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Sean O'Brien, a vice-president at the business software giant SAP, is an expert on public-security issues, ranging from law enforcement to crime prevention and community policing.

A former military medical officer, O'Brien spent more than a decade working for the British police force. He later joined Bull Information Systems and then SAP, where he specialises in software for law enforcement, defence and central and local government.

At SAP his task is to help clients capitalise on sophisticated software that helps them manage new challenges in the fields of public security and environmental safety.

According to O'Brien, the key factors driving change in the industry include what he calls "glo-calisation" or global issues that could have significant local impact and responses.

Take the recent outbreak of swine flu in Mexico and the US for instance. It's a global health issue with local-specific implications, especially in terms of responses in each of the countries hit by this flu due to people's mobility.

This means that both local and central governments are needed to deliver improved public-security outcomes to meet their citizens' expectations.

Another global issue with local implications is cross-border organised crime, which requires collaboration among concerned authorities in various countries to share information and other resources for more effective law enforcement.

"More uncertainties mean greater risks and threats, so we need sound analysis to know which areas to focus on in the real world," O'Brien said.

At a recent seminar in Bangkok, O'Brien also shared his insight with a group of Thai police officers on how they could use new software to improve the delivery of their services.

Britain's Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), whose headquarters are at New Scotland Yard, was cited as an example. The British police recently chose SAP as its corporate enterprise resource planning solution.

With jurisdiction covering 1,600 square kilometres and a population of 7.2 million, MPS employs 31,000 officers, more than 14,000 police staff and 4,500 traffic wardens and police community-support officers.

To achieve greater efficiency from existing resources, new software tools are needed to allow the MPS to deliver better services and value for London's citizens and visitors, covering both front-line policing and support functions.

Another example was the city of Tampa, in the US state of Florida, where SAP software was used along with an information-technology framework to gain unified insight across several public agencies and geographic branches that support its centralised emergency-operations centre.

With real-time insight, the city improved its decision-making process and can respond more effectively to different situations, ultimately helping to promote better protection for the public during major events like Super Bowl, city-wide parades, the hurricane season and presidential visits.

For example, during the recent 43rd Super Bowl in Florida this February, three primary geographic branches reported to the facility, along with multiple city, state and federal agencies, to help the emergency operation centre.

From this centre, the city could monitor virtually all activities of every agency and geographic branch involved with the Super Bowl, thus ensuring maximum security for this major American football event.