Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) measure organizational success against defined criteria. KPIs are attributed to individual contributions at the workflow level. They are also used holistically to determine the degree to which business or mission objectives are met. A Security Operations Center (SOC) strives to protect the integrity of an organization’s assets, resources, data, and systems. SOC performance depends heavily on the expert judgement of operators. These individuals need accurate and real-time information. It is critical they have access to solution-driven visual technology. Dynamic video wall systems elevate the SOC environment to maximize KPI results.
Why are KPIs important? At a granular level, KPIs reveal areas of operational weakness. Identifying vulnerabilities early gives decision makers the opportunity to take corrective action, mitigate risk, and prevent operational failure. Consistent application and trend analysis of KPIs foster a culture of continuous improvement. Without structured, intentional assessment of performance, operations stagnate. Over time, crisis management becomes the status quo. Effective SOCs take a hard and honest look at security information and event management data (SIEM) to evaluate performance and avoid complacency.
Data Driven Performance Analysis
A host of SIEM applications exist to track overall incidents, threats, and losses for a given reporting period. Time to detection, downtime, and mean time to recovery (MTTR) are a few easily captured metrics for assessing how effectively a SOC maintains safe and secure operations.
Beneath each high-level SOC initiative are numerous complex tasks which are routinely executed by the most important, yet least automated component: the human team member. Despite the less finite nature of human contributions, more organizations are looking beyond technical KPIs. It is important to measure the soft skills that strongly influence an individual operator’s performance.
Due to the mission-critical nature of SOCs, personnel at all levels of operation benefit from the following skillsets:
- Ability to collaborate effectively with distributed and local teams.
- Strong leadership and decision-making instincts.
- Organized and analytical execution of tasks.
- Creative approach to solving problems.
- Adaptable to quickly changing circumstances.
- Adherence to security practices and requirements.
Each of us could add a host of other traits to describe our dream team co-worker: Courteous. Diligent. Personable. Does not microwave leftover fish in the employee breakroom. These are all desirable traits, but let’s focus on the skills itemized above. Specifically, how can visualization technology, like large-scale video walls, complement those innate characteristics of our SOC dream team to improve KPIs?
Ideally, this kind of technology provides an intuitive user-experience which recognizes end-user requirements, abilities, and limitations for a specific task. This concept shapes Haivision’s innovative system design for visual intelligence and collaboration in the operations center environment. Much like the ideal SOC employee, Haivision technology minimizes vulnerabilities by optimizing operational performance.
Effective Collaboration Among Distributed and Local Teams
At the heart of a Haivision video wall system, CineNet content management software delivers a dynamic collaboration tool. With CineNet, a local or distributed SOC workforce can simultaneously consume a global common operating picture. One view for one team reduces the likelihood of error, misinformation, and delayed communication.
Situational Awareness for Decision Makers and Leaders
CineNet provides real-time situational awareness with robust live-streaming capabilities. This enables SOC leadership to make truly informed decisions quickly with access to the latest information available in one location from numerous sources.
Organized Data for Meaningful Analysis
Security Ops Centers use a large array of technologically diverse sources, or assets, to execute necessary tasks. Often, these numerous data inputs are displayed for different purposes and limited periods of time. CineNet allows users to organize and save assets into routinely used custom layouts for immediate display with drag-and-drop ease. The ability to package live data for recurring activities helps increase time for analysis rather than waste it chasing information.
Creative Approach to Solving Problems
What problem are we trying to solve? It’s the first question Haivision’s design team asks when evaluating a new customer use case. Most of CineNet’s dynamic functionality evolved organically as a creative solution to real, not theoretical customer requirements. Since creativity is integral to innovation, CineNet users enjoy a comprehensive toolkit for content control and continuous SOC improvement.
Adaptability to Quickly Changing Circumstances
Haivision fully integrates hardware and software components for the most high-performance, intuitive, and flexible visual collaboration system available. SOCs and comparable operation centers consume enormous volumes of data every minute. The situational environment can change in a nanosecond, requiring immediate access to alternative or additional resources. During a threat event, the display wall becomes not only an important display mechanism, but an essential intelligence and collaboration vehicle. The intentionally intuitive CineNet interface accommodates novice and advanced operators alike. Response teams can rotate through the SOC and quickly take control of content to meet rapidly changing priorities.
Adherence to Security Protocols
CineNet supports stringent security protocols and is currently used by the US military, numerous Joint Operation Centers (JOCs), Network Operations Center (NOCs), and Real-Time Crime Centers (RTCCs), as well as large commercial entities committed to protecting customer data. In the arena of mission-critical operations, CineNet prioritizes secure and redundant performance. This capability to mitigate security breaches and maintain continuous operation in the event of component failure keeps downtime low, and KPIs high.
Haivision visual collaboration technology is a reliable extension of the irreplaceable human contribution to strong SOC performance. Nothing can replace human intuition, experience, or courage, but the right tools can take us to the next level of success. Contact Haivision today for more information or to schedule a product demo.