Coffee Break with Jake

This week, Jake Voll sits down with Derek Carder, COO of FrontPoint Security, to talk about what happened when a DIY home security company decided their 60-to-90 minute hold time was the number one problem to solve, and how the fix turned into one of the more grounded AI rollouts in the industry. In this episode, we talk about... ✅ Why Derek starts every role by taking live customer calls, and wh...

This week, Jake Voll sits down with Ainsley Close, president of Guardian Security Systems out of Seattle. Guardian is a third-generation family alarm company. Ainsley's grandfather Donald founded the parent business, her dad Frank bought Guardian off him 50 years ago, and Ainsley took the chair as president in the middle of the pandemic, after Frank sent an all-company email naming her successor a...

So what are dealers actually wrestling with right now, and what's working? In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, we take a look at your biggest challenges. In this episode, we talk about... ✅ The lead-gen reality check: what is a quality lead actually worth to you, and can you afford to outbid the largest competitor in your market? ✅ Why fire alarm and access control leads beat residential...

Taylor Sears is back. A few months after his Dealer Spotlight, the COO of Silent Guard and Davis Heat and Air joins Jake Voll for a working session on the four levers any dealer can pull to grow recurring revenue and the profit underneath it. In this conversation, Taylor and Jake walk through those levers, talk through where most dealers are leaving money on the table on each one, and what to actu...

In this Dealer Spotlight edition of Coffee Break With Jake, Jake Voll sits down with Taylor Sears, COO of Silent Guard in Kentucky and Davis HVAC, to talk about how a 17-person family alarm shop turned itself into a 42-person operation doing three and a half times the revenue in five years, without ever buying out a competitor or chasing a fad. Taylor's path into the family business is not the usu...

In this special edition of Coffee Break With Jake, Jake Voll sits down with Rebekah Johnson, co-founder and executive director of Embers of Hope. Rebekah's story starts in May 2002, when an electrical spark from the outlet behind her headboard set her mattress, and her, on fire. She woke up engulfed, ran out the front door, dropped, and rolled in the grass. Then she ran back inside for her roommat...

In this special edition of Coffee Break With Jake, Jake Voll sits down with Manish Dalal, Founder and President of ZKTeco USA, to dig into where biometrics fits in the modern access control stack and why the physical credential is quietly becoming the weakest link on your customer's door. Manish has been working in biometrics since 1998, starting with the first biometric time and attendance system...

Join Jake Voll as he sits down with Lee Odess, globally recognized access control industry analyst, author of The Six Phase Changes Shaping Access Control , and founder of PhySec Collective, to talk about where access control is really headed and what that means for every dealer and integrator selling into this market today. In this episode, Jake and Lee break down the thesis that has defined Lee'...

Join Jake Voll as he sits down with Josh Trim of Pennington & Trim to talk about what it takes to grow a security company across generations — and why “sales” isn’t about pressure or commissions, it’s about trust, character, and delivering the right solution for the customer. In this episode, Jake and Josh unpack the early grind of building a company, the advantage technical people often have...

Join Jake Voll as he sits with industry consultant Robert Few, managing partner of The Connection Exchange (TCX), to unpack one of the biggest growth bottlenecks in the security industry: hiring and keeping the right salespeople. For many dealers, growth stalls not because of a lack of opportunity, but because they are afraid to invest in sales talent without the systems, pricing structure, and ac...

Professionalism isn’t branding; it’s operations. In this episode, Jake is joined by several seasoned pros across the industry to break down what “high standards” actually look like in the alarm and security integration world. From hiring sales reps for character and integrity, to building packages, pricing guardrails, and quote approvals, to tech behaviors as simple as booties + moving blankets, t...

Most alarm systems still deliver the same thing they did decades ago: a binary signal from a door or motion sensor. But customers don’t buy “a signal”; they buy the belief that you’ll stop crime. In this episode, Jake sits down with Wes Usie (Founder/CEO, Guardian Alarm Systems and CHeKT) to unpack why traditional intrusion is hitting a ceiling and why proactive video monitoring is becoming the ne...

What does it really mean to be unapologetically client-focused in the security industry? In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, Jake sits down with Marvin Smith, owner of Orlando Emergency Signal, to unpack nearly two decades of lessons on service, culture, and building a brand people trust. From growing up on a farm with a love for electronics to walking away from Disney to build a security c...

The tables have turned. Jake Voll (the host of Coffee Break With Jake and CEO of SS&Si Dealer Network) is in the hot seat this time! Tyler Martin takes over the mic to uncover the story behind one of the alarm industry's most distinctive distributors: how a family business and an eBay side hustle evolved into a national competitor that punches well above its weight class against billion-dollar...

Selling a family business isn't just a financial transaction. It's an emotional journey that tests your identity, relationships, and vision for the future. Jeremy Bates, VP of Business Development at Pye Barker, joins Jake to share the raw, unfiltered story of selling Bates Security, the second-generation company he helped build from cleaning bathrooms to the SDM Top 32. This conversation goes bey...

Most security integrators treat large commercial projects like one-time windfalls. Install the system, collect the check, and move on. But what if that $50,000 access control system could generate $200,000 over its lifetime?  In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, Jake Voll welcomes Peter McCoy from New Lane Finance to discuss strategies for security dealers to transform project revenue into p...

Let's talk about how AI is transforming security businesses. And no, we're not talking about AI-powered security technologies. We're talking about how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the way security integrators and dealers run their businesses right now. On this special edition of Coffee Break with Jake, Jake Voll sits down with Don Moran from HighlandTech, a former industry insider tu...

What happens when your work spouse is your actual spouse? In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, we dive into the real-world dynamics of running a business with your spouse.  Jake sits down with Katie & Parker Smith of Alarm Protection Services, Barb & Dwight Sears of Silent Guard Security, and Jim & Rita Parker of Parker Security Services. Together, they unpack what actually works...

In this episode of Coffee Break with Jake, we dive into the realities of running (and working in) a family-owned alarm company with special guest Melanie Henson of Stewart Electronics. From rags-to-joy founder stories to third-generation transitions, we explore what makes family businesses resilient through candid insights from owners, successors, and non-family team members. Key takeaways from th...

In this episode of Coffee Break with Jake, we sit down with Steve Butkovich, president of The Monitoring Association (TMA) and Chief Product Officer at CPI Security, to unpack where professional monitoring is headed and why it matters for dealers, integrators, and end users. From life-safety saves to business-critical dispatches, we explore how modern central stations turn sensors, video, and auto...

In this episode of Coffee Break with Jake , we tackle one of the alarm and security industry's biggest challenges: customer retention. Jake and his guests offer practical strategies for reducing attrition, engaging clients, and protecting accounts from competitors.  Whether you're a business leader, sales professional, or technician, you'll discover actionable insights to build customer loyalty an...

In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, we dive into the power of specialization. How are integrators, dealers, and monitoring centers finding growth by focusing on unique verticals and solving complex problems? That's what we're talking about today. From cannabis facilities in Massachusetts to Orthodox Jewish communities, recycling plants, and multifamily housing, Jake and his guests share how...

In this episode of Coffee Break with Jake, we dive into the ins and outs of buying, selling, and valuing security companies. Jake is joined by Colby and Joe Monachino of Monachino Partners, a full-service M&A firm specializing in the security, fire, and life safety industries. With decades of experience, they break down what really drives value in a company, from recurring monthly revenue to p...

In this episode of Coffee Break with Jake, we dive deep into the art of turning proposals into PO's. Jake leads a candid discussion with security pros from across the industry on preventing ghosting, speeding up quote delivery, tracking conversion rates, and making sure deals are both won and profitable.  This week's discussion points: ✅ How top performers track and segment conversion rates by cu...

In this episode of Coffee Break With Jake, we're talking about the power of strategic planning and why it matters at every level of your business. Whether you’re leading a team or just trying to keep your head above water as a business owner, this conversation sheds light on why good planning is essential. We explore everything from annual and quarterly planning cycles to leadership development, t...