The Hidden Costs of DIY Security Management for Multi-Location Businesses

As your business grows from one location to multiple sites, security becomes trickier. You might initially try managing everything in-house, to save on personnel or hosting costs. While DIY security management might save money initially, the hidden expenses and vulnerabilities often outweigh the perceived savings. 

IT knowledge gaps might arise if a staff member leaves. It might be difficult to keep your systems compliant across different municipalities.

Ultimately, the true cost extends far beyond the initial hardware investment. There are real, tangible risks to a DIY approach. And that’s why it’s worth considering whether keeping everything in-house makes sense long-term.

The Real Price Tag of In-House Security Management

Many businesses calculate the cost of security systems based on hardware expenses. However, the true cost includes several hidden factors:

Knowledge Loss When Staff Leaves

If an IT member or facility manager leaves your team, they take their knowledge with them (even if it’s well documented). That means you’re potentially losing easy access to credentials and master codes, system configuration details, maintenance schedules and procedures, vendor relationships and contacts, and troubleshooting expertise.

This sudden knowledge gap creates immediate security vulnerabilities—and often requires costly emergency service calls or consultant fees to recover lost information.

Tracking Maintenance Responsibilities

Each new location multiplies your security management needs. It also creates new challenges for your security team:

• Time burden: Your team must physically visit each location for updates, troubleshooting, and maintenance.
• Inconsistent protocols: Different locations often develop different security practices.
• Multiple vendor relationships: Managing different service providers, processes, and timelines across locations.
• Scheduling: Coordinating inspections and maintenance across multiple facilities.

Escalating Compliance Requirements

Each municipality may have different compliance requirements for fire safety, security systems, and access control. Without a centralized management system, you could open yourself to fire marshal citations for expired inspections, building occupancy compliance failures, and tracking challenges across multiple compliance engines.

Hidden IT Infrastructure Costs

On-premise security systems require significant IT infrastructure at each location, ranging from dedicated servers and hardware, ongoing maintenance and upgrades, physical space requirements, cooling and power costs, backup systems and redundancies.

Some businesses are willing to shoulder these costs for greater internal control. Others might not have the available funding, space, or personnel to manage everything internally. Regardless, as your business grows, these costs multiply with each new location. Plan accordingly.

Outsourced Security Management

When evaluating the real cost of DIY security versus partnering with a dedicated security provider, consider these benefits:

• Simplified vendor management: You can choose a single, reliable security partner to reduce scheduling busywork across different locations, saving time and reducing administrative headaches.
• Consistent compliance management: You can automatically schedule required inspections, retain proper documentation and reporting, conduct seamless uploads to municipal compliance engines, and keep clear communication with fire marshals and inspectors.
• Transparent communication and billing: You can retain clear documentation of all services performed, get transparent pricing and billing, receive prompt responses to inquiries, and keep consistent communication across all locations.

Making the Right Choice for Your Business

When evaluating your security management approach, ask yourself these key questions:

1. How much time is your team spending managing security across locations?
2. What happens when key security personnel leave your organization?
3. How consistent is your compliance management across different locations?
4. Are you confident all your locations meet current fire and security codes?
5. How easily can you scale your security systems as you add new locations?

For multi-location businesses, partnering with a security provider that understands multi-site management provides peace of mind and significant cost savings through operational efficiency, consistent compliance, and knowledge gap elimination.

Security as a Service vs. Security as a Burden

Security management shouldn't be a burden that diverts resources from your core operations. The right security partner transforms security from a constant worry into a seamless service.

Ready to explore how professional security management can transform operations across your locations? Contact Brothers Fire & Security today for a consultation.