It’s used in many different ways by different people, but the primary objective of the SDM 100 remains the same after 25 years: to measure consumer dollars gained by alarm companies, in order to present an account of the size of the market captured by the 100 largest security providers.

In 2015 we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the SDM 100 and honored eight companies for being ranked on the first SDM 100 Report in 1991 and all of the reports thereafter.

This issue highlights the performance and accomplishments of 100 largest security companies in the industry — the SDM 100.

Some sobering comments heard at a financial conference earlier this year related to trends in cybercrime and the difficulty that smaller security companies might face competing with security companies that are better prepared to protect customers.

The 21^st annual Barnes Buchanan Conference — which aligns the security alarm industry with the financial sectors interested in the recurring monthly revenue (RMR) model — imparted a positive outlook on industry performance and countless options for making money. 

Regardless of whether our industry gets credit or not, the bottom line is that the security industry’s products and services are without question helping law enforcement identify and track suspects.

It will be important in 2016 to recognize potential limitations to growth, such as cybersecurity, and to use every available resource for overcoming them.

Fasten your seat belts: 2016 is going to be a bumpy ride. 

Randy Ambrus, central station manager at Cooperative Response Center (CRC), Austin, Minn., is the winner of CSAA’s 2015 Central Station Excellence Award for Manager of the Year.