In place of attempting to review a year that – in view of COVID-19 and its widespread negative impact across the globe – everyone is glad to see fade into the distance, Alistair Enser takes the opportunity to assess the current state of play in the security business sector and consider what its constituent practitioners and organisations can and must do to help out in 2021

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Training and competence within the construction sector and related industries have been brought into sharp focus in the wake of Dame Judith Hackitt’s Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety conducted in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. What do the desired outcomes look like for the security and fire systems markets? Trevor Jenks outlines the detail

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WITH 20-PLUS years of events sector experience to date, Rachael Shattock was appointed Group event director at the Nineteen Group (with responsibility for International Security Expo, International Cyber Expo and International Disaster Response) in early 2020. Here, in conversation with Security Matters, Rachael focuses on the necessary pivot to all three events running under one banner in the online domain.

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IN LIGHT of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the impact that the Coronavirus has exerted all over the globe, now more so than ever the financial services sector must focus its attentions on operational resilience and risk management. Here, Rich Cooper outlines the key reasons why.

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INNOVATION IS hastening the ever-closer digital interaction of security and brand protection holographic devices. As Dr Paul Dunn explains, developments in materials and advanced processes, together with a desire to seek out new applications, ensure that commercial holography continues to feature in the front line fight against counterfeiting, identity theft and brand piracy.

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THE COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disruption to supply chains across the world and, indeed, served to reveal the fragility of the modern supply chain, as well as the importance of resilience planning and recovery in supply chain management. David Halford offers his views on planning for disruption and protecting the supply chain.

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THE TERM Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the professional security domain is controversial and views on it are polarised. Some hardware manufacturers dismiss it as a technology for the back office or deny its potential altogether. On the other hand, the cutting-edge developers are creating better and faster ways of helping humans to solve security risk problems using the maximum technology innovations. Pauline Norstrom offers some thought-provoking comment on this hugely topical subject.

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AS THINGS slowly begin to normalise, while we have to keep one eye on the output of the pandemic and the associated changes, we also have a responsibility to ourselves and our organisations to not forget general good business practice and leadership. Here, Alistair Enser looks at some immediate goals for today’s companies operating in the security business sector.

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PARTICIPATING IN a mentoring relationship can be greatly beneficial for an individual’s professional development, whether that be as a mentor or mentee. There’s a good deal to be gained from having a trusted mentor at all stages of the professional journey. Equally so, mentors can also grow and learn through a mentoring relationship. Here, in this exclusive thought leadership article for Security Matters, Angela Vernon-Lawson examines her own mentoring journey involving The Security Institute.

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WITH LOCKDOWN now gradually being eased, organisations across many sectors are seeking ways in which to keep building occupants safe and avoid the spread of COVID-19. Here, Andy Schofield expresses his concern about the “misinformation” surrounding the use of thermal detection cameras as a way of identifying those individuals harbouring the Coronavirus.

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WHAT IF the CFO of a fire and security business was given the opportunity of turning a potential bad debt write-off into positive cashflow? Andrew Birkwood examines why, of late, businesses have been obliged to look in detail at their most important asset and understand the critical importance of cashflow.

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FABLIHA CHOWDHURY presents the key takeaways from a recent panel discussion in which representatives from Starbucks and Uber, as well as a former representative of Barclays, shared their personal take on embracing a cloud-first approach towards security and operations.

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BARELY ANY day goes by without Artificial Intelligence (AI) and video surveillance being front and centre in the public spotlight due to concerns about ethics and privacy. Even more so now given the rapid development of highly beneficial applications designed for safety in light of COVID-19. Pauline Norstrom explains why it has never been more important for stakeholders to remain properly informed about this ever-evolving set of technologies.

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MUCH HAS been written about the current increase in home working as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While remote working simply isn't an option for many companies and their myriad employees, for others business is at least continuing even though it's not a case of 'business as usual'. Here, Mike Hurst examines the impact of home working on the security profession.

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THE RECENT theft of Van Gogh's Spring Garden painting (which dates back to 1884) from a Dutch museum in the town of Laren serves as a timely reminder that the robbery of such artefacts with a view to their subsequent trade on the black market remains a prolific form of criminality. Here, Peter Houlis outlines the various ways in which security management policy and today's security systems can assist in the protection of priceless works of art.

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OVER THE past month or so, it has become very clear indeed that the impact of a global pandemic was something most organisations and industries were unprepared to manage. That, of course, is the very nature of emergencies. They often catch us unaware and unsure of how to respond. As Marc Whalen points out, a safe organisation effectively resolves incidents, but the smart organisations avoid them.

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DESPITE THE rising prevalence of data breaches, awareness of the needs of tighter security when installing and using a video management system is yet to catch up. Complacency is the enemy, suggests Neil Killick, with even the most basic of security errors potentially placing such systems at risk.

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SECURITY TEAMS at UK universities are playing a key role in the battle against COVID-19, dealing with fast-changing risks on a daily basis and, in parallel, planning for strategic challenges in the longer term. Some heads of security are already focusing their attentions on the next big question facing their institutions: how they’ll recover and rebuild after the lockdown. Security Matters reports on current thinking.

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IT'S NO secret that today’s fast-paced world is driving the demand for ‘always-on’ services among businesses and consumers alike. However, in addition to being ‘always-on’ and keeping things running in the present, businesses of all sizes must be prepared for unexpected future disruption. Mark Wass examines the importance of business continuity planning for SMEs.

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WHAT HAVE risk managers learned so far from the COVID-19 global pandemic? As Bob Sibik rightly observes, the most successful organisations will be those that conduct post-incident reviews, identify issues and strive to ensure remediation occurs.

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