“Budget” seems to be the biggest word in every company and industry as of late. With times being what they are, the question is not whether or not a company should decrease spending, but where? Some companies feel that a good place is trimming is the security budget. Security budgets are considered to be “fat” due to the expenses of guards, cameras, access control, and alarms being so costly. Is cutting this “fat” budget worth the immense financial and physical risks it could bring the company?
 Security managers must put the risk involved in downsizing security on the plate of the decision makers. There are many issues that arise in a down market. It may sound like a broken record, but layoffs, internal and external theft, become a much bigger problem when times are tough. All of these things are threats that are warded off by physical security. Management and decision makers need to know the threat that shrinking security budgets bring to the table. They risk the safety of their employees, property, and reputation by putting security on the back burner. This risk cannot be swallowed and companies will look elsewhere to make cuts.
What makes a company successful? It seems like a straightforward question, but three different companies will have three different answers based on their industry. The three answers they will have are their employees, their information and ideas, and their long standing reputation. All of which are left blowing in the wind without the proper security. When security is decreased, security personnel and equipment follows suit.
 It is a great feeling and look for a company when they can say that their loyal employees drive their success. What happens when a company can no longer be loyal to the employees? Employees will ride right along with the company until they are suddenly told to get out. They are left on the side of the road with no ride home and nowhere to go. In this market, its not like you can just get another job. Some “loyal” employees may feel that since they are getting laid off anyway, they might as well try to get the most they can out of the company. All of a sudden these employees are left to fend for themselves and their families and the only people they want to blame are those above them and their colleagues who still get a paycheck and benefits.
Cutting security empowers these upset and scared former employees. Now there is a threat that is placed on the company as well as the personnel that works there. Was their access to the facility terminated accurately and indefinitely? Can they still get inside the building? Can they access company files remotely? These are questions that could be disregarded with stable security personnel and equipment in place and operating correctly. Employees who are making it through these tough times with the company need to feel safe. Guards, cams, alarms, and limited access to outsiders ensures that.
For those technology driven companies, it is their information and technological progress that makes them successful. What cuts in the security area can these companies make and still safeguard these valuable assets? Having proper security and protocol would prevent layoff fearing employees from downloading information off the company network. The information that can fit on a USB drive the size of your thumb could be enough to give the competition the upper hand. If an employee feel that they are next to go, what is in place to absolutely prevent them from taking a little insurance policy on a thumb drive so that they can get a job across the street?
The third answer to success falls under reputation. Some companies truly feel that they are only as good as their reputation. If you have disgruntled former employees, fearing current employees, and your company’s private information is making its way around the streets, how reputable can your company be? In a down economy, your already vulnerable clients want to feel safe. When you decrease security which safeguards a company and its assets you are only making them more vulnerable.
In security, “Risk” is the word that needs to follow “budget” every single time it is used. Saving money is great in the short term, but the long term is what is really important. Put risk on the plate of decision makers and allow them to realize the full ramifications of their decisions.
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It is the ongoing goal at Advanced to continually seek out new products, tools, and people to meet our goals. Advanced is always looking to grow and expand business. This means new ways of communication with clients and leading methods to address client concerns and create satisfaction. Through this methodology Advanced Integration Security will continually strive to be a leader amongst its peers.
For example an employee who works in accounting on the sixth floor will have to present their building access control card to a reader, or designated reader, on the card access control system. This will be registered in S2 and when they attempt to log into their workstation the Imprivata login software, on their workstation, it will check with the OneSign box to verify that individual is in fact carded into the building. This login could be a user name and password or the same credential used to access their space to a card reader built into their laptop or a reader plugged into their USB port to access their workstation. The building access card reader and PC login card reader are then seamlessly integrated, without extra effort by the user.