This month’s cover story, “It Takes a Village,” continues SDM’s coverage of the complex issue of cyber security overlaid onto physical electronic security. Managing Editor Karyn Hodgson describes that when it comes to who is responsible for the security industry’s cyber security preparation, the correct answer is everyone: manufacturers, security integrators and dealers, consultants and end users.

One security integrator described feeling overwhelmed because of the perception that the security industry is lagging behind the IT industry. “There are no shortage of vectors in which the industry is being braced with messaging on risks, best practices, technologies and services. While the larger IT industry had years to gradually absorb increasingly sophisticated technologies and adapt a cultural shift in information security, the physical security industry has found itself trying to navigate a rapidly evolving landscape,” said Brad Hedgepeth of G4S Secure Integration, in the article that begins on page 56.

Tangentially related is the subject of project management, also reported on in this issue. If you have been working in security for a while now, or if you have come into this industry from the IT side, you might be looking at project management as the next step in your career. And why shouldn’t you be? writes SDM’s Assistant Editor Courtney Wolfe, in the article “So You Want to Be a Project Manager?” on page 88. She goes on to say that by 2027, employers will need nearly 88 million individuals in project management related roles. According to Glassdoor, the median salary for project managers is $87,500 in the U.S.

As is evidenced by the security integrators Wolfe spoke to, there are plenty of opportunities for project managers in the security industry. Take Fred Harris, for example, a project manager at Convergint Technologies, the No. 1 company on SDM’s Top Systems Integrators Report. “The nature of the complexity of IT systems requires there to be a formal approach to implement projects,” Harris said. “I needed the tool set; I needed the vocabulary; I needed the framework — I needed something to help me as a maturing, growing, advancing IT professional, and that’s how I got into the core discipline of project management.”

According to the site https://blog.capterra.com/surprising-project-management-statistics/, just 56 percent of project managers are certified. Certification isn’t always necessary for landing a job as a project manager, but it helps. Learn about SIA’s Certified Security Project Manager program on page 89. 

Did you know that high-performing organizations successfully complete 89 percent of their projects, while low performers complete only 36 percent?  

Contributing writer Helen Heneveld writes in “Project Management is Paramount” on page 54, that project management offers organization, increases efficiency, improves accuracy, enhances communication, provides a record of the journey, dramatically increases success and ultimately increases profits. 

Be sure to check out these valuable reads, as well as “Integrators’ Guide to Cloud Video Services & Solutions” on page 72 of this issue.