In one of the last LAVNCH events of the year, Steph Beckett met with security and AV professionals to explore the implications of this interesting convergence between the two industries.

Security in AV: Practical Paths to Added Revenue

In the first panel of the day, sponsored by ADI Snap One, Steph Beckett joined Scott Tiner from Bates College, Alex Fortin from NDS Integration and Cynthia Menna and John Sullivan from ADI Global Distribution to hear their views on AV’s place in security, and vice versa.

Tiner highlighted the importance of ensuring privacy when introducing AV security tools into settings such as education, and Fortin discussed the importance of understanding clients and what their pain points are so that the integration process is seamless.

The panel discussed how to avoid scope creep, and understanding what the client needs security technology for — some clients need 24/7 service, while others do not.

Tiner also emphasized being upfront with clients to help them understand what they are paying for. “Give the customer what they want and don’t pretend that you are the expert in everything,” he said.

The Convergence Equation: How AV and Security Integrators Can Profit Together

In our next panel of the day, Beckett hosted Mark Corbin from Vanco International, Anthony Mini from Pearl Technology and Mike Aberthany from NSCA to share some insights into making the most of AV integration in security.

Abernathy opened with some statistics proving just how close-knit the AV and Security industries are in terms of profit, “When you look for opportunity for ProAV, there’s a lot of opportunity in the security market,” he said. He shared that 80 percent of NCSA’s members do AV, but 70 percent are also in security.

Here are some words of advice the panel gave:

• Have good security ‘hygiene’— create strong passwords and network segmentation, and test-run products to prevent easy hacking.
• Find a partner to be a credential professional — people are looking for top-notch security, certain licenses and knowledge is expected when purchasing security.
• The same is important for preventing channel friction, especially between integrators and distributors. Understanding each facet of AV security and supporting one another enables better planning and implementation that will lead to success. It means acknowledging strengths and weaknesses, and how to work toward creating the best service.
• Technology is ever-changing and intermingling, and knowledge gaps are inevitable. The panel reiterated that leveraging resources and creating partnerships will get you ahead in the long run as AV and security become more deeply intertwined.

Who Owns Security? The Battle for the AV Stack

In the final conversation of the day, Beckett chatted with NETGEAR’s Alex Pendleton, CTI’s Kenny Red, and Iowa State University’s Mike Pedersen about the big question surrounding the conjoining of these two industries: Who actually owns AV Security systems?

“It takes a village,” Pendleton said. “All of the people that are involved throughout the chain have a level of responsibility.”

Red highlighted that although it’s easy to say security is everyone’s responsibility, at the end of the day, different groups are responsible for different things. What becomes important is to document it in writing and ensure that each team understands what falls under their jurisdiction.

The group closed by sharing words of advice for steps moving forward to strengthen accountability: Check passwords, push AV and security teams into meaningful conversations and be clear on responsibilities and expectations.

In any case, AV will continue to be integrated into security systems and the industries must grow together in this change.

As a reminder, CTS credit is only earned live. Watch the full event on demand here.