Security Sales & Integration May 2021 - 6

Between Us Pros

Culture's Role in
Curing COVID

As these
battle-tested
businesses begin
to emerge on
other side of
this calamitous
period, they
are doing so
likely stronger
and better
positioned than
ever for a run
of long-term
success.

Editor-in-Chief and
Associate Publisher Scott
Goldfine, an Industry Hall
of Famer, has spent 20+
years with SSI.

▶ A YEAR AGO I addressed the COVID-19
situation here for the first time, not yet acknowledging it as a pandemic. My oh my, has a lot
changed since then. I believe the past 12 months
have forever changed all of us - some more personally and profoundly than others. As I write
this my arm still burns with the fresh sting of a
coronavirus vaccine injection. Politics aside, it's a
shot that for most brings hope of turning the corner for a brighter tomorrow with a better semblance of normalcy for our home and work lives.
This time last year I also took the opportunity
to explain how and why the security industry and
most of its businesses and employees were built
and positioned to weather the unfolding pandemic. Although there were some security companies
that did not survive the lockdowns and spending
freezes, either being forced to close shop or sell
off, and thousands of security staffers were at least
temporarily out of work, based on observations
and what industry professionals have told me my
optimistic assertion has thankfully proved out.
From a business or corporate standpoint, prior
to COVID there was a lot of buzz about the imperative to define, instill, build, execute, maintain and enhance culture and social responsibility. In fact, these ideals, likely spurred by lessons
learned from the Great Recession (it does not
hurt they have been embraced by many of today's
most successful companies), have come to supersede the antiquated bottom-line mentality. That
really hit home the past couple of years as SSI
owner Emerald undertook substantial steps to
transform into more of a culture-first enterprise.
This culture movement - which at its core is
about treating those within and outside a company how you would want to be treated and being
ethical above all else - was confronted by the
pandemic with a proof-of-concept moment. In
an unforeseeable instant, many operators that
promoted culture primarily as lip service only
were caught with their pants down, and more
often than not suffered the consequences.
Indeed, it has been those organizations in which
management from the top down through every

6 Security Sales & Integration MAY 2021

SS2105 pp06 Ed Note.indd 6

scott.goldfine@emeraldx.com | @SSIeditor

level was the most fully committed to promoting
and supporting a strong, positive, people-oriented
culture. This had them best prepared and postured
most resiliently to contend with the unprecedented human and logistical challenges.
These foundations have allowed companies to
pull their people together like never before - fortifying winning characteristics like compassion,
loyalty, camaraderie, teamwork, trust, grit, perseverance, empowerment and more. Such experiences have cemented many an employee's faith
in their company's culture and acted as an incentive to draw desirable new talent to come aboard.
Those demonstrated cultural qualities then manifest themselves in the attention, care, service and,
most importantly, emotional connection customers and prospects associate with that firm.
Thus, as these battle-tested businesses begin to
emerge on other side of this calamitous period, they
are doing so likely stronger and better positioned
than ever for a run of long-term success. Here are a
couple of cases where culture as king is paying off:
" We really are like a family. The core part is usall working toward a common goal. It starts with
our leadership team, " says Stephanie Whalen of
Paladin Technologies, May's cover story. " They are
incredibly accessible, with an open-door policy
here. That goes through the organization's culture.
We're always there to support one another. There's
no internal competition, it's about internal support. We lean on each other for daily hurdles, but
it's always all hands on deck when needed. "
Paladin's Iain Morton adds, " I believe it's going
to turn out another record year for us. We've got
a huge backlog, things are going really well, even
coming out of COVID. Things look very positive. "
" When [CEO] Eric Frasier got our 2021 goals
from the board it was all aligned around social responsibility and employee engagement, then systems and monetary goals, " says John Nemerofsky
of SAGE Integration, last month's cover story. " It
was extremely interesting that rather than prioritizing financial goals a board assigns them around
employee engagement to maintain the culture
and social responsibility, being a good corporate
citizen inside and outside the industry. "
Looking ahead, Frasier adds, " We didn't see a
lot of projects go away. We saw them postponed
and pushed out. There's a real strong desire to
get back to normalcy. We're seeing it with our
customers, their budgets and spends, and we're
seeing it with our employees. "
securitysales.com

4/16/21 10:37 AM

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Security Sales & Integration May 2021

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