SIA New Member Profile: VerticalXchange

SecurityXchange facilitates face-to-face meetings between top-level security executives and manufacturers. The company is dedicated to building strategic vendor partnerships that empower parties to make selections for security products. SecurityXchange is part of the bigger VerticalXchange, based in Eagan, Minnesota, which recently joined the Security Industry Association (SIA). SIA caught up with Michael Pilato, Director, SecurityXchange.

How did your company get its start? How did it get involved in the security industry?

We had been producing a number of regional and national tradeshows for 20 years, which gave us a unique purview into their limitations. We launched SecurityXchange in 2002, because we saw an unmet need for an event that would get the “right people in the room” for the sole purpose of fostering strategic partnerships between security technology solution vendors and end-user customers. We developed an innovative meet-up format that enabled senior executives from solutions providers and security management professionals to engage in lengthy, one-on-one strategic conversations about building sustainable, long-term business relationships. Nothing like it existed at the time, and over the years we have evolved from a transactional orientation to an executive forum for building deep strategic partnerships.

Who are the prominent executives at your company? If someone wanted to meet a key person at an industry networking event, who would that be?

• Greg Geisler, CEO, VerticalXchange
• Andy Wuebben, President, VerticalXchange
• Michael Pilato, Director, SecurityXchange

What's your company's biggest challenge right now?

We are now in the 17th year of SecurityXchange, and our biggest challenge is keeping the event unique, engaging and relevant while delivering a high-value experience for our participants.

What trends does your company foresee for the security industry in the next year?

Since we are not a technology company, we tend to take the long-term view of the industry through the 360-degree lens of how security solutions providers and their customers (security management professionals) engage and conduct business. Today’s security professional is dealing with new types of threats and adaptive challenges that require more strategic-level partnerships to solve as opposed to the transactional “buyer/ seller” relationship. What we do is less about technology and more about enabling better business outcomes.

What does your organization receive from membership in SIA? How do you plan to be active in the association in the near future?

SIA gives us access to relevant information about the security industry, a platform for engaging with different constituencies and a vast network of professionals with which to cultivate relationships. We plan to participate in several work groups and committees where we can bring some expertise and contribute to the betterment of the industry. It's a great way to give back. We also hope to collaborate with SIA on launching some new programs that will mentor start-ups and emerging technology companies trying to enter the security space.

Will your company participate in an upcoming event with SIA such as ISC West, New Product Showcase or Government Summit? If so, what aspect of the event appeals most to your company?

Since we are an “Event Company” ourselves, our goals in participating in industry events is primarily to network and learn. We hope in the future through SIA we may be able to build more collaborative relationships with some of these events to fill unmet needs and deliver more value to the industry.

The views and opinions expressed in guest posts and/or profiles are those of the authors or sources and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Security Industry Association (SIA).