Despite some uncertainty in the current U.S. economy, the security industry continues to show positive signs of growth and a strong business climate for Q3 and beyond, according to the May/June Security Industry Association (SIA) Security Market Index survey.

For example, The May-June Security Market Index found that 77% of the survey pool – which comprises industry leaders who represent a cross section of SIA membership – describe conditions at their company as “excellent” or “good,” with 34% reporting the highest rating. A similar number – 78% – said they expect conditions to improve during the next three months, with 22% saying they will get “much better” and 56% predicting conditions would get “a little better.”

Ron Hawkins, director of industry relations, noted that more than three-fourths of respondents were bullish on the current state of business, and for Q3. “When asked, ‘what are current conditions at your company right now?’ more than three-fourths said either good or excellent,” said Hawkins. “When asked, ‘what do expect conditions to be in the next three months?’ more than three quarters said much better or a little better.”

The May-June survey took place just a few weeks after ISC West, which hosted more than 27,000 people in Las Vegas at the end of March, including more than 18,000 attendees, a 56 percent increase over last year. SIA Chair James Rothstein said the success of the expo and conference – a record number of people attended SIAEducation@ISC sessions – shows that "the security industry has weathered the challenges of the past three years and is poised for growth."

Some SMI respondents commented on growth at their companies, with one saying, “We have more projects in the first quarter than any other prior year” and another observing that, “Customers are starting to spend and investigate more tech spending.”

I heard similar comments during the SHDA Conference in April in Orlando, where I met with nearly 40 manufacturers over three days. Many were noting that their project pipelines were full, with business getting back to pre-pandemic levels.

In the SIA Market Index survey, one respondent summed up the influence of uncertain economic conditions, noting that conflicting factors make predictions difficult, since there is “continued strong demand for all types of security services/solutions [but] inflationary pressures, reductions in capital spending and availability of qualified labor are headwinds we expect to grow stronger in the second half of the year.”

And speaking of the U.S. economy, The Federal Reserve paused another interest rate increase this month, the first time doing so in more than a year, although there is speculation that rates will rise more in 2023.

Paul Ragusa