Here are a few of the dozens of the new additions and improvements:

• White Paper / Case Study Directory
  With over 500 manufacturers in the security industry alone, there are literally thousands of technical papers available. After a paper is uploaded to CRO, the entire content is scanned into our database word for word. Members can now search for documents by any word combination, not just by category.
• Improved Resource Pages
  Members can comment on resource pages, highlight pages they like and share pages through email and social networks.
• Discussion Groups
  We recently announced the creation of the ConsultantReady™ Committee headed by Susanne Ruse. This area is the hub for committee discussions, documents, schedule & status reports.
• Member Store
  Consultants, do you have reports or studies you would like to offer for sale? No charge to list, a small portion of each sale goes to support the organization.
• Content Previews
  Much of the content available in our previous website was hidden until members signed in. Member only content is now available for preview by the public. So you know what you are signing up for!
• Better Member Handling
  CRO was originally designed to support consultants & systems designers.  In an effort to reduce spam, between member communication on the old website was highly restrictive. New member handling allows much greater member to member collaboration and information sharing.

Full details on the upgrade are available at:  CRO Website Updates Fall 2010

Please visit the site and let us know what you think.  Membership is still free for consultants and all other industry guests.

***

ConsultantRegistry.Org is a professional organization for independent consultants in the converging space of the Security, IT and Communications industries. CRO is run as a not for profit by a council of its members and operates independently of all product vendors. CRO can be found at http://www.ConsultantRegistry.org.

After taking in all the feedback, we decided a committee was needed to centralize and openly discuss the structure and evaluation criteria for the 2010 report. Therefore, we are happy to announce the formation of our first CRO open committee, the 2010 ConsultantReady^TM Report Committee.

Just like last year, we intend to qualify our framework, evaluation criteria, and grading methodology with our consultant members. However this year, we will allow one representative from each manufacturer evaluated to participate with feedback to the manufacturer member(s) of the committee. Consultant members don’t worry…. you are still the ultimate authority in the committee!

An email invitation will go out to consultants and manufacturers who expressed an interest early on.
All other interested parties should contact Susanne Ruse, our Director of Committee Strategic Planning and Development at SRuse@ConsultantRegistry.org.

ConsultantRegistry.org
President, Greg Bernardo

Building committees is a pretty involved undertaking and we want to make sure that they are relevant and effective. After months of testing collaboration tools and developing internal processes, we believe we are ready to launch our first committee.  Our committees will take on challenges that no single individual could possibly accomplish and maintain the current or relevant status.  These efforts are identified and some are services to our members, while others are ongoing to provide information to our industry or a particular industry segment.

In just a few days we will have more announcements and more information on the ConsultantRegistry.org Committees and other developments.  (we told you we haven’t been taking the summer off !)

ConsultantRegistry.org
President, Greg Bernardo

Its a simple question that many people don’t know the answer to.  ConsultantRegistry.Org is building new tools to communicate information to our members.  As far as we know, there is no centralized repository for this information.

Knowing whether a State requires a license is important to consultants who are looking to branch out of their home state or for individuals who are considering becoming consultants.  Additionally, some states require errors and omissions insurance.   How much insurance do you have? Is it enough?

Seems like good information a lot of people should know about.

So ConsultantRegistry.Org has started a survey asking our consultant members to give us a heads up on what the requirements are and where to find the information for each state.  ConsultantRegistry.Org will compile the information and post it on our new website targeted to release in September.

If you are a consultant and would like to help out or have access to this information, please sign up on the ConsultantRegistry.org website and we will send you the link.

ConsultantRegistry.org
President, Greg Bernardo

We want to assure you that we didn’t take the summer off!
In addition to our day jobs as consultants, the council at ConsultantRegistry.org has been hard at work these last few months. Several projects have reached a point where they are almost ready for release.

In a short while CRO will be sporting a completely redesigned website with lots of new features and a whole new look. We are working with several sponsors for additional tools and information which will follow shortly after the new website premier.

Check back often and it will be here before you know it.

ConsultantRegistry.Org
President, Greg Bernardo

The Director, Committee Strategic Planning and Development is responsible for communications, organization and structural progress of each committee.  As a developing organization, Susanne’s immediate challenge is to establish the rules and agenda for each committee.

Ms. Ruse comes to ConsultantRegistry.org with over 12 years experience in contributing to the advanced performance, growth and profitability of significant players within the security market. She has been responsible for the supervision and management of Sales and Service organizations at Vicon Industries, G.E. Interlogix/Fiber Options and Verint Video Solutions and has recently assumed the role of Customer Service Manager at Continental Access, a Division of Napco Industries.

ConsultantRegistry.Org is a professional organization for independent consultants in the converging space of the Security, IT and Communications industries. CRO is run as a not for profit by a council of its members and operates independently of all product vendors. CRO can be found at http://www.consultantregistry.org.

www.consultantregistry.org/survey

This survey will help us all to better understand and communicate the intricate relationships between systems integrators, product manufacturers, and security consultants and the how they interact with each other within the bid/construction marketplace.

The results of the two surveys will be combined later this year to give a broader picture of the security industry interactions with consultants and their projects.

More than 10% of the security industry’s manufacturers have responded to our first already survey.

Individual responses will remain confidential but a summary of the survey results can be viewed at above link in real time.

Security Integrators are encouraged to participate in the survey by following the same link.

***

ConsultantRegistry.Org is a professional organization for independent consultants in the converging space of the Security, IT and Communications industries. CRO is run as a not for profit by a council of its members and operates independently of all product vendors. CRO can be found at http://www.ConsultantRegistry.org.

www.consultantregistry.org/survey

This survey will help us all to better understand and communicate the intricate relationships between systems integrators, product manufacturers, and security consultants and the how they interact with each other within the bid/construction marketplace.

The results of the combined surveys will help us tailor tools and resource we offer our members on the ConsultantRegistry.Org website.

Individual responses will remain confidential but a summary of the survey results can be viewed at above link in real time.

Manufacturers who would like to take part in the survey should follow the same link.

***

ConsultantRegistry.Org is a professional organization for independent consultants in the converging space of the Security, IT and Communications industries. CRO is run as a not for profit by a council of its members and operates independently of all product vendors. CRO can be found at http://www.ConsultantRegistry.org.

The Newsletter is accessible from the CRO website at http://www.consultantregistry.org

ConsultantRegistry.Org is the only organization that supports the independent consultant in the converging markets of Security, IT, and Communication exclusively.

The Primer, originally published in 2006, was designed to assist educators, engineers, security personnel, and suppliers to address and resolve the issues of potential terrorism or other acts of violence or disruption in our educational institutions.

The Second Edition updates the Primer to include the multitude of changes the security industry has seen in the last three years such as the convergence of Security, IT & Communications and the maturity of the digital video market segment.  To update the Primer, the author Henry Homrighaus Jr. added co-authors Frank J. Davies and Greg Bernardo.

Greg Bernardo, president of ConsultantRegistry.Org offers, “As a new organization, CRO has several important priorities that demand time and resources.   Henry’s efforts to help ConsultantRegistry.org grow are greatly appreciated.”

Interested parties can learn more about Henry’s current book and upcoming second edition, at http://www.SchoolSecurityPrimer.com/

Mr. Homrighaus is the president and founder of ProSecCon, Inc.  In this enterprise he consults with security companies, industry manufacturers, school districts, universities, and private enterprise using his considerable experience to guide them to appropriate solutions by addressing their particular concerns.

Mr. Homrighaus is an expert witnessing resource to several insurance companies, attorneys, and security companies.
Henry and ProSecCon, Inc. can be found at http://www.ProfessionalSecurityConsulting.com.

***

ConsultantRegistry.Org is a professional organization for independent consultants in the converging space of the Security, IT and Communications industries. CRO is run as a not for profit by a council of its members and operates independently of all product vendors. CRO can be found at http://www.ConsultantRegistry.org.