The inaugural edition of the ALAS Management Summit brought together more than 170 executives from the security industry who found in this event a place to expose the pros and cons of administrative work.By: Duván Chaverra Agudelo
A part of satisfaction was given by the filmmakers of the first Management Summit Organized by the Latin American Security Association, ALAS, and which was held last July in the city of Miami, United States.
VENTAS DE SEGURIDAD spoke with the organizing team of the event to learn more about the reasons why the Association decided to create a space for managers belonging to the security industry, in which they could discuss the different administrative points, both positive and negative, that the sector currently faces in Latin America.
We will also talk about the conclusions left by the realization of the first version of the Management Summit and we will know how the organizers are already working to comply with the second version that will be held in July 2011.
That is why we invite Víctor Alarcón and Jennifer Cardona, executive director of ALAS and sales manager of La Cumbre, respectively, to talk about the experience and reactions left by this first version, both for the organizing team and for the attending professionals.
Create your own event
In addition to supporting other industry fairs in Latin America, WINGS thought about the need to create its own event with a different approach, but at the same time become a training and teaching tool for those involved in the world of security.
"The idea of having an event organized by ALAS took several years. We saw that there are many fairs, that there are associations of the guild that are very representative and that have their own events. Then the initiative arose with the aim that we had an event that would position itself as a generator of content and added value and information for the industry and for the partners of ALAS", explained Víctor Alarcón, adding that "the idea was going well and after a meeting of the Board of Directors in January of this year there was talk that it was time to do the event. I was entrusted with the task and fortunately I have a very professional team to fulfill the good performance of the functions."
Another point that ALAS analyzed for the creation of the Management Summit was the fact that there were no congresses aimed at administrative management: "We consider that there are no specific forums for managers; the fairs are very focused on the technical area and technological trends, but there was no security management forum for Latin America, and that was the objective we wanted to fulfill. Even for next year we will have specialists of greater weight and forums in English language so that the event is much more inclusive and has a greater deployment, "said the executive director of the Association.
What the first version left behind
Next, Víctor Alarcón makes a brief assessment of what the first version of the ALAS Management Summit left: "The balance is excellent. In terms of attendance I think it could have been better, but it was fine anyway. If we talk about content there was good acceptance, although we must improve and we will work with this objective. I think the most important thing is that there is already an event in which security entrepreneurs will be able to talk about what they are worried about, what the trends are and where the industry is going. We all played an important role and I am very grateful to the managers who participated."
And it is that Victor highlights the importance of a forum in which entrepreneurs of the same rank were found who saw how important issues for their work performance were touched. "The managers realized that there was a specific forum for them. Everyone was at the level of business owners, directors, managers and all the topics that were touched on were pertinent to the event. There were very important presentations such as that of the security manager of the Bank of Chile, Osvaldo González; it is also worth highlighting the panel of manufacturers, which we had to extend for longer because the attendees asked for it. I also highlight the head of security of the Panama Canal, Rodrigo Cigarruista; Ralf Otero, security specialist; and the former president of ALAS, Luis González, who presented a topic on security sciences, which generated a lot of interest."
According to the executive director of ALAS, who recognized the companies that supported the first version of the event, the Association prioritized the quality of the Summit over the number of visitors: "Some 170 people were present at an event that is not crowd but quality and content and that is aimed at a specific niche of the industry. The feedback overall was very positive. I also want to thank the companies that supported us and made the event possible: Sony and LG Electronics, platinum sponsors; Anixter and Honeywell Fire Systems, gold sponsors; and Axis, silver sponsor. I also want to thank the other exhibitors, because their contribution was fundamental."
For her part, Jennifer Cardona spoke of what the organization of the event has analyzed so far after having analyzed the surveys. "After tabulating the survey we conducted at the end of the Summit, we were able to detect some points to improve, especially in the topics for the conferences. Some attendees recommended us to talk about training, sales orientation and promotions for the security area. Many people relied on the shortcomings that exist today in the industry to recommend the talks."
The event also managed to bring together entrepreneurs from different countries in the region, who even generated new business opportunities among themselves: "Something very positive to point out is that we have an attendance that represented 19 countries, among which we can highlight is Mexico, Dominican Republic, United States, among others (see graph 1). Some entrepreneurs got very good results because they managed to close deals. So it is important to keep in mind that in addition to training this is also a favorable place to generate new contacts and business, "said Jennifer.
"For everyone it was very satisfying to find peers from other countries and see that the problems are the same, such as the issue of failures in hiring, in the import of equipment, in account management and billing, among others. That was very interesting because we are a very united region that shares the language, religion, customs, and that makes us very similar in many aspects of the industry, although always taking into account some particularities by country, "added Victor.
Planning for 2011
Since the end of the 2010 version, ALAS is already working on the planning of the 2011 edition. At the moment the organization will analyze the current situation of the industry to begin to generate the issues that they want to bring to entrepreneurs.
"We are seeing what content is being offered at the different international fairs, to define our academic program, make a difference and offer something new, especially attending to the requests of the attendees based on making more emphasis on managerial issues. We are already observing some speakers from the United States, where security companies are very strong and we want to bring an important representative for the next edition," explained Víctor Alarcón.
Similarly, ALAS received an invitation from Panama to hold the 2011 edition there: "This country would host the headquarters of the Summit, we have the support of the Panama Canal authority and the Ministry of Tourism that wants us to be there, and I think this place would facilitate the trip for many entrepreneurs, therefore we would surely have a much greater attendance," concluded Alarcón.
BOX
The current situation of the industry
We took advantage of Víctor Alarcón, executive director of ALAS, to ask him about his current perception of the security industry: "I always find out about the economic moment of the country where I am and they tell me that Latin America is growing. Argentina is very strong, Peru is going to grow a lot this year, Colombia is solid and Mexico is recovering from the financial crisis of the previous year."
The executive also spoke about what awaits the region in 2011. "Talking to managers of manufacturing companies, they tell me that Latin America is somehow saving their sales budgets, which speaks very well of the region. In this vein, investment in infrastructure and foreign investment demand more electronic security projects; I would say that the expectation for the remainder of 2010 is very good and I dare say that for 2011 the industry will be much better."
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