I interviewed several security integrators about vendor relationships...here are six things I learned:

1. None of us had ever been asked by a vendor (manufacturing) partner, "What makes you chose one vendor over another?" (hint, we all want the same things).

2. We all agreed on which vendors have the worst customer service. Oddly, they are often the ones customers request the most.

3. We all see huge security opportunities for non-security companies (i.e. IT, AV, Cabling), some vendors have caught on to this and are signing them as partners.

4. We all need technicians, standardizing the products we sell with the technicians we have is the quickest way stop (some of) the bleeding.

5. The vendors we use the most have all given us leads at some point.

6. We have all sat in vendor presentations during the last year where we learned features and benefits about products we will never sell.

As finding quality technicians becomes increasingly difficult over the next decade for integrators, now is the time for vendors to get granular with the specific needs of their partners and ensure their product is the one being standardized.