California Police Chief- Fall 2013 | Page 25
issues. On the surface and without
question, the ability to move from a
grant-reliant CAPEX approach to an
OPEX approach has some considerable
attraction. It can be painful to get
a grant application written and
submitted and then get the systems
established and operational only to
have the grant change focus or start to
dry up. Finding the funds to keep some
of these systems running in today’s
environment can be very challenging,
and moving some solutions to an
OPEX cloud subscription service
becomes a logical solution.
However, the financial discussion
doesn’t stop there. It isn’t just about
CAPEX versus OPEX, but also having
the staff to run and maintain systems
on premise versus outsourcing much
of that work to the service provider.
And again, in the U.S., CJIS plays
an important role in ensuring that
your data is handled appropriately.
Adding to the transition complexity
are upgrade cycles for hardware and
software. In a cloud implementation,
these considerations are taken care
by the service provider. Gone are the
worries of running on old hardware or
back-level software releases.
CONFIDENT STEPS TO
CLOUD DEPLOYMENT
Any discussion about the real
and perceived benefits of cloud-based
implementations could go on for years.
There are pros and cons to staying
on premise, but over time, the cloud
option will continue to become more
and more compelling.
However, the law enforcement
community generally takes a
conservative approach to these types
of technology changes, and there is a
reluctance to be anT:7.375”
early adopter and
potentially put uniquely sensitive
data “at risk.” There are a number
of agencies in the United States and
elsewhere taking this step and reaping
the benefits. Collectively, we need
to listen to their experiences, learn
from the false steps and the successes
in order to reach a point where the
majority of law enforcement and public
safety agencies can make the step with
confidence and realize the financial,
security and other benefits.
Are you implementing public
safety systems on the cloud? Are you
deploying body-worn cameras and
storing video files on the cloud? Please
share your recommendations and
best practices for other agencies in the
comments. Join the conversation and
share your experience!
Follow @IBMAnalytics on Twitter
and LinkedIn. ■
The network
that matters most
to law enforcement.
T:4.6875”
For more information contact:
George Barela, Manager – Government Sales
949.275.6229 [email protected]
Better
Matters.
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SPRING 2016 | California Police Chief
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