions rather than products, cultivating recurring revenue, contending with cyber threats and recruiting talent were among the hottest topics at the PSA Security Network‘s 2015 PSA-TEC event just outside Denver May 4-8. The conference, exposition, training and networking affair annually draws several hundred electronic security professionals, including leadership from many of the industry’s most prominent systems integration companies as well as many of their top managers and technical personnel. Two of the most notable sessions were the State of the Integrator and State of the Industry panel presentations.
Moderated by PSA Present and CEO Bill Bozeman, who also sits on Security Sales & Integration‘s Editorial Advisory Board and is a member of SSI‘s Industry Hall of Fame, the State of the Integrator featured panelists Brett Franklin (president, Unlimited Technology); Christine Lanning (president, Integrated Security Technology); Jorge Lozano (president, Condortech); and Ron Oetgen (senior vice president, Securadyne). Bozeman guided the very interactive conversation, based on a theme of “adapt or die” and tied it to the book, “Jumping the S-Curve: How to Beat the Growth Cycle, Get on Top, and Stay There.”
The panel knocked around some of the challenges of transitioning security businesses through inflection points, going from $3 million to $5 million to $10 million all the way up to $100 million. Oetgen said one of the ways Securadyne is handling growth that demands executives stay focused on operational rather than technical issues is by establishing a technical committee within the company that advises executive management, which in turn has more time to concentrate on big picture strategies. Oetgen added that one of the changes as a company grows is becoming less willing to take a chance on untested technologies. Lozano spoke of what a tremendous time of opportunity it is for the industry right now, if an integrator has its act together. “This is a time for nimble companies to succeed,” he said.
Lanning, who earlier during TEC became the first female board member in PSA’s 40-year history, advocated seeking as much input from others as possible and even going outside the industry for fresh ideas. “I really appreciate different viewpoints and perspectives, and I am very big on mentors,” she said. Franklin chimed in about the importance of keeping up with the changing makeup of customers. “It is critical for us to stay ahead of today’s more highly educated customers, which gets tougher all the time with the pace of technology and their Internet access to that information.”
The panel also offered some tips on targeting and succeeding in specific vertical markets. “We are steering certain salespeople to become better experts on given verticals,” said Oetgen. “For us, the top three verticals among the six or so we cover are datacenters, power stations, and oil and gas, although that last one is the most volatile since it fluctuates with gas prices.” Lozano identified homeland security and health care as Condortech’s top current verticals, while Lanning chipped in with a few pointers for landing new business. “Get with the appropriate professional organizations within a given vertical to better understand those markets and make key connections. We host lunch-and-learn sessions to help educate those end users and they are very productive for us.”
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About the Author
Scott Goldfine, Editor-in-Chief and Associate Publisher
Scott Goldfine is Editor-in-Chief and Associate Publisher of Security Sales & Integration. Well-versed in the technical and business aspects of electronic security (video surveillance, access control, systems integration, intrusion detection, fire/life safety), Goldfine is nationally recognized as an industry expert and speaker. Goldfine is involved in several security events and organizations, including the Electronic Security Association (ESA), Security Industry Association (SIA), Security Industry Alarm Coalition (SIAC), False Alarm Reduction Association (FARA), ASIS Int'l and more. Goldfine also serves on several boards, including the SIA Marketing Committee, CSAA Marketing and Communications Committee, PSA Cybersecurity Advisory Council and Robolliance. He is a certified alarm technician, former cable-TV tech, audio company entrepreneur, and lifelong electronics and computers enthusiast. Goldfine joined Security Sales & Integration in 1998.
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