NATIONAL SURVEY REVEALS MAJORITY OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS ARE FOCUSED ON A RISK MANAGEMENT APPROACH TO INTEGRATED PHYSICAL SECURITY

The survey of senior-level IT and physical security professionals from both public and private organizations reveals that a majority of organizations have complex safety and security environments, manage them through multiple, distributed locations, and have a need to coordinate responses with other agencies or organizations.  With 60 percent of respondents stating that their organizations individually manage multiple technologies today, the survey also found that many plan to migrate towards a more unified approach in the next 12 – 18 months, including a single command and control view of events and a centralized view of situations.

When it comes to managing their organization’s security systems, 74 percent of respondents revealed that having a proactive risk-focused approach that ensures greater overall safety and security with a holistic view of the organization is important or extremely important while 71 percent said it’s important to leverage both physical and IT security together to manage and resolve security situations.

Highlights from the Research

Organizations Have Complex Safety and Security Environments:

• 91 percent of organizations are using security systems and devices from two or more different manufacturers, with 46 percent of those using solutions from at least six different manufacturers.
• The majority of respondents said that they manage security through multiple, distributed locations as well as coordinate security responses with other agencies.

Integrated Risk Management Strategies are Gaining Traction:

• A proactive risk-focused approach to organizational safety and security is important according to 74 percent of respondents. 
• 60 percent stated that the integration of data from traditional physical security devices and systems, including access control, video, RFID and GPS, in to one common operating picture is important or extremely important.
• 38 percent responded that they plan to invest in risk management technology that helps assess, prioritize and manage their risks and needs in the next 12 – 18 months.

“The survey revealed the interest from both public and private organizations to integrate all of their physical security systems and devices to obtain a common operating picture, which ultimately leads to a strategic risk-driven approach to managing safety and security,” said David Fowler, senior vice president, marketing and product development, at VidSys.  “By comparing where organizations are today with where they plan to be 12 - 18 months from now, the research confirms that organizations are moving toward a more holistic and collaborative approach to securing assets and information to not only minimize risk but also reduce operational costs.”

About the 2010 Safety and Security Survey

The 2010 Safety and Security Survey is a national survey designed to provide insight into the security concerns and buying patterns of private and public agencies.  Sponsored by Vienna, VA-based VidSys, the survey was conducted from late August through late September via Zoomerang, an online survey services provider.  A Research Brief providing detailed information on the findings will be available in November 2010.

Note: VidSys will discuss the full findings in a Webinar taking place on Tuesday, November 2 at noon ET.  To register, please go to: http://vidsys.com/resources/2010-safety-and-security-survey-results.  To sign up to receive the full copy of 2010 Safety and Security Survey results when it becomes available, please contact Kelly Fiedler at kfiedler@vidsys.com.