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Unifying Communications to Support Stronger Security

By Tom Reilly, President, Commend Americas 

Rapid, reliable communication is essential in today's ever-evolving business environment. Leaders face a host of complex and time-sensitive situations that often require fast communication strategies while securing the delivery of valuable business data. But many enterprises lack the tools necessary for quick and secure communication. 

As organizations worldwide embrace digital transformation and the amount of information captured increases, the demand for improved security and communication solutions has escalated. With these two facts at hand, unified communication systems pose an excellent opportunity to merge functions between disparate systems and funnel communication more efficiently.  

In simple terms, unified communication outlines an integrated way of sending and receiving messages in a straightforward, two-way manner. Integrated and unified communications ensure consistent, efficient communication across an organization and eliminate communication silos. Overall, this approach empowers stakeholders to achieve positive business and security outcomes.  

A strategy incorporating unified communication devices and platforms helps businesses oversee security incidents and direct the full spectrum of safety resources. Using devices and systems, such as video, access control, communications infrastructure, and intercoms, empowers users to collect valuable data that lead to insight and protection. Traditional communications efforts rely primarily on call and radio updates, and visibility can be limited when stakeholders need it the most.  

So what are some of the main differences between unified communications and the systems of yesterday? Let's take a look at the benefits that will drive interest in these infrastructures in the coming year: 

Integrated Solutions 

Traditional communication systems worked independently from other devices. The front door rang the front desk, and the blue light phone pinged the security desk. The public address was a one-way announcement from the supervisor's desk to the rest of the building. Quite clearly, these systems were siloed and inherently limited in scope. The sheer demand for more data and valuable insight to support more robust security protocols has made this structure a thing of the past. By eliminating communications silos, a unified communications system leverages all available audio and visual communications technology to give the most efficient and intelligible information possible. 

The Connected World 

Connected devices at the edge offer significant value beyond their original design. With audio and video analytics, unified communications systems can support event detection, heat mapping, and situational awareness. This additional layer extends the value and life of the system and enables users to drive new levels of intelligence gathering across their infrastructure. 

Scalability 

No system is designed in a vacuum. Organizational structure, the environment, and technologies change over time. A communications system must offer the flexibility of backward compatibility and support continuous firmware updates to bring it current with the latest IT security and networking standards. Unified communications solutions are designed to be flexible and scalable, to change and grow as your business evolves. This fact ensures the long-term value the investment will deliver to an organization. 

Unified communications represent an opportunity. In the coming year, we'll see more and more enterprises embrace the concept of unified communication to take the next step in their ongoing digital transformation efforts. Safety and security will always be a priority, but operational effectiveness and efficiency have become just as essential in today's complex organizational structure and that is where a modern communications solution can elevate your program. Regardless of what you plan for, technology plays a critical role in preparation and response. Unified communication solutions can deliver valuable insight to help protect people, buildings, and assets across the globe. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

As the President of Commend Americas, Tom leads a team focused in reinventing the use of unified communications solutions for safety, security, and operational efficiencies. Tom is a seasoned executive leader with more than 14 years of business development, operational strategy, and sales expertise. Prior to Commend, Tom spent 10 years at Ernst & Young in increasingly senior strategy and management positions, providing insights and direction on modern technology and business transformations to help global organizations achieve sustained business results and ongoing innovation. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Management from Binghamton University.