In the last few months, we’ve all had to pivot. I’ve noticed that the new normal—as tired as I am of this phrase—has actually helped a lot of folks get clear on a lot of things. We recently hosted a virtual Ava event (formerly Vaion) for physical security professionals where almost all the questions were really about “How can this help me do my job smarter, faster, and provide more value to my organization”? Our response? Here’s how:
- Think more strategically about physical security.
- Better leverage the video security products you already own.
- Harness the power of big data.
Before I dive into the value question, let me set the stage. A mix of security professionals from a wide range of verticals, including hospitals, schools, airports, and a naval academy, joined us. Each visitor chose only the scenarios he/she cared about at virtual kiosks tuned to Commercial, Education, Government, Healthcare, or Retail. Not only did we try to make it as close to a live booth experience as possible, but we also offered it on-demand, allowing anyone to watch all of the sessions on-demand, at any point.
I was struck by how much the event mimicked a live tradeshow. Each Ava booth staffer had a personal style and favorite anecdote. And each demonstration was unique. The difference from a face-to-face experience was palpable too since you don’t get immediate feedback from body language or personal rapport.
But mostly, I was impressed by the persistence of one theme: VALUE. It occurred to me that this is the universal reality of our current crisis. The new norm dictates, no it demands, that value take center stage. This was clearly on display in our booth—everyone was hungry to solve problems in new and better ways.
We shared what has emerged from our experience working with security pros from different industries and with varying needs. Getting clear and definable value from video security comes down to better leveraging resources to:
- Catch threats before they escalate.
- Do more with video surveillance than just security.
- Support other functions in the organization.
- Get additional kinds of data and harness it for powerful new insights.
Better can also mean faster, a lower cost, the use of fewer resources, easier to deploy/use/maintain, and ‘dual’ compliance for both today and the future.
Security professionals know that safeguarding people, assets, and critical infrastructure—when the risks are only intensifying—requires keeping up with technology. But they often don’t realize how much harnessing big data can push them forward on the security and value curve. With a proactive mindset and the right solution, you can get better data, and, the ability to leverage it. It’s possible to get real-time detection, investigation, and response, along with the host of benefits I mentioned earlier—just by applying resources more strategically. I’d call this achievable and meaningful value.
Oh, and back to the booth experience, including who won the Apple TV 4K! Visitors got to see real demos of solutions in action, which is always the best way to see the simplicity, power, and most of all, the value of proactive video security. Here is a quick overview of what they experienced:
- real use cases leveraging our integrated video (and audio) analytics;
- the simplicity of our integrated analytics and historical timelines;
- smart map experiences for real situational intelligence;
- powerful similarity searches that easily find people, vehicles, and other objects;
- simplified management and policy implementations;
- secure remote access;
- integrations with access control.
And to ensure we maintained the feel of a real booth, we offered one lucky visitor the chance to win an Apple TV 4K and a one-year subscription. Congratulations to our winner, Nate Wetmore from Short Circuit Electronics, Inc.
Contact me at monica.nascimento@ava.uk to learn more or register for a proof of concept of our Ava Aware video management system.
Originally published May 28, 2020, updated Sept 01, 2020.
