Why Modern Organizations Must Rethink Security Command and Control
Most organizations believe they are secure because they have cameras.
Forward-thinking organizations know better.
In today’s risk environment, having CCTV cameras and CCTV control room watchers does not equal having control, and visibility does not equal intelligence. Yet across Africa and globally, many executive teams still equate rows of monitors, recording devices, and uniformed operators with security readiness. This outdated mindset is no longer just inefficient – it is strategically dangerous – assumed readiness.
Modern threats do not announce themselves. They emerge quietly, escalate quickly, and exploit fragmentation in systems, people, process, and decision-making. Organizations that still treat their CCTV control rooms as passive observation spaces are not managing security; they are merely watching risk unfold.
This is why the conversation must shift – decisively — from CCTV control rooms to the Physical Security Operations Centre (PSOC).
The Traditional CCTV Control Room: A Legacy Model Under Pressure
For decades, the CCTV control room has served as the operational heart of physical security. Its primary mandate was simple:
Observe, record, and report.
While this model worked in a slower, less interconnected world, it is now under immense pressure from several realities:
- Complex facilities with multiple sites; fast-paced, assets, and access points.
- Human-centric threats, including insider risks and social engineering.
- Operational blind spots caused by siloed systems and poor escalation pathways.
- Executive expectations for accountability, compliance, and resilience.
In many organizations, CCTV rooms remain reactive spaces:
- Operators wait for incidents instead of detecting early indicators.
- Supervisors focus on shift coverage rather than performance intelligence.
- Reports are written after losses occur, not before they can be prevented.
The result is a dangerous illusion of control – activity without strategy.
What Has Changed: The Nature of Risk Itself
The modern risk landscape has transformed fundamentally. Threats are now:
- Hybrid – combining physical, cyber, procedural, and human vulnerabilities.
- Time-compressed – incidents escalate in minutes and hours.
- Reputationally sensitive – a single failure can define public perception.
- Compliance-driven – regulators and insurers demand proof, not excuses.
Security is no longer judged solely by whether incidents occur, but by:
- How quickly they are detected.
- How professionally they are managed.
- How intelligently lessons are extracted and applied.
This evolution demands more than cameras and accessories.
It demands command, control, coordination, and context – the very pillars of a Physical Security Operations Centre – PSOC.
Understanding PSOC: Beyond Surveillance to Strategic Command
A Physical Security Operations Centre (PSOC) is not an upgraded CCTV control room. It is fundamentally a different operating philosophy that demands an aligned operating system.
At its core, PSOC represents the shift from seeing to understanding, from monitoring to managing, and from reaction to prevention.
A PSOC integrates:
- Workflow
- Skilled personnel
- Decision authority
- Surveillance systems
- Communication tools
- Access control and alarms
- Standard operating procedures, etc.
into a single, intelligence-driven operational environment.
Where CCTV control rooms ask, “What happened?”
PSOCs add, “What does this mean, and what must we do now?”
Command and Control: The Executive Value Proposition
Executives rarely care about camera specifications, screen layouts, or the number of operators. What they care about is control.
PSOC delivers this by introducing command discipline into physical security operations.
1. Clear Grip On Workflow
The ODVRR model is a strong tool for mature PSOC that sets the tone for success. Practitioners in the operations valuechain must know when to observe, to detect, to verify, to respond, and to report.
1. Clear Decision Authority
PSOC establishes who decides, when, and based on what information. This removes ambiguity during incidents and eliminates costly delays.
2. Structured Escalation
Events are categorized, prioritized, and escalated using predefined thresholds – not personal judgment or a panic approach.
3. Situational Awareness
PSOC operators are trained not just to observe, but to interpret patterns, behaviors, and anomalies in real time.
4. Executive Confidence
Leadership gains assurance that incidents are not merely being watched but professionally managed within a controlled framework.
From Operators to Professionals: Elevating the Human Element
One of the most underestimated transformations in the PSOC journey is the people.
Traditional CCTV environments often reduce operators to passive screen watchers. PSOC redefines them as security surveillance professionals with responsibility, accountability, and purpose.
This includes:
- Formal role definitions (operator, supervisor, commander)
- Competency-based training
- Performance metrics tied to detection quality, response accuracy, and reporting clarity
- Ethical standards and professional conduct.
When people understand that they are part of a command structure – not just a shift roster: behavior, vigilance, and pride improve dramatically.
Intelligence, Not Just Footage: The Power of Context
CCTV footage alone is evidence.
PSOC intelligence is actionable insight.
PSOC environments emphasize:
- Correlation between events across systems
- Contextual understanding of facilities, routines, and vulnerabilities
- Trend analysis to identify recurring risks
- Proactive recommendations to management.
This transforms security reporting from operational noise into executive-level intelligence.
Reports stop being logs and start becoming decision tools.
Business Continuity and Reputation: The Silent Benefits of PSOC
Many organizations only measure security success by the absence of incidents. This is a mistake.
PSOC contributes directly to:
- Business continuity, by reducing operation/business disruptions
- Brand protection, by ensuring professional incident handling
- Regulatory compliance, through documented processes and audit trails
- Insurance confidence, by demonstrating risk maturity.
In an era where one viral incident can erase years of brand reputation and equity. PSOC becomes not just a security function, but a corporate resilience asset.
Why Executives Must Lead the PSOC Transition
PSOC transformation cannot be delegated entirely to technical and security teams.
It requires:
- Cultural change – every landmark culture must get a nod from the top
- Policy alignment
- Executive sponsorship
- Executive expectations
- Investment in people, not just the technology
When leadership views PSOC as a strategic capability rather than a cost centre, implementation succeeds. When it is treated as “just another control room upgrade,” it may meet expectations.
The most successful PSOC environments are those where executives:
- Demand intelligence, not excuses
- Ask for trends, not just incidents
- Support professionalism, not shortcuts.
At Watermark Security Consulting, our goal is clear:
To partner with the organizations that see security value in PSOC, and others preparing to make the transition. PSOC is the new physical security.
PSOC is not about more screens, more cameras, or more spending.
It is about clarity, control, and competence.
Organizations that adopt the PSOC mindset move from:
- From discretion to standardized workflow
- Passive observation to proactive intervention
- Fragmented response to coordinated action
- Operational security to strategic resilience
Security leaders who understand this transition do not wait for incidents to justify change. They recognize early, intervene decisively, challenge assumptions, and solve problems structurally.
That is the PSOC way!
That is the Watermark Security Way!