Page 74 - Security Today, July/August 2021

Sacred and Secure Security’s role in vaccine management
By Willem Ryan
It is the last push; the final journey as businesses begin to get back to work, and the office, after a lengthy pause caused by the worldwide pandemic. Companies across the globe are orchestrating strategic return-to-work plans with the goal of keeping employees, visitors and contractors safe upon reen- try. Physical Security technologies are stepping into the role of vaccine management, providing security and access that’s healthy, frictionless and adds to a positive user experience and their over- all well-being at the workplace.
Identity and access, converged across Human Resources (HR), Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) systems, stands at the center of effective Physical Security in a post-pandemic world. COVID-19 has already transformed access governance – automating across a broader, cross-departmental reach that includes security and now encompasses safety, health and wellness.
The new focus is on vaccination management and physical se- curity again plays a critical role in the compliance monitoring of the newly inoculated in the workplace. As of April 2021, some 29% of the U.S. population was fully vaccinated, with 42% of the population receiving one dose and 231 million total vaccines administered. Which brings us to another challenge. According to a report in The New York Times, millions of Americans are skipping their second vaccine done and their numbers are grow- ing. Reasons vary, including the fear of side effects or a pretense that they believe they are sufficiently protected with a single dose.
THE NEW FACE OF IDENTITY
So how does all this translate to securing identities? Businesses need to know who has been fully vaccinated and other health sta- tuses before allowing access into the general workforce population.
Vaccination records will become part of the digital identity and user profile, redefining physical access to spaces through au- tomated controls according to COVID-19 policies.
Managing the workforce, how they gain access and control-
ling tenant populations will continue to be transformed in this new era of work. Some spaces will remain accessible, unused cor- porate work spaces may be outsourced to leased tenants and em- ployers may implement a hybrid approach, with onsite and work from home policies.
Only a data-driven and automated method, converged within the organization and its operations, will provide the highest level of insights, safeguards and most seamless approach to this com- plex and ever-changing population mix.
SECURITY CONVERGENCE CARVES A PATHWAY
Security convergence has emerged as a superior enabling technol- ogy approach during the pandemic, aided by the acceleration and proliferation of digital systems. Physical Identity Access Manage- ment (PIAM) can address all identities across the entire enter- prise and is the cornerstone of a secure and compliant experience for workforce, visitors and contractors.
A converged solution that integrates with HR systems, IT, OT and Physical Access Control Systems (PACS), delivers the abil- ity to assign specific roles-based logical and physical access – based on vaccination status or other health and compliance require- ments. Companies have been headed down the pathway of Security Convergence and many accelerated its implementation with the re- alization that digital workflows can effectively automate critical pro- cesses, increase accountability and dramatically improve efficiency.
VACCINATION MANAGEMENT
The logistics of organization and orchestrating the vaccination and inoculation of the public, including the workforce, is monu- mental and without digital workflows, can be error prone, costly and time burdened.
According to ServiceNow, “successful vaccine management from distribution to administration and monitoring are essential for health and safety. Digital workflows can help solve one of the biggest logistical challenges ever—vaccine management and
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JULY/AUGUST 2021 | SECURITY TODAY
THE FINAL PUSH
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