Physically Securing Your Small Business with the Cloud

Owning a small-to-medium-size business (SMB) is not a full-time job. It’s more like six. Or 12.

SMB owners will tell you they wear many different hats to keep their businesses running. Owners need to know enough about a range of critical business elements like finance, IT and compliance, while still dedicating enough brainpower and time to serve customers and drive the company vision. And any owner will also tell you it’s impossible to become an expert at each of those roles.

One of the most important roles, however, involves keeping people and property safe – and it can also feel like one of the most daunting. How can today’s SMB owners effectively protect both customers and business sites while still having enough time to juggle their other roles? The answer lies within the cloud’s ability to bring security capabilities that previously were only attainable for large enterprises (and their bigger teams of resources) down to the SMB scale.

The cloud offers the flexibility to scale security needs based on fluctuating business demands. It also provides affordable, streamlined options for budget conscious SMB owners without sacrificing the quality of protection. In fact, 82 percent of companies have reported they’ve saved money since moving to the cloud and 18.8 percent reported an increase in process efficiency.

MAXPRO Cloud SMB Security Solution

Honeywell’s MAXPRO Cloud, for example, is a cloud-based system that combines video surveillance, access control and intrusion detection onto a single platform. SMB owners use a smartphone app to monitor security feeds, control employee access and be alerted to any potential threats. But it’s not so much MAXPRO Cloud’s features that people are taking note of; it’s the savings in time and costs that are drawing accolades. In fact, MAXPRO Cloud recently received the “Security Industry Product of the Year” award by industry trade PSI Magazineand the “Best in Cloud Solutions” award at this year’s ISC West security industry tradeshow.

In other words, the business benefits.

MAXPRO Cloud’s easy installation with no additional software required means less set-up expense and ongoing maintenance costs. A cloud-based system also means reduced IT infrastructure costs and the ability to monitor multiple sites from a single app means less time spent traveling between sites.

For example, a local dentist in Indianapolis looked for a solution to improve access control and overall securityacross four offices across the city – without having to continuously staff each site. MAXPRO Cloud allowed the dentist to control essential security features, such as access control, from a smartphone app. It also allowed him to access each office’s individual system from the same app, making deliveries more efficient. Even with all the conveniences of modern technology, the dentist saw cost savings vs. a standard access control system since the cloud-based solution did not require a server or new software.

In addition to professional services, MAXPRO Cloud is also well suited for other verticals such as retail, commercial office spaces and property management.

A system like MAXPRO Cloud helps SMB owners protect their customers and property more effectively by making it simple and intuitive. When business owners have security expertise they can rely on, they can spend more time juggling their various other roles, serving customers and achieving goals.