John Parkinson of Secured Communications Tells Us How Businesses can Maintain Productivity Securely Despite COVID-19

First of all, how are you and your family doing in these COVID-19 times? 

John Parkinson: We are all doing okay, thank you. Fortunately for us, working from home has not been such an issue and we have been able to connect with colleagues wherever they are on a daily basis through Mercury, our secure communications platform.

Tell us about you, your career, how you joined Secured Communications.

John Parkinson: I was a chief of police in the UK for over 33 years, specialising in counter terrorism working with agencies across the world before becoming an international security and policing consultant. This led to meeting some incredible executives from the US with remarkable backgrounds in the tech industry who were developing a secure comms platform and asked me to get involved. Four years later I became President of the Secured Communications LLC company and we now operate globally from bases in the US, UK, Australia and Canada.

How does Secured Communications innovate? 

John Parkinson: Secured Communications prides itself on how we constantly review our own technology and look at the functionality from other platforms. Our products are based on a solid foundation of security first, but we continually innovate to make it as functional and as simple to use as possible. This is often a difficult balance, but Mercury is one great example in how we have developed technical products used in our public safety division and made them available for private businesses and corporations.

How the coronavirus pandemic affects your business and how are you coping?

John Parkinson: COVID-19 is a dreadful virus that seems to know no boundaries. However, our business is built on an enterprise platform that provides secure meetings, calls, messages and file sharing, so actually we are able to conduct business pretty much as before. In some respects, although tragic for those that fall prey to its effects, it has meant an increasing market for our products, so we are growing rapidly.

Did you have to make difficult choices and what are the lessons learned?

John Parkinson: There are always difficult choices in business and this period has been no exception. We have tried to support clients as much as possible and we took a decision to introduce free use of our platform during the pandemic for public agencies that needed to maintain their confidential communications.

How do you deal with stress and anxiety, how do you project yourself and Secured Communications in the future?

John Parkinson: Teamwork and looking after each other is very important. One of our executive team did succumb to the virus which undoubtably was a worry (now thankfully recovered), but we work closely together and support one another. Business is serious, but we also have a lot of fun and that is important for the wellbeing of all the company.

Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game?

John Parkinson: There are many companies that offer communications platforms some of which are incredibly well established and broadly utilised. However, Secured Communications offers a niche capability with security that is our bedrock, not an add-on. Functionality and ease of use is key to productivity and uniquely, through our Mercury product, we provide video meetings, calls, messaging, file sharing/distribution all in one enterprise level platform that has the highest level of encryption and protection. Mercury has been developed on technology trusted and used by counter terrorism and public safety professionals worldwide and is now available for companies and businesses globally.

Your final thoughts?

John Parkinson: In a world with more uncertainty than ever, companies need proven protection that will help them manage their most sensitive communications and stay in control of vital information.

With constant reminders of hacking events and disruption to businesses, they need solutions that give them the confidence that their communications are secure with the support to deploy it successfully and rapidly.

Mercury, powered by Secured Communications, is a solution that can fit seamlessly into any organisation and offers the highest level of encryption and security trusted across the world.

In short, they need more than just a communications platform; they need an enterprise security solution provided by a partner that will help them lead with certainty in an uncertain world.

Your website?

www.securedcommunications.com