Security Sales & Integration September 2022 - 41

visitor management. We use that to vet visitors
to our campus, and for the sites that do have
them it's integrated throughout the district.
For the alarm systems, we use Bosch combined
with BoldNet so we can control the
alarms at night. The card access system we presently
use, and I don't know if we're staying with
it, is Lenel OnGuard. For our mass notification
system, we're using InformaCast, which we do
through our Cisco phones.
How have your experiences with integrators
gone overall, and what do you look
for in a technology provider?
Pluretti: The best relationship you can have
with your integrator is an honest one. There
was a concern we had regarding the right camera
for the right job. It's about calling them
on that and saying, " Hey, listen, I don't think,
based on the camera you're putting here and
the technical data I looked at, that it has a high
enough PPF to actually be able to identify
not only just detect. " It's about you yourself
knowing a little bit more about that or sitting
down with a salesperson or a service manager
and saying, " Hey, teach me a little bit more
about this so I can talk a little bit more intelligently
about it and bring in the right solution. "
Because right now with our integrators, we're
putting a lot of trust in the solution they're
providing us and that the cost is on par with
what our needs are.
It's important to have those conversations
once in a while and say, " Listen, we're not satisfied
with X or we're not satisfied with the service
or with the product. "
It's extremely healthy to go through a regular
RFP process from which your vendor has to
continue to compete at a market level and retain
them as a client. It's scary for us as directors to
always have to think about going to a new vendor
because of the amount of time and energy it
would take to bring someone else in. But complacency
sometimes leads to us paying forward
in the long run. The vendor needs to continue
to win our business in order to stay with us.
Cain: Honesty and trust are the real big ones.
I don't need somebody coming to me with
top-tier security level experience like at a government
facility. We're a school district, we're
not going to need that, we're not going to
use that. I look for somebody who has experience
in the educational world and K-12 at
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SEPTEMBER 2022 Security Sales & Integration
41
that. Then most important to me is communication.
If I need them, I want to be able to
get ahold of them. I have had experiences with
some of the legacy systems I was handed down
and the integrators who installed those where
it was rough times just even reaching someone.
Communication is key.
Sarnese: Nothing happens without trust, and
you have to trust your integrators providing
you with the best solution for whatever problem
you're trying to solve. I've been in this
business now for 35 years. I've had some bad
experiences with integrators because the trust
wasn't there or their service wasn't there or the
communication wasn't there. Or there was just
one product line they were selling and when I
wanted to look at others they were unwilling
and that destroyed the relationship.
I like to deal with integrators that work in
multiple industries because I'm sure others have
solutions or best practices I could deploy in my
organization. I really like the integrator to have a
broad spectrum of clients because they see different
solutions in different applications for things.
If my integrator has not looked at servicing or is
unable to install a certain product I really like, if
they're unwilling to do the research and become
familiar with that and potentially be a vendor for
that product, that's a dealbreaker.
As the customer, I should be driving what
the integrator is providing me. I like an integrator
that is willing to listen and see what else is
out there so we can learn together.
Assuming cost and budget are the
biggest impediments to realizing your
Each school
was using
something
different - some
were so outdated
that they had
been purchased
many years ago at
RadioShack.
- Allen Cain, Gilbert (Ariz.)
Public Schools
The Gilbert Public School
District in suburban Phoenix is
in the process of substantially
upgrading security and
safety systems throughout its
39-school contingency.
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