Large organizations must approach cloud adoption from the perspectives of governance, risk management, and operational requirements. Most enterprise environments span hundreds of locations, face stringent regulatory and cybersecurity requirements, and rely on infrastructure that must remain operational for years. When cloud models promote adoption as a simple move to the cloud, they can overlook the operational realities of large enterprises, limiting flexibility and hindering the maintenance of long-term resilience.
“Enterprise physical security rarely operates within a single deployment model, and cloud strategies must reflect that reality ,” explains Francis Lachance, Senior Director of Product at Genetec Inc., adding, “Organizations manage cloud, on-premises, and hybrid environments in parallel, and their systems must function seamlessly across all of them. This is how companies maintain governance, visibility, and control over environments designed to operate for years.”
Companies choose hybrid cloud for its resilience, not its simplicity. The results of the recent Genetec 2026 State of Physical Security Survey, with over 7,300 respondents, show that hybrid cloud adoption is a strategic design decision driven by long-term operational needs
• 39% of companies cite scalability as a key reason for adopting hybrid cloud environments.
• 38% cite redundancy as a key reason for adopting hybrid cloud environments, reinforcing the focus on long-term resilience and continuity.
“For businesses, the cloud is an operating model that must withstand constant operational, regulatory, and threat pressures,” Lachance continues. “ The goal is not to become exclusively a cloud-based company, but to adopt it in a way that preserves governance and continuity over time.”
To support a secure and resilient cloud adoption, Genetec recommends four priorities:
1. Put governance at the heart of cloud decisions. From a business perspective, cloud adoption should be based on accountability, not convenience. Cybersecurity, compliance, and oversight requirements must be addressed from the outset, not added later.
2. Design for Hybrid Environments: Enterprise cloud adoption rarely happens instantaneously. Most organizations operate cloud, on-premises, and edge systems in parallel, often for extended periods. Support for hybrid environments allows businesses to modernize at their own pace while maintaining control over critical infrastructure and sensitive data.
3. Treat the cloud as an operating model, not a destination. Cloud deployments should reinforce the visibility and control of physical security systems, not completely replace existing infrastructure. The focus should be on integrating cloud capabilities into broader environments, rather than imposing uniform deployment models.
4. Building for Long-Term Resilience: Physical security infrastructure is expected to remain operational for years, even in the face of network disruptions, service outages, or changes in economic conditions. Architectures that support autonomous operation and gradual degradation across cloud, on-premises, and edge systems help organizations maintain continuity, meet regulatory requirements, and manage evolving risks without disruption.
