While there has been no shortage of market pressures and disruptive influences on the security business lately, systems integrators nonetheless performed well last year. As a group, the integrators encapsulated in SDM’s 2015 Top Systems Integrators Report didn’t show much growth — just 0.3 percent. But that had more to do with the structure of the report than with the companies’ individual accomplishments in 2014.

Back in the day, “the establishment” was something the younger generation of the 1960s didn’t trust because it referred to a group that included elite government officials, the media and large corporations — and it usually meant that two or more of these entities were thought to be in cahoots.

The security industry looks to the SDM 100 — a group of 100 of the largest security companies ranked by their recurring monthly revenue — as a wellspring of industry trends and operational best practices. So, which manufacturers and distributors are behind the SDM 100, supporting them with the products, solutions and services that have helped make them successful?

The need to repeatedly enter the same or similar information and to manually perform other routine tasks creates severe inefficiencies.

Having the right back-office software is like having a super-star employee on your team. From accounting/billing, to scheduling, to proposals and contracts — your entire operation just runs more smoothly and efficiently.

Acrobats, altered perceptions, screaming, and other absurd occurrences marked an event held last month in Las Vegas. It wasn’t a new Cirque du Soleil show — it was the 2015 ISC West tradeshow and conference held at the Sands Expo & Convention Center, featuring many unique demonstrations and events. This year’s show featured more than 1,000 exhibitors displaying more than 10,000 products, both on a main floor and inside a large-area Global Expo.

Most of the largest security dealers in the industry confirm they were on solid footing in 2014, and their 3.8 percent aggregate growth in RMR proves it. But for many dealers, new competitors are too close for comfort.

With outside competition bearing down on the security industry, exposing the expertise of security companies in the field demonstrates how proficient these dealers are in their respective markets.

As Ron Rothman, president of Honeywell Security Group, prepares to retire, he talks about what really mattered during his 32 years with the company.