IN THE BOARDROOM™ with...

David Sullivan
President
AMAG Technology

Connect with David Sullivan on LinkedIn

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Thank for joining us today, David, at this very exciting time for AMAG Technology and for you, personally! Congratulations on your appointment as AMAG’s new President. Before we do a deep dive into your vision of the future with AMAG, please summarize for us your incredibly impressive background and experience in the security space.

David Sullivan: My entire career has been in Security and/or Identity Management. Starting as a Fire & Security Salesperson, then became focused on Access Control as a salesperson at a security integrator. After that, I became a part of the founding management of HID Global, and later I had a brief stint outside of the security industry in Animal Identification. Subsequently, I was a senior leader in Ingersoll Rand, now Allegion, learning the Door Hardware side of our business, and finally landing back in access control most recently at ACRE and now here as the President of AMAG.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: We are in difficult times right now…. a breakdown of law & order in some parts of the country, political unrest, Covid, inflation, and unprecedented security challenges where we work, shop and send our kids to school. What is your vision, David, for AMAG in this constant threat environment?

David Sullivan: Every aspect of our society seems to be under threat. Things that we once took for granted, including our feeling of security, all seem a distant past. All that you mention has affected our perspective at AMAG, and we consider all threats when we design our business solutions. Certainly, COVID-19 has changed the commercial office environment in how it is safeguarded and managed. Protecting offices has expanded solely from security and people management, to also include additional health and sanitization considerations. Employers, employees, and visitors all desire surroundings that ensure their well-being. As a result, end users are not only seeking systems that protect them by providing physical security, but also solutions that provide tools for health checks, health compliance, and sanitation management. When coupled with the rising numbers of employees who work remotely, building managers and tenants are pursuing systems that maximize their space utilization through reservation solutions that can book meeting rooms, offices, desks, parking spots, catering, and work orders. Our customers inspire our innovation, and we work to meet their ever-changing needs. It is in these customer requests that we find creative solutions to combat the increasing number of threats found in the current environment.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: We read with great interest in AMAG’s recent announcement, your comment “I look forward to growing the business and helping our customers, enhancing the Symmetry Security Management system through new innovations”. Care to elaborate on AMAG’s product portfolio today and how it might evolve going forward?

David Sullivan: AMAG Technology provides a broad solution portfolio, and is unique in our industry. Symmetry CONNECT is an identity management platform that provides the user with ways to manage their employees with more than solely access control. When layered on top of Symmetry Access Control, Symmetry GUEST, and Symmetry CompleteView, and our mobile credential offering, the user experiences a truly integrated solution through a single pane of glass However, we take it one step further by providing predictive analytics that can foresee problems before they occur. We are focused on expanding this portfolio of products with mobile user interfaces, SaaS solutions, and stronger hardware offerings. We are at the beginning of this process and will be able to define each of these offerings more clearly in the coming months.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: AMAG, as an Allied Universal Company, is part of the largest security company in the world with a track record of success and achievements, in every vertical, that is second to none…the White Papers and Case Studies here clearly establish that distinction, and “Since 1971, AMAG has delivered best-in-class access control software and hardware, pioneering the magnetic stripe card reader in the mid-90s and growing into an enterprise-class security system provider.” What is your perspective David, on the unique value proposition that AMAG delivers? In other words, “why AMAG?”

David Sullivan: Having been in the access control industry since the mid-eighties, I have had the opportunity to be a customer of AMAG, a competitor to AMAG, and a supplier to AMAG. With each perspective, I have always respected AMAG, however now that I am a part of AMAG I have gained an even deeper appreciation for the business. As one of the oldest access control companies in our industry, AMAG has matured into a full-service provider that goes beyond just the supply of a system. Our services include security workflow analysis to help align end-user processes with the system application, and when coupled with our skilled system architects, the user is assured of a solution that meets their needs. After deployment, and as the user’s needs change, our professional services team continues to assist to keep the system functionality relevant. The depth of resources available to both the channel and the end users is top-notch, but when coupled with the full-service security offering that the whole of Allied Universal offers to its customers, there is nothing comparable in our industry.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: We had the pleasure of sitting down recently with Jeff LeBlanc, AMAG Vice President Professional Services, who shared with us that, “Our customer is at the heart of everything we do.” Please share with us your thoughts regarding this guiding philosophy at AMAG.

David Sullivan: Top customer service starts with a clear definition of what it means. Too often I believe that companies speak of customer focus and its importance, but do not have a clear understanding of how to deliver on this promise. We strive to empower our employees to understand how each of their roles contributes to customer delight. Every employee needs to understand our business, our products, our industry, and our customers. We have developed programs to educate them on every one of the above aspects, all with the goal to provide our customers with benchmark service levels that surpass our competitors at every level.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Supply chain issues, especially during this pandemic and the war in Ukraine, have been a disruptive factor in getting jobs done on time and on budget. We understand that as a manufacturer, AMAG, obviously, has significantly more control over your supply chain. Seems to us that this is a huge competitive advantage for AMAG. Your thoughts?

David Sullivan: All manufacturers are facing supply chain challenges, however, the manner in which AMAG can address them is what separates us from the pack. Our supply chain and development teams have done an excellent job in keeping our material supply smooth. The unpredictability of the current market means that we must quickly react and resolve these issues as soon as we become aware of them. Our engineering teams find alternative designs that can then be immediately incorporated into our in-house manufacturing, providing us the agility to overcome supply shortfalls on the fly. This surely provides us an advantage over others who use third parties to manufacture their hardware.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Let’s talk about technology trends and security industry trends for a moment. 5G was the game-changer, just a couple of years ago, and now 10G is already on the horizon. What are your thoughts, David, regarding Big Data & Analytics, AI and Machine Learning as part of AMAG’s solution?

David Sullivan: I believe that we already have a head start here. Our systems provide predictive analytics, helping the user to foresee a security event before it happens. Perhaps even early enough to prevent the event from occurring. We intend to continue to develop our data solutions, whether in enhanced analytics or in providing users with increased access to their data. We have additional ideas that will help both the user and our channel partners manage and operate their systems and installations. We look forward to bringing these to our customers as we complete them in the coming months.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com:We would like to get your bird’s eye overview David of what the journey looks like for an AMAG customer over the life cycle: from initial contact, cybersecurity and physical security assessment, installation, Services & Support, training, site support agreements, and ongoing technical support.

David Sullivan: We are at the beginning of transforming our business model to integrate more deeply into assisting end customers through our channel partners by creating security solutions that enhance their workflows and operational efficiencies. As a part of Allied Universal, we are uniquely positioned to provide comprehensive security solutions that include a broad range of security services. We will make announcements about these offerings as we complete them over the coming months.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Thank you again for joining us today David. Best of luck in your new position and we look forward to more updates from you going forward. Is there anything else you’d like to mention today?

David Sullivan: I am excited to share more with you as we transform our business model. AMAG is entering a new chapter in our long company history, and we believe that it will change the way in which our customers think about security solutions. Thank you for the time you gave me today, and I look forward to speaking with you again.