Tag Archive for: Rapid Response

Rapid Response Announces Indira Emmadi as Vice President of Information Technology

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Indira Emmadi,RRMS

Jeffrey Atkins, President of Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc., announced the appointment of Indira Emmadi to Vice President of Information Technology at Rapid Response. Indira joined Rapid Response from Palo Alto Networks where she served as a Solutions Engineer managing engagements with their key strategic accounts and led a team that provided cybersecurity solutions to organizations like Google and Microsoft for their Cloud services globally.

Indira started her career working as a Support Engineer for Cisco TAC. After leaving Cisco, she had successful careers at Broadcom, Inc., Riverbed Technology, Citrix Systems, and Radware. She holds two Master’s degrees, one from Wichita State University in Electrical Engineering and a second from Syracuse University in Computer Science.

Indira is an expert in Cyber Security regarding network and security architectures for Hyperscale Enterprise Networks, Service Providers, Data Centers and Cloud Infrastructures, and she has served in various Engineering roles, as well, including Software Engineering, Pre-Sales, Post-Sales and Technical Services. Underscoring her role at Rapid Response will be a focus on the 99.999% Uptime Initiative and continued development of our network supporting Rapid’s growth in Hosted Monitoring Services.

Rapid Response announces Peter Kirk as Vice President of Software Engineering

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Jeffrey Atkins, President of Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc., announced the return of Peter Kirk to Rapid Response as Vice President of Software Engineering. During his initial seven-year career with the company, Peter held various roles within the Programming department. He worked on several key projects including the company’s migration from the outdated and inefficient PICK/jBASE based alarm processing software to the robust SQL/Linux based stagesTM monitoring platform and the launch of the original RapidMobile app. Peter left Rapid Response in 2014 to start his own business. For the past eight years, he owned a successful consulting company with a focus on system architecture and design, as well as a broad spectrum of development projects and codebases. Several of Peter’s engagements were in the alarm industry, and he earned a positive reputation based on the quality of work and innovative design. “It is a testament to all employees of Rapid Response that have helped us build a world-class organization to have a former employee return to our company,” said Atkins.

As the Vice President of Software Engineering, Peter will oversee the software development, architecture, data management, and stages teams within Technical Services. He will also play a critical role in the continued development of customer applications such as Rapid Response’s secure web portal, RapidWeb, the latest generation of the RapidMobile app, and more.

Peter graduated from Villanova University in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and brings nearly 20 years of experience to #TeamRapid.

Chad Wright Named Rapid Response CTO

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Jeffrey Atkins, president of Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc., announced the promotion of Chad Wright, currently Vice President of Technical Services, to Chief Technology Officer. As CTO, Chad will oversee initiatives in Information Technology and Software Development and will plan the future of technical development at Rapid Response. Chad joined Rapid Response in 2017 as Vice President of Technical Services and was responsible for the management of the Information Technology, Programming, and Project Management teams. He managed the 99.999% uptime SLA across two data centers, and he led development for commercial applications. He has held the position of Chief Technology Officer previously at MicroAutomation and at Salesblade.

Upon joining Rapid Response, however, he almost immediately faced challenges as our headquarters and monitoring center expanded in Syracuse, the COVID pandemic made evident the need for dispersed and remote work connections for non-monitoring personnel, and the need for a broader based Operations team led to the development of our new Henderson facility. His efforts in meeting these challenges, and many others, were critical in keeping the company in position to be highly competitive, particularly in what continues to be an uncertain economic environment.

“There is no stronger or clearer indication of a company’s sophistication and competitive strength than the level of expertise exhibited by its employees. I am confident that in his new role as Rapid
Response CTO, Chad will provide and inspire the very highest level of excellence in supporting Rapid Response as a leader in this industry,” said Atkins.

ASAP Expands Service in Florida

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ASAP-Concept1DRiviera Beach Police Communications went live with the ASAP program on July 23. RBPD is currently live with Vector Security, Rapid Response Monitoring, Vivint, Protection One, ADT, Tyco, Affiliated Monitoring, Brinks, Guardian, and Central Security.

Riviera Beach is the 38th 9-1-1 PSAP in the United States, and the 5th locality in Florida to implement the ASAP program.

The Riviera Beach 9-1-1 PSAP began receiving four alarm notifications via the ASAP service within the first 24 hours of operation.

Details will be added when available.

Hamilton County/Chattanooga is 1st PSAP in Tennessee to Implement ASAP

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ASAP-Concept1DOn November 1, Hamilton County / Chattanooga, TN became the 30th 9-1-1 PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point) in the United States and the 1st in Tennessee to implement the ASAP-to-PSAP service (ASAP®). Tennessee is the 11th state plus the District of Columbia now open for ASAP traffic.

ASAP, launched in 2011 as a public-private partnership, is designed to increase the accuracy and efficiency of calls for service from alarm companies to PSAPs. The ASAP service utilizes ANSI standard protocols developed cooperatively by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) and The Monitoring Association (TMA).

“Implementation of the ASAP-to-PSAP [service] will help eliminate the potential for clerical errors, cut call volume to the 9-1-1 Center, and most importantly, reduces 9-1-1 call-processing times by as much as 2-3 minutes. This will help save lives, protect property, provide faster response times to in-progress events, and potentially help apprehend more criminals,” Hamilton County officials said.

Nashville-based ADS Security was the first alarm monitoring company to go live with Hamilton County. “The district is very appreciative of ADS Security’s support and work in helping us bring this new technology to our citizens,” said John Stuermer, executive director for Hamilton County Emergency Communications District.  “ADS demonstrated great leadership and commitment to providing the highest level of alarm service response to their customers.

Additional alarm companies quickly followed ADS. Vector Security and Rapid Response went live with Hamilton on November 2, and Vivint, Protection One, Monitronics, Guardian Protection, and Affiliated are scheduled to go live in the upcoming days, followed by ADT.

Read Hamilton County’s announcement

More information on ASAP

 

Rapid Response’s Morgan Hertel Honored with Stanley C. Lott Award at 2017 TMA Annual Meeting

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Morgan Hertel, vice president of Technology and Innovation for Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc. was awarded The Monitoring Association (TMA)’s highest honor, the Stanley C. Lott Memorial Award for Exemplary Service, at the 2017 Annual Meeting in Scottsdale, AZ on October 11.

This award was created to honor the memory of Stanley C. Lott, a TMA (CSAA) past president renowned for his above-and-beyond efforts to lead and financially support the Association through difficult times.

“As always, the Lott Award was presented to a person who has demonstrated above and beyond commitment to our association and to the industry over a number of years,” said Pamela J. Petrow, then-president of TMA, who presented the award. “Morgan is someone who gives tirelessly of his time through committee work, responding on our digital community board, and in one-to-one consultation, all in an effort to improve our

Morgan and Pam Lott Award

Morgan Hertel (left) and Pam Petrow. 

association and to educate others in the industry … including his competitors!”

“Morgan is a chair or participant on numerous committees – not only TMA’s, but on SIA, ESA, AICC, PPVAR and UL groups,” Petrow continued. “I would guess that the majority of people present when we announced his name at the Annual Meeting have benefited from Morgan’s knowledge and wisdom, which he shares so generously. I am honored to be the president who presented Morgan with the Lott Award – it is richly deserved.”

Hertel has been with Rapid Response since 2012. His work has led to many technological enhancements to the company’s infrastructure and the development of its west coast monitoring center in Corona, CA. He is well known throughout the industry, is a contributor to many industry publications and has served in various capacities in its education programs and in the development of standards. He is the chair of TMA’s Contract Monitoring Council and, in June 2017, was elected to the position of Vice President on the TMA Board of Directors.

“This is really an honor and a privilege – not only to receive this award but to be here at the TMA Annual Meeting,” said Hertel. “One of the reasons I do what I do is a personal belief in the importance of giving back. I think many in our industry feel the same way. You give back to your community, church, faith, your industry that’s provided you with a great living over the last 40 years. I’m honored to receive this and it’s great to be recognized, but really it’s another opportunity for inspire other industry members and their kids and the people following behind us to start giving back.”

Find out more about the Stanley C. Lott Award and view the list of recipients since 1991 at http://tma.us/stanley-c-lott-award/.

 

Rapid Response is the 2016 CSAA Central Station of the Year

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Vivint and Vector Also Honored at ESX on June 9
CSAA is pleased to announce the four winners of the 2016 Excellence Awards:

Central Station of the Year
Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc.
Central Station Manager of the Year
Michelle Lindus, Vivint Smart Home

Central Station Operator
of the Year
Amy Cerney, Vivint Smart Home

Central Station Support Person of the Year
David Carter, Vector Security, Inc.

Excellence Winners with Pam June 2016

From left: Vivint’s Amy Cerney and Michelle Lindus, CSAA President Pam Petrow, Rapid Response President Jeff Atkins, and representing Vector’s David Carter, Vector Central Station Manager Sal Calafato following the presentation of the 2016 Excellence Awards. Photo by Elizabeth Lasko.

 

Rapid Response’s core belief is three-pronged: people, training, and technology. The Excellence Awards judges determined that this outstanding company proved to deserve the spot at the pinnacle of our industry. Rapid’s application detailed extensive plans for disaster recovery, false alarm reduction, education and training, technology innovation, customer relations, and community outreach efforts including charitable activities. Its leaders are heavily involved in bettering the industry through volunteering with industry associations to advance important issues such as standards, public sector engagement, and legislation.

Michelle Lindus is Central Station Manager at Vivint, where she leads a team of 140. She participated in the establishment of Vivint’s HOME Quality Service policy to ensure world-class customer service and heads the team that specializes in false alarm reduction. A perpetual student who is always reading, researching and testing new ideas, Michelle has a passion for service in the alarm industry that compels her to work holidays alongside her team and volunteer her off time to CSAA education programs.

David Carter is East Central Station Tech Support Leader at Vector, where he started in 1997 as an operator in data entry. He is a key member of the Disaster Recovery Team and excels at quickly troubleshooting and solving phone carrier issues. Always striving to expand his knowledge, David is known for his willingness to travel to other sites for technical projects and to stand in as an operator or tech support representative whenever needed, and for his commitment to ensuring no piece of equipment ever fails.

Amy Cerney has been a Monitoring Representative at Vivint for ten years. Her responses are frequently featured in company-wide reports of exceptional service; she ably mentors new representatives; and is known as a comforting voice of calm for customers. She is a shining example of Vivint’s and the security industry’s core values to protect lives – last year, she donated a kidney to save the life of a Vivint co-worker.

The CSAA Central Station Excellence Awards recognize any FM Approvals, Intertek/ETL or UL-listed central station (CSAA members and non-members) and outstanding personnel who perform in the highest professional manner, thereby making a significant contribution to the betterment of the alarm industry and the alarm profession while demonstrating exceptional service to their customers and community.

The purpose of the awards program is to:

  • Establish and promote the inherent value of central station services in general.
  • Honor those who have made the most significant contributions to the service.
  • Promote the distinct level of professionalism attained by NRTL-approved central stations.

The CSAA Central Station Excellence Awards Program is sponsored by SDM Magazine.

Entries are judged by a blue-ribbon judging panel appointed by CSAA. The four winners were announced at the 2016 Industry Excellence Awards Breakfast at ESX in Fort Worth on Thursday, June 9. For past winners and more information, visit csaa.org/csaa-excellence-awards.

CSAA-Excellence-Awards

 

Finalists for 2016 CSAA Excellence Awards Announced

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Four “Phenomenal” Winners to Be Revealed at ESX on June 9

Once again, the nominees for CSAA’s annual Excellence Awards were, in the words of one of the judges, a “simply phenomenal” group of companies and individuals. CSCSAA-Excellence-AwardsAA is pleased to announce the twelve finalists for 2016. They are:

Central Station of the Year
ADT LLC; Rapid Response Monitoring Services, Inc.; Vector Security, Inc.

Central Station Manager of the Year
Ernie Cole, Doyle Security Systems; Michelle Lindus, Vivint Smart Home; Tom Tardiff, Kastle Systems

Central Station Operator of the Year
 Hollie Smith, Universal Atlantic Systems; Morgan Dieterle, Tyco (Fifth Third Bank); Amy Cerney, Vivint Smart Home

Central Station Support Person of the Year
David Carter, Vector Security, Inc.; William Sims, Kastle Systems; Dave Mann, Kings III

“Our finalists are to be congratulated for being recognized as the best of the best,” said Elizabeth Lasko, Vice President of Communications, CSAA. “Our judges related the extremely difficult time they had choosing not only the winners, but just the finalists from all the nominations. There were some amazing stories of customer relations, innovation, and corporate culture.”

The CSAA Central Station Excellence Awards recognize any FM Approvals, Intertek/ETL or UL-listed central station (CSAA members and non-members) and outstanding personnel who perform in the highest professional manner, thereby making a significant contribution to the betterment of the alarm industry and the alarm profession while demonstrating exceptional service to their customers and community.

The purpose of the awards program is to:

  • Establish and promote the inherent value of central station services in general.
  • Honor those who have made the most significant contributions to the service.
  • Promote the distinct level of professionalism attained by NRTL-approved central stations.

The CSAA Central Station Excellence Awards Program is sponsored by SDM Magazine.

Entries are judged by a blue-ribbon judging panel appointed by CSAA. The four winners will be announced at the 2016 Industry Excellence Awards Breakfast at ESX in Fort Worth on Thursday, June 9. For past winners and more information, visit csaa.org/csaa-excellence-awards.

 

Mark McCall to Co-Chair CSAA Contract Monitoring Council

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CSAA is pleased to announce that Mark McCall, IT Director at Lake Norman Security Patrol, Security Central/AlarmSouth, is the new co-chair of the CSAA Contract Monitoring Council. He joins current co-chair Morgan Hertel, Vice President of Operations at Rapid Response Monitoring.

Mark McCall. Photo courtesy of Mark McCall

Mark McCall. Photo courtesy of Mark McCall

This important council examines and helps to address the evolving needs of CSAA contract monitoring members by providing coordinated representation with industry-related associations, manufacturers, regulatory agencies and other organizations, in order to consistently improve and enhance the services provided to the customers of contract monitoring centers.

“The Contract Monitoring Council committee offers an important platform for contract centers to come together and work on issues unique to our segment of the security industry,” said McCall, “and I look forward to assisting Morgan as Co-Chair and working with all of the Contract Monitoring Council committee members.”

Recent and current initiatives of the council include the CSAA 2013 Wage and Salary Survey, the Contract Monitoring Account Demographics Survey, and a white paper defining “DIY and MIY” in the alarm industry.

–Elizabeth Lasko, CSAA, August 13, 2015