According to the latest SSI Installation Business Report, security professionals had plenty to be happy about in 2019. However, there are a number of issues that the industry is facing in 2020.
As part of SSI‘s 2020 Security Industry Forecast, we asked leading experts in the field what they believe the most pressing issue the security industry will face in the new year. Below are their responses.
▶ “Facial recognition has been in use for years, but it has been so under-publicized that it is still viewed by many as a new technology. Advances in computing power combined with rapid improvements in the quality of imaging technology developed the past 15 years have allowed facial recognition to grow and mature. However, this technology will need to overcome many misconceptions, mostly driven by TV and movies, to gain full acceptance.” — Rob Aarnes (ADI)
▶ “Cybersecurity will continue to be a major issue with which small and medium-sized integrators struggle. In many instances, even larger organizations are behind in adopting cyber best practices and have yet to add cyber solutions to their portfolio of available solutions.” — Carey Boethel (Allied Universal)
▶ “False alarms that continue to be driven by end-user error, of which I don’t see the right technology solutions on the horizon to solve. Also, disparate licensing issues, installation standards and compliance across states and counties.” — Clint Choate (SnapAV)
▶ “The convergence of security and IT has undoubtedly disrupted the industry. It has created new consumer expectations, introduced new stakeholders to the conversation and led to a fragmentation of security budgets — all of which require security providers to transform the way they do business.” — Matthew Kushner (Stanley)
▶ “Tariffs promise to be a continual issue. The last two years we’ve seen not only a trade war, but a war fought via proxy by using tariffs. This is impacting manufacturers, certainly, but it also affects integrators who have to then adjust prices and try to match purchaser expectations.” — Geoff Kohl (SIA)
▶ “Staffing will continue to be an area of concern and require the solid foundation of a development program to allow potential staff to be identified and developed. This issue also includes a desired level of diversity across the industry.” — Chris Peckum (Building Intelligence)
▶ “Terrorism will continue to plague us. Homeland security should be a priority. Integrators should garner GSA and DoD certifications as well and help protect the homeland. Large integrators don’t have a lock on this business.” — Kirk MacDowell (MacGuard Security Advisors)
▶ “Loss of leadership and product innovation among suppliers gobbled up by multinational conglomerates. While those firms excel in serving very large, complicated customers such as governments and utilities, they consistently fall short serving the needs of a large group of small customers, like alarm dealers and security integrators.” — Chuck Durant (Sandra Jones & Co.)
▶ “The use of AI grew more controversial throughout 2019. Like any new technological innovation, there can be fear and misconceptions surrounding its use. But with an increased understanding and clear regulations to make sure both provider and user are using the technologies appropriately, we hope to see this worked out sooner than later.” — Joe Byron (MOBOTIX)
▶ “The 3G sunset — there are too many legacy systems to convert in the time left. Also, the 3G sunset is already taking place in some areas and it is happening faster than expected. The transition to LTE will be slow.” — Celia Besore (TMA)
