In The Boardroom With...

David Hsieh
Vice President of Marketing
Emerging Technologies
Cisco

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Hi, David, thank you for being with us today. First, please tell us a little about yourself.

David Hsieh: At Cisco, I am responsible for marketing emerging technologies (new businesses created from internal innovation). These include Cisco TelePresence, Digital Media, Smart Grid and Connected Physical Security.

Prior to Cisco, I was the co-founder of FaceTime Communications, a leader in instant messaging solutions for large enterprises. I also served as the vice president of products at WebEx, entrepreneur-in-residence at Institutional Venture Partners, vice president of product marketing at Sybase, and vice president of worldwide marketing and business development at LBMS.

I am a graduate of Northwestern University.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: In our recent interview with Bill Stuntz, he mentioned Cisco's Business Video and Cisco's medianet architecture and also he discussed how network technologies are enabling communities to become Smart+Connected Communities. How do you see the industry evolving in its use of emerging technologies, and how does this tie in to the evolution of the physical security industry?

David Hsieh: For starters, we think there is a major market transition to the pervasive adoption of video. You see it already happening in your personal life, and it’s moving quickly into businesses and government. Video communications technologies like telepresence are fundamentally changing organizations and how they collaborate and enable business transformation. Video is also being used for safety and security, advertising in the form of digital signage, and corporate communications -- and across a broad range of cases to solve complex, high-stakes business problems. Video surveillance as an application is a part of this, but video becomes much more valuable on the IP network when integrated with other video technologies such as analytics, cloud-based services, and collaboration and communications technologies to solve a broader range of business problems. The common thread is the IP network.

Another example is connected energy solutions and the smart grid. The opportunity to meet tomorrow's energy needs with clean technologies and to lower carbon footprints is a priority in every business and economy. Having a network platform that provides connected energy solutions, available services and information to harness the power of innovation and technology is also part of providing a safe and secure community. Energy security is a key priority, and a converged IP network can help achieve these outcomes in an effective, efficient way.

Other examples are education, health care and transportation. Protecting schools and campuses, transportation, critical infrastructures, health care, and supply chains will mean enabling secure, reliable network and cloud-based services, and that will include integrated and connected security solutions.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Interoperable video applications and services are certainly appealing. What is Cisco doing to help customers plan for pervasive video capabilities now and in the future, and how does safety and security fit into the picture?

David Hsieh: Enabling a large-scale adoption of video can really tax your network. To enable a great video experience, manage costs, and ensure reliability, you need to take an architectural approach. If you adopt video without a planned architecture, it will be very hard to achieve great results. The Cisco medianet architecture is our way to help customers build a scalable, reliable and cost-efficient video infrastructure. Video surveillance can be particularly demanding on a network -- after all, HD cameras running 24/7 can consume a lot of bandwidth! As customers start to integrate different video systems, an architectural approach will avoid having duplicated systems like recording for each video application.

A great way to get started is with a video surveillance readiness assessment. These are available through Cisco and its partners to help customers plan and migrate to business video technologies and applications as well as networked safety and security solutions.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Bill also mentioned Smart+Connected Communities. Can you explain what that is and how it impacts safety and security?

David Hsieh: As we have seen from the recent series of natural disasters and their consequences in Japan and New Zealand, no government, country, community or citizen is immune from disasters or emergencies. One disaster can have an enormous impact across the global economy. Put simply, networked safety and security solutions that are available today can better protect these communities and enable a safer world. Cisco’s Smart+Connected Communities initiatives help communities meet their economic, social and sustainability objectives by improving the delivery of services through networked services and infrastructures.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Can you elaborate? Where we can learn more?

David Hsieh: Cisco recently announced a Smart+Connected Communities pilots with the State of Colorado, the city of Holyoke, Mass. , and Songdo, Korea. The aim is to deliver connected solutions to improve safety and security, sustainability, health care and education through the management and delivery of new services.

On April 7, Bill Stuntz, vice president and general manager of the Cisco Physical Security business unit, will be delivering a keynote session in the Signature Series at ISC West. http://www.iscwest.com/en/ISC-West/Education/Signature-Series/