Articles by Karyn Hodgson

In a market defined by AI, convergence and economic pressures, the industry’s leading security integrators are demonstrating that specialization is a path to growth.

The 2026 SDM Top Systems Integrator Report spotlights companies that are successfully adapting to shifting customer expectations, rapid advances in AI, and continued economic pressures.

A number of companies from the 2026 SDM Top Systems Integrators Report shared their most successful projects completed in 2025.

Terms like ‘single pane of glass,’ ‘AI’ and ‘consultative selling’ may dominate today’s security conversations, but real-world integrations remain far more complex.

Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen the movie by now, you likely know that the “twist” in the 1999 movie “The Sixth Sense” was that the psychologist played by Bruce Willis has been dead the whole time. He just didn’t know it.

The top manufacturers and distributors used by SDM 100 dealers.

This year’s top 100 security dealers shared how they had to be strategic to overcome outside challenges and pressures.

The top 100 security dealers navigated a complex landscape in 2025, overcoming tariffs, economic uncertainty and customer hesitation by leaning on disciplined strategy and in-demand technologies like AI and video to drive impressive growth.

Today’s fire alarm panels simplify installation, maintenance and service for security integrators while providing improved system intelligence, diagnostics and long-term ROI for their customers.

Where is AI really headed in the security and life safety industry?