Commercial Integrator + Security Sales - January/February 2025 - 57

more diverse with the many initiatives
over the years. The makeup of the industry
has defi nitely changed, and there is
more work to do.
AMIR: Security solutions are becoming
more sophisticated, with advancements
in IoT integration, remote capabilities,
AI-driven analytics and proactive intervention.
JAMES:
Technology continues to
advance at a very rapid pace.
ADAMS: Technology that can help
prevent false alarms. When you look at
analytics specifi cally, we've brought to
market some products that utilize video
and the control panel to report analytic
events to the monitoring center and
reduce false alarms.
SSI: What seems to be getting
worse and worse?
BOUCHERLE: Companies that lack a
real strategic vision and tactical planning
to achieve that business vision. Worse
yet is the lack of ability to communicate
eff ectively from the ivory tower to the
trenches.
ZWIRN: The off ering of " free " or " lowcost "
installations seems to be getting
worse as to the companies who market
" security " in this fashion.
GIACALONE: The ability to attract the
proper talent to support the systems and
technology.
MacDOWELL: Wonderful technological
enhancements are creating a strain
on how the integrator communicates the
features to the client. The lack of training
by the manufacturer or soſt ware company
can place the integrator in a bad situation.
PETERSON: I can't think of an area
in which the industry is getting worse
and worse. It seems to have identifi ed
weaknesses and is doing a decent job
improving those areas.
LIPPEL: Challenges remain. Compliance
with data privacy laws, compatibility
with legacy systems and high upfront
technology costs are important considerations,
which can be solved by choosing
the right partner.
KOHL: The number of technology
systems in place today that an integrator's
customer has to interface with. There is
a myriad of security system technologies,
and, if you expand to the larger facility
ecosystem, you have to consider elements
like energy effi ciency systems, etc.
GOLDFINE: Too many providers acting
like ostriches with their heads buried in
the sand, oblivious to what is happening
around them, or defi antly acting like children
with their hands on their ears when
it comes to adopting newer technologies
and services.
STONE: Operating complexity. For
those attempting to off er a generalist
security solution, it's becoming increasingly
diffi cult to maintain profi ciency
across multiple disciplines.
NEMEROFSKY: The overall delivery
of service in our industry has declined;
response times and fi rst-time fi xes are
higher than ever. The integrators that
continue to deliver world-class service
will rise to the top.
ROEHM: The threat landscape (both
physical and cyber) is becoming more
complex by the day, as bad actors and
hackers continue to put our critical infrastructure,
healthcare facilities, consumer
data, workplaces and more at risk.
BOND: Staffi ng shortages and talent
gaps are becoming more pronounced as
the demand for skilled technicians continues
to exceed supply. This challenge is
especially acute for smaller companies.
HUGMAN: M&A activity is " bad " in the
sense that aggressive investors, seeking
quick returns, threaten the genuine
altruistic character of the industry.
MUTTERPERL: Supply-chain disruptions
and the increased pressure
of managing technology complexity as
systems become more interconnected.
The industry must address both to ensure
seamless integration and performance.
PARKS: Labor force continues to be a
great challenge. In addition, adapting to
change quickly enough will continue to be
a great challenge for smaller traditional
security providers.
LOYEAR: The complexity of cyber
threats, especially AI-driven attacks, is
growing faster than many traditional
defenses can keep up with, which means
we have to keep up with updates and
ensuring hardware and soſt ware is properly
confi gured for the most recent threat
environment.
JONES-SHAND: The lack of skilled
labor in the industry. It's always been
an issue in security, and it deteriorated
further with the COVID-19 crisis and then
unemployment rates reaching historic
lows around 4%. This demands the
adoption of new methods, new segregated
workforces and new business models.
BARNETTE: What has potentially gotten
worse is all the consolidation of both
manufacturers and integrators. This is an
indication that the market is maturing.
This will lead to change in the business,
and we need to be open to what's next.
AMIR: Crime is unfortunately also
becoming more sophisticated and with
greater complexity, such as tampering
with power supplies and connectivity
systems to disable security systems, or
smash-and-grabs, which happen quickly
and leave little time for response.
JAMES: The intelligence of the solutions
will likely improve faster than the
ability to sell and deploy. Plug-and-play
or DIY solutions have the potential to
challenge certain segments of the market.
ADAMS: As much as I love advancing
technology, we are still seeing a number
of companies trying to enter our industry
that do not have traditional awareness of
what they're entering.
SSI: What's liable to catch some
security dealers, installers and
integrators off guard in the
coming year?
BOUCHERLE: Technology advances and
competitor disrupters that are changing
the rules of engagement. Ineffi ciencies
of their business processes that drive
up costs of doing business. Changing
customer expectations.
ZWIRN: Subscribers holding dealers
responsible for not informing them of
work-from-home monitoring and claims
January/February 2025 | Commercial Integrator+Security Sales & Integration
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Commercial Integrator + Security Sales - January/February 2025

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