The Great Conversation: A Hidden Gem For Security Professionals

This year, many companies and organizations attended in order to have diverse discussions about best practices for advancing security procedures, creating new purchasing vehicles, and improving leadership development.

Zenitel Group and the company’s President of the Americas, Jim Hoffpauir, was one of the groups represented during the two-day session. Hoffpauir gave a presentation speaking to the importance of intelligent communications in the next era of security.  Later Zenitel, along with LenelS2 and Milestone, partnered during the show to present an integrated security solution via the newly created TGC Innovation Center.  
 
“Before this new market, the one we are currently in, technology tended to move slowly and we could adapt to it slowly”, said Hoffpauir. “But I think we are on the cusp of this massive change. There is a lot of power that comes with the technology coming our way, we need to be prepared for it.”
 
This sentiment was echoed throughout the conference by many speakers who stressed the importance of high-beam strategies that make planning for the future, today, a priority. 
 
This included Cheryl Michaels, Director for the Office of Safety and Security at Seattle Pacific University (SPU), who recounted her experience during the 2014 university shooting and how her team has been proactive in reducing emergency response time and better preparing community members.
 
“Those first few minutes during an emergency situation are critical. They can be the difference between life and death and so, in this case, it is always better to be over-prepared than not prepared enough,” said Michaels while describing the emergency drills now practiced at SPU. 
 
Guest speakers from Seattle Children’s Hospital, The Mercedes Benz Stadium, and Gonzaga University also asserted the importance of preparedness of both the physical and cyber security teams of any organization. 
 
While cybersecurity is steadily becoming a concern for all industries, physical security is stressed throughout the conference as something that must also take precedence when strategizing a secure infrastructure. As technology exponentially advances, it becomes even more imperative that security sectors are working effectively to determine risk and mitigate threats as quickly as possible. 
 
Furthermore, by combining the functionality of both physical and cyber security sectors, attending organizations discussed ways that they could leverage technology to save energy, largely reduce many day-to-day tasks, and provide a more enjoyable employee workspace. This symbiotic relationship between modern technology and the average staff member was further demonstrated during a brief session with UTC Director of Building Solutions, Rusty Steele as he discussed the Center for Intelligent Buildings which opened in Palms Beach, Florida just under a year ago. 
 
The conference ended with many reinvigorated business leaders seeking to implement newly formulated tactics for success. Coupled with the promise to re-converge for the first one-day session of The Great Conversation in Security which will take place on May 21st, 2019 in Plano, Texas and is now open for registration.