By Mike Harris, VP of Sales East US, Alert Enterprise

College enrollment is up again; new data suggests higher education enrollment is increasing, especially at community colleges which suffered the harshest enrollment declines in the last few years. The not-so-great news? With more foot traffic comes the need to manage physical access for more students, faculty and visitors—no small feat when you consider the time, effort and cost that goes into ensuring a safe, sustainable and convenient campus experience.

To make secure access more accessible for all, Alert Enterprise developed Guardian: A robust Physical Identity and Access Management (PIAM) and visitor management tool designed to meet the needs of higher education institutions and one-card offices. By using our advanced automation, seamless integrations and scalable cloud-based platform, institutions can enhance security, improve efficiency and provide smarter access for card holders and visitors alike. Let’s dive into all the ways Guardian can revolutionize your campus security and access management with a student-approved, mobile-friendly experience.

Out with the old, in with a breeze

Many higher education institutions rely on self-built automation applications that are often a hassle to integrate, upgrade and maintain. But there’s a smarter way in: Guardian by Alert Enterprise is a modern, integrated solution that can turn these outdated systems into simplified solutions for access management. Our platform seamlessly integrates with your campus’ existing systems for a smooth transition, covering access control, payments, library services and lockers. By retiring old applications and self-built integrations, your institution can reduce complexity and IT maintenance, improve security and ensure your access management processes are always up to date.

By automating processes, Guardian ensures that card issuance, access provisioning, and deprovisioning are handled efficiently and accurately, allowing the card office team to focus on improving the overall campus experience

Guardian is a cloud-based application, meaning it can easily scale to meet the growing needs of your institution. This scalability is particularly beneficial for IT departments because it eliminates the need for costly and time-consuming upgrades and maintenance associated with on-premises systems. With Guardian, your institution can quickly adapt to changing requirements without the hassle of managing physical infrastructure.

Streamlining operations with a layer of automation

One of the standout features of Guardian is its powerful automation, which significantly reduces the workload for one-card office staff. Traditional manual processes are prone to errors and consume valuable time that could be better spent on more strategic tasks. By automating these processes, Guardian ensures that card issuance, access provisioning and deprovisioning are handled efficiently and accurately, allowing your team to focus on improving the overall campus experience.

Empowering card holders with a unified solution 

Using a smart access platform like Guardian enables card holders to request physical access through a unified, mobile-friendly solution that’s deeply integrated with your institution’s physical access systems. In other words, no need for them to wait on physical cards to be mailed or deal with system errors that keep them from receiving a card on time.

Whether a student needs access to a new dormitory or a faculty member requires entry to specific labs, Guardian makes it easy for users to request access tailored to their needs—with a simple tap of their phones. This seamless integration with your institution’s physical access systems ensures that all requests are processed swiftly and accurately, enhancing security and convenience.

Streamlined approval processes

Once access requests have been sent through, they’re automatically reviewed and approved by relevant authorities, such as faculty members, area owners, or vendor sponsors. The structured approval process not only improves security but also ensures accountability; each access request is approved by the appropriate personnel. This reduces the risk of unauthorized access and ensures that all card holders have the necessary permissions.

Seamless integration with scheduling applications

One of the key advantages of Guardian is its ability to integrate with scheduling applications, which ensures automated semester-over-semester provisioning of new access and de-provisioning of old access so students and staff always have the right access at the right time. By synchronizing with academic schedules, Guardian eliminates the administrative burden of manually updating access permissions, ultimately saving time and reducing errors. In short: Fewer manual entries, more orchestrated access control.

Best-in-class visitor management

Our visitor management platform provides a best-in-class experience for guests while also being fully customizable based on visitor or event type. Whether it's a prospective student tour, a guest lecturer, or a large campus event, Guardian ensures that your visitors are welcomed with a streamlined, branded experience that reflects your institution’s identity. This not only makes for a better visitor experience but also ensures that security protocols are consistently followed.

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With the new school year quickly approaching, there’s no better time to ensure you have the right access controls in place for a safe and productive year ahead. Contact us to learn how Guardian’s cyber-physical identity access management platform can create an unparalleled user experience for all.

About the author:

Mike Harris is the VP of Sales for the East US region at Alert Enterprise, where he specializes in physical security transformation, automated compliance, process optimization, and centralized management and scalability. With over 20 years of diversified experience spanning integration, consulting, end-user roles and software sales, Mike is a seasoned professional dedicated to revolutionizing security through innovative solutions. Mike's passion for innovation and his strategic approach to security management have made him a trusted advisor and leader in the field. At Alert Enterprise, he continues to push the boundaries of what's possible, delivering transformative solutions that safeguard businesses and enhance their overall resilience.