Time to Take Advantage
End users should think about the benefits of intelligent cloud-based visitor management
For every organization, one of the first steps in providing safety and
security is knowing at all times who is in the building. This is true
for protecting people, property, or assets, and whether the building
is a business, school, hospital or any other location. This is precisely
why controlling and managing visitor access plays such a vital role in
security, and visitor management solutions provide an excellent means for achieving
desired controls.There are many of these solutions on the market today, with
a variety of technologies and methodologies, but of course all solutions are not
created equal. So, it is impossible to overstate the importance of carefully evaluating
the available options and choosing the solution that best fits the application.
At minimum, the right choice is one that will provide the most effective and
cost-efficient secure visitor management program.
From a nuts-and-bolts perspective, today’s visitor management solutions might
include wristbands, labeling machines and/or software, all designed to control
visitor access to people, assets, specific locations within a building, networks and
more. Visitor management offerings also come in a wide range of combinations
of features and functions, further confusing the concept and making choosing the
right solution more complicated.
Luckily, choosing a high-value intelligent
visitor management solution
does not have to be a difficult process.
There are some key factors to consider
when evaluating the available options
that will simplify the selection clarify
the relevant points of interest. Enterprise-
wide identity management is a
hallmark of the most advanced of these
solutions, allowing visitors to be linked
to specific employees while they are on
site to create a system where there is
greater accountability around people
who are provided with access to a facility
or building.
Visitor management solutions designed
and built using open architecture
enable integration with an organization’s
existing core operations
systems, such as those used for human
resources, compliance, parking and
others that are related to physical assets.
Organizations can use these advanced
visitor and identity management solutions
as a policy-based back-end solution
that ensures organizations remain
in compliance with policies, regulations
or laws governing their industry
or company. With the ability to set up
policies and procedures to track visitor
activities in real time, these solutions
also deliver complete auditability and
accountability. Based on badge and
identity type, visitors’ access can be
limited to pre-approved areas and timing.
Upon exiting the building, their
badge privileges are automatically
revoked according to organizational
policies, ensuring that their access ends
when their visit is complete.
These are just a few of the many
advanced benefits that end users must
consider when evaluating intelligent
visitor management solutions. More
often than not, this is a task that is too
daunting for them to do on their own,
so they will look for assistance from a
knowledgeable source – and systems
integrators and security dealers are perfectly
positioned to fill that role. Therefore,
it is imperative that these security
professionals gain familiarity with all
of the options available for intelligent
identity management in order to educate
their customers and help them navigate
the evaluation process to select the
solution that will ultimately be the best
fit for their specific applications.
On top of the ability to provide the
right solution for the right situation,
intelligent visitor management solutions
can also create recurring monthly
revenue (RMR) opportunities that will
have a very positive impact on systems
integrators’ and security dealers’ profits.
One example of these potential
RMR sources stems from the relatively
new and rapidly emerging cloud-based
visitor management solutions market.
Cloud-based solutions offer a number
of added benefits, such as eliminating
the need for organizations to rely
on their over-burdened IT departments
and staff for deployment and implementation.
In the IT world, time is perhaps the most valuable—and easily
consumed—resource. Given the number
of mission-critical tasks IT departments
must deal with on an almost
daily basis, visitor management system
deployments may be deemed low-priority
projects to be completed when time
allows. The resulting delays could have
negative ramifications for the overall
security of an organization.
Because cloud solutions do not require
allocating physical hardware, IT
departments can focus on the network
settings and the clear understanding of
the rules and policies to be implemented.
With a cloud-based model, end users
often have the flexibility of a “pay
as you go” pricing model, which can be
an attractive option for organizations
to avoid high upfront costs. The ability
to offer these cloud-based services on
a subscription model is the source of
RMR for dealers and integrators, ensuring
a steady and predictable revenue
stream well into the future.
With cloud-based visitor management
solutions, end users also benefit
from having an enterprise-level system
they can access at any time from virtually
any location in the world. This
allows new sites to be brought online
more quickly and efficiently. Additionally,
leading cloud service providers
like Amazon or Microsoft allow more
widespread access to a visitor management
system’s servers, which significantly
reduces the time it takes to
retrieve information from the cloud.
The robust infrastructures and built-in
redundancy these leading providers offer
ensures minimal downtime, resulting
in the highest levels of availability
and reliability, combined with the most
advanced data encryption levels for superior
data security. To provide end users
with peace of mind, these providers’
service level agreements guarantee all
of these benefits in writing.
A further benefit for organizations
that implement a cloud-based visitor
management system is streamlined visitor
management. Prior to their scheduled
arrival, visitors can be provided
with a custom link that is easily and
securely accessed from outside the organization’s
network, allowing them to
pre-register for their visit. This allows
the organization to prepare visitors’
credentials, complete with the appropriate
level of access permissions and
information about the person within
the organization who is responsible and
accountable for a particular visitor.
Any required non-disclosure agreements
or other background information
can also be embedded into the
credential to further strengthen its effectiveness.
Upon their arrival, these
credentials will be ready and waiting
for visitors to pick up using a valid ID,
eliminating the potentially significant
bottlenecks and other delays that are
associated with waiting until visitors
arrive to manually input their information
into the system.
For dealers and integrators, cloudbased
solutions can positively impact
revenues in more indirect ways in addition
to ongoing subscription fees.
With very little equipment to install
and maintain, deployment and ongoing
maintenance are much simpler and
less time-consuming. A global corporation
with multiple sites around the
world, for example, could quickly and
easily ensure integration between all of
its locations using the same intelligent
visitor management solution and that
these systems are also integrated with
one another. Having to spend less time
on these jobs means technicians are
able to complete more jobs in less time,
cutting costs and generating additional
revenue for dealers and integrators.
It’s no secret that we live in a mobile
world, and that the number of Internetand
network-connected devices is expanding
rapidly. This concept, known
as the Internet of Things (IoT), allows
cloud-based visitor management, building
management and other systems to
be integrated, with data from each system
populated to the others. For organizations
who embrace IoT and mobile,
there are a number of additional benefits
that can further enhance the power
and capabilities of cloud-based visitor
management solutions while also providing
yet another potential revenue
stream for dealers and integrators. During
the pre-registration process, mobile
solutions allow end users to request access
to specific areas of a building or
facility. When they arrive at a location,
visitors can also take advantage of this
capability to check in using tablets or
kiosks in the lobby.
Staff can use their smartphones
or tablets to review visitor information
and check them in and out or to
check in a group of visitors together,
as opposed to one at a time. Additionally,
the reporting process for visitors,
visits and host activities, for example,
is simplified. And the cloud is a key
reason end users can reap all of these
benefits.
These are just a few of the many
criteria that can be used when choosing
visitor management solutions. New
cloud-based solutions especially can
bring greater efficiency to visitor management,
but making the right choice
requires a good understanding of the
benefits and capabilities of the different
options that are available. This understanding
is important for dealers and
integrators, who become a valuable,
trusted resource for customers, and
also for the end users trying to identify
the solution that offers the greatest
cost-efficiency while matching their
business needs.
This article originally appeared in the April 2015 issue of Security Today.