The Great Conversation

Andrew Lanning, the co-Founder of Integrated Security Technology, a leading consulting and integration firm in Hawaii, shares his work and experience with InfraGard, a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and members of the private sector for the protection of U.S. Critical Infrastructure.  Andrew underlines the strategic importance their advisory provides to organizations viability and competitive position in the market.

Andrew is a prolific and generous contributor to the risk, resilience, and security industry. In addition to Infragard, where he serves as the Chairman of the Electronic Security Industry Cross Sector Council, He also is the Treasurer of the National Defense Industrial Association that drives strategic dialogue in national security, an active member and advocate for Woman in Security through the Security Industry Association (SIA), and does his part to contribute to the Great Conversation in Security by hosting the broadcast “Security Matters”.

According to one source, 75% of Workplace Violence (WPV) incidents occur in hospitals. And like hospitals, most companies only have one solution, call the security guard or police once the incident has already occurred. By then, someone is already likely to be hurt. What would happen to the internal evaluation of your security department if you were able to respond earlier and more effectively through a sensor that understood the conversation was escalating, or a shot had been fired, a window has been broken, or your patient had fallen out of bed?

We seek to find the answers through a great conversation with the executive team of Sound Intelligence, a global audio analytics firm. Derek van der Vorst, has had an international career in audio and speech recognition at Philips Electronics, He pioneered advanced audio analytics with his company Sound Intelligence (founded in 2000). He combines a deep understanding of the core audio analytics technology with a natural sense for what customers want to achieve with this technology. Derek has grown Sound Intelligence to become the market leader in audio analytics with tens of thousands of systems deployed around the world. He is joined by his VP of Sales, Michael Campbell, and his Director of Sales and Product Management, Dave Stanfield

You hear of it all the time. When an incident occurs; a fire, an earthquake, or an active shooter, we want to know who was in the building. Or when we are working late at night in a building with heat and lighting controls, why does it not just sense my presence and adjust my section of the building accordingly? We have the technology to do both, and it is improving over time.

We had a great conversation with the Chief Product Officer of Ontic, Manish Mehta and the CEO of turnstile-based access control company Orion, Steve Caroselli, to discuss their early discussions in engaging this challenge. And in return we uncover the recognition that fear, uncertainty and doubt can radically change a market forcing innovations in technology, business models, and security.

I first met Mark McCourt, when I was mustering media partners for The Great Conversation in Security in 2005. He was the founder, publisher, and executive director of the leading media-centric company in the security market.

Since 2016 he has been a strategic advisor to many of the leading companies in the risk, resilience, and security industry.

Now he has authored a book called Snow Day, that captures how the best risk leaders in the industry have been successful. And what is interesting is he started having conversations with them amid the pandemic.

Where does the title come from? Well, like Mark, we both grew up in the 60s. While attending elementary school there was not a website to check on the status of school. There was not a robocall system. It was not featured news on a local cable channel There was no cable channel. So, if the snow started falling, we had Moms who developed a phone chain. That is, my mom would get the call from another mom, and then she had to make a call to the next mom on the list. As kids, we could not wait to get that call.

Mark uses this metaphor to launch a great conversation with a question: What are the ‘best of the best leaders’ in our industry doing to prepare their companies for a crisis? This conversation will inspire you to take your company to the next level for the sake of yourself, your peers, your family, and your company.

Mark will be one of the featured speakers at The Executive Summit Series on October 6, 2021, at The Boeing Company in Washington, DC. Lynn Mattice, Managing Director of Mattice and Associates and President of the National Economic Security Alliance (NESA) will be the master of ceremonies at this leadership forum.

Kent Howard, Verizon’s Global Corporate Security Operations Manager, discusses how his background in physical and information security led him to a best practice called “Security by Design.” He is one of the key resources inside Verizon’s Information Security Risk Management. By deploying ESRM and infusing the methodology with his experience with security technology, he has developed critical analytical problem-solving skills. He is the published author of Security by Design within the Journal of Physical Security.

Sarah Powell, Director of Emergency Management at Temple University, shares the non-linear path from medical anthropologist to emergency management that created a different way to understand and operationalize her role at Temple University. We explore the Mind of the Leader that requires a focus on the assumptions that undergird the business and the possible way those assumptions could be disrupted creating risk as well as opportunity.

Sarah infuses into her role and her thinking a deep insight into human behavior, psychology, cognition, and culture. She is above all, committed to the human factor to create great outcomes in her role at Temple and in the world.

Wanda Townsend has a passion for 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥-𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞. She leverages her knowledge and skills as a foundation to help employees at every level reach their fullest potential.

We met her in a WiLD Leaders Friday Conversation, an open forum for leaders from all markets to learn, share, and ideate on best practices in leadership. Wanda is a Leader in Residence and an Executive Fellow with WiLD.

We later found out she was going to be published as a co-author in a leadership compendium called The New Next.

What we discovered were some lessons that could be immediately applied through Wanda’s deeply empathetic voice and intellect.

I think we can all agree that the ‘dreamer’ is often only recognized when the idea becomes a reality. For those who do this; the stay up at night, roll up your sleeves, dirt in the fingernails, part of this; we call them entrepreneurs. Better yet; when the dream, idea, and company become something valuable to others.

Fred Cary, the CEO of IdeaPros, believes that journey requires a mindset and a skillset. He evaluates the first and arms the dreamer for the second.

“My goal is to help build successful businesses that can make a positive difference in their sector. I don't care if you have an idea on the back of a napkin or if you've built a 1,000-employee company.  If you need help, inspiration or direction and you are doing something unique and compelling I want to be your partner.”

We sit down with Fred to explore this journey from dreamer to doer to being “legendary.”  

Fred Cary is a senior executive, strategic consultant, attorney, and investment banker. He has focused on building global companies from startup stage through exit by IPO or M&A. As an operational executive (CEO/Chairman) he has built high-growth businesses in finance, enterprise software, mobile technologies, Web services, and digital video, HDTV, broadband and Personalized television, as well as consumer related product companies. He oversees the development and growth of over 250 startups. He has led many mergers and acquisitions both as an executive and as counsel. Mr. Cary received his JD degree from Thomas Jefferson in California, completed post graduate studies at Harvard Law School, and obtained his international MBA with Honors from the University of Liverpool.

IdeaPros is a Super Venture Partner™, guiding entrepreneurs with great ideas through the complexities and pitfalls of the startup world. Set on elevating the success rate of new innovative products and apps, their team leverages their collective experience to create demand among consumers and maximize upside potential for their partners.

Most technology vendors were faced with a conundrum during the pandemic. They had solutions that would help their clients through the crisis. But reaching them, aligning their value proposition with their sense of urgency, and pivoting the internal culture of their team, would be the measure of their performance.

We were able to sit down with the president of a company in the security market who has been known as a visionary leader with an ability to identify an assess market potential and then align this with the go-to-market engine. This was particularly important during this season of change. We learn how his strategic pivot did just that and has created a platform for continued growth as we move out of the pandemic.

Chris Meiter has been President of Salient Systems since 2009.  Prior to joining Salient, Meiter was Director of Business Development for Honeywell Video where he was responsible for Honeywell’s Key Vertical Markets, international sales management in Europe, Asia and South Africa, and developed Honeywell’s Digital Video sales program.

Salient offers comprehensive video surveillance management systems designed for the full range of surveillance technology needs from analog to IP to Cloud. Based on open architecture, CompleteView, Salient’s Video Management Software, scales from entry level to enterprise and provides everything needed to manage a multi-server, multi-site video surveillance installation from desktop, laptop, and mobile smartphones.