No matter which part of your business it may be for, evaluating new technology can feel like an intimidating task. Is evaluating a physical access control technology daunting? We don’t believe so. You already have most of the information, otherwise you wouldn’t be looking into deploying an access control solution. However, going into your search with a checklist of questions to ask yourself before meeting with access control providers helps further define your options. Here are 4 basic questions to ask yourself when determining the needs for your access control solution:
Question #1: Where are your weaknesses?
Example:
A thief broke in through your front door on a weekend and stole a few laptops. By the time you got to the office on Monday it was too late to track him down, much less recover your lost assets. With an access control system you can be alerted when the door opened by an unauthorized person; better yet if you had a video surveillance system you can identify the thief on the spot.
Question #2: What you need to protect?
Example:
You are the managing partner for a law firm. Your entire business is built on trust and keeping confidential information safe. You have a file room for your paper files but you only want senior partners to be able to access it. With an access control solution you can give your partners the rights to access that room, keeping everyone out, and keeping your files safe.
Question #3: What kind of flexibility do you need?
Example:
You own a coffee shop and your shift supervisor, Melissa, forgets her keys to the store once a week. You end up having to go to work on your day off and the store gets opened late. With an access control solution you can open the doors from your mobile phone so that you don’t have to drive back and forth and your store can be opened on time.
Question #4: What are your “must have” features?
Example:
Your business has grown substantially over the last five years. You now have multiple offices to secure and 114 employees. You travel 70% of the time to meet with clients and visit your offices. You need a single credential to get into your various offices. With increased business size comes increased turnover. With an access control solution that integrates with your HR management system you can keep access privileges up to date in just one system.
With the excitement that a new access control technology creates, it’s natural to quickly jump into meticulous evaluations of too many solutions. However, before doing that, take a look at your facilities, people and processes, and answer these questions. Having all of these answers beforehand can help you determine your requirements, develop the right questions about all technologies available from various providers, and ease your buying process by selecting the solution that is right for your business.