Enterprise software delivery has changed significantly over the years. Software that was once hosted on-premises is now also consumed as-a-service, through the cloud.
That shift has already occurred across a wide spectrum of enterprise applications and is gaining momentum in the physical security space. Recent research conducted by Genetec showed a 275% increase in the number of end users wanting to take more physical security workloads to the cloud. Research also indicates that organisations are not treating SaaS and cloud as an ‘all or nothing’ proposition.
Many are choosing to run their physical security assets using a ‘hybrid’ of existing on-premises and as-a-service/cloud-based software and resources. This enables them to retain their current investments and blend in SaaS and cloud-enabled capabilities over time to underpin innovation and derive further value from their physical security infrastructure.
There are a number of reasons why the time is now right for this hybrid model, and why organisations operating in this space are ready for what it enables.
Maintaining currency encourages innovation
Australian and New Zealand organisations demand their solution remain feature rich with advanced capability in the software they use to manage their physical security environments.
This can be tricky for organisations that run software entirely on-premises. To maintain currency, they must keep pace with updates and new versions. They also need to update everything connected to that software, in order to maintain a state of readiness to use any new or forthcoming features.
Organisations that aren’t able to keep up with the upgrade cycle often become subject to the consumption gap – where they can see the platform evolving with new features and functionality, but are unable to take advantage of any of it. The bigger the gap, the more likely it is to be holding the organisation back from physical security best practices and from innovating in the way they monitor and manage their environments.
SaaS promises to close that gap because it keeps all organisations on the latest version of the solution. Importantly, the software is updated in a way that is approved by the organisation and on a timeframe of their choosing.
Being on the most current version of the software means being able to utilise new features and emerging capabilities to achieve business goals. Often, those goals are aimed at boosting protections for people, products, assets or places. The desire to achieve these outcomes is driving organisations to find new ways to keep their technology systems current, and SaaS-based versions are one such way.
Advanced capabilities are brought within reach
Another reason SaaS models are becoming popular for physical security software delivery is that they make advanced capabilities accessible to businesses of any size. Indeed, any organisation can now take advantage of best-in-class enterprise grade cloud physical security once thought to have considered to be outside a budget scope.
Flexing to changing business needs
A third reason why SaaS based software is gaining ground in physical security is that it offers increased flexibility compared to on-premises only software. This can allow organisations to onboard new physical security assets, such as cloud-connected cameras or sensors, much faster. The sheer flexibility and scalability of the cloud simplifies expansions by accommodating many different objectives, uses, and durations.
Businesses with numerous locations need to consider each site’s unique physical security requirements. For instance, they might run all their physical security systems on local servers and networks at their headquarters locations and choose a full-cloud deployment for smaller remote sites, while another location might require cloud connectivity with additional storage on site.
Organisations can extend the functionality of on-premises, server-based systems or create a bridge to the cloud to modernise their existing infrastructure by simply adding cloud-connected appliances, adding devices with cloud-based software and storage, implementing remote sites with cloud solutions, or running specific applications in the cloud. This ‘hybrid’ solution allows them to keep on-premises servers for existing technologies and uses as well as add other security and business components or systems as needed. The sheer flexibility and scalability of the cloud simplifies expansions by accommodating many different objectives, uses, and durations.
Meeting regulatory requirements
Finally, many Australian organisations with physical security infrastructure must meet sovereignty requirements with how they store data.
More entities are turning to secure and locally-hosted Cloud Storage to meet these requirements. In this case, organisations can easily choose to keep longer-term video and data archives in the cloud while storing short-term archives on local on-premises servers. Other organisations are realising the value of Cloud Storage by using it to back up video and data archives. If anything happens to the physical servers, companies can rest assured that their most critical security information is safely stored in the cloud and is easily accessible on demand.
For compliance and cybersecurity peace of mind, organisations should confirm that their suppliers adhere to the Australian Signals Directorate Essential Eight cyber threat mitigation strategies and either have or are undergoing the Information Security Registered Assessors Program (IRAP).
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