Commercial Integrator May 2022 - 40

FINAL THOUGHTS
Commercial Integrator's 2022
Digital Signage Deep Dive
The Calling of our Time
WORKING IN COMMERCIAL AV is a calling.
The hours are often long, sometimes stretching
into weekends and holidays along with
complicated interpersonal dynamics. AV
integrators sometimes bid on consultant-designed
projects, meaning there's another
party to work with. Various projects require
integrators to collaborate effectively with general
contractors and other professionals. And
that's not to mention the systems themselves
whose output might ride on the corporate IT
network or on a discrete AV network.
Without a doubt, all this
adds considerable complexity.
But being part of our
Although DEI has become table stakes to
#avtweeps industry family also
entails another calling - one
that I've been thinking about
since the NSCA DEI Action
Council and CI's " Amplifying
Diverse Voices " webcast.
During that webcast, I moderated
a discussion with some of our industry's
most powerful voices. Verrex's Akin Adewole,
Shen Milsom & Wilke's Mildred Ramos, New
Era Technology's Chris Turner and livingHR's
Natasha Porizkova made the case that we
should gain conviction about effectuating
diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) within our
own ranks. And, indeed, we should.
This isn't political; it's about our industry's
long-term survival and capacity to thrive. For
years, we've had trouble recruiting talent, not
least because so few outside our industry even
know that our space exists. With the assistance
of trade associations like NSCA and AVIXA,
we're upping our presence in school curriculum
and job fairs, and we're rolling out internship
programs. However, a key fact remains: Just
as millennials and Gen Zers want to work for
environmentally conscious companies, they
also look to work for diverse organizations. If
commercial AV firms aren't convicted about DEI,
many of these young talents won't join our ranks.
We should
center our
thinking about
DEI on more
human matters
attract younger, more consciousness-raised
generations, the business imperative should
not be foremost in our minds. We should center
our thinking about DEI on more human matters.
We've often heard that people skeptical of
LGBTQ+ rights soften their hearts when a family
member comes out; the reason, we're told, is
humanization. In short, it's not " an issue " anymore;
it is a person about whom they care.
Even though commercial AV is still heavily
white and male - most recent
data I have indicates that InfoComm
attendance is only 14%
female - we all know dozens
of powerhouse women and
people of color who propel our
industry forward. One need
only look at associate editor
Amala Reddie's three-part series
(concluding next month), which
spotlights some of AV's most
formidable females.
So, I ask you to engage in an exercise:
Depart from your own subjectivity and take on
another person's perspective. Step into the
shoes of a female AV integrator whose expertise
is doubted by a client seeking out her male
counterpart. Occupy the headspace of an AV
engineer of color who stands alone as the only
nonwhite person in the company. Already, too
many outstanding talents have left commercial
AV to pursue opportunities outside. Let's
make our industry community - our industry
family - stronger by leaning into our common
humanity and suffusing our companies with a
sense of inclusivity and belonging.
It's not about making our businesses better
- although it will. It's about doing what's right.
And that is the calling of our time.
Dan Ferrisi, Editor-in-Chief
dan.ferrisi@emeraldx.com
@danferrisiedit
Commercial Integrator, (USPS 005-160) (ISSN 2165-9850), Vol.12 No. 5, is published monthly by Emerald X, LLC., 100 Broadway, 14th
CI's annual Digital Signage Deep Dive
is the most comprehensive, ambitious
coverage of digital signage and
videowalls that we offer all year. The
Deep Dive report is the product of hours
of work, incorporating independent
research with a 20-integrator focus
group, data from AVIXA's market
intelligence team, in-depth interviews
with tastemakers in the category, and
valuable insights from the space's most
influential display and software vendors.
In short, our Deep Dive report is a
digest of the latest trends, technology
advancements, market opportunities
and foreseeable challenges, written from
the perspective of those who live and
breathe digital signage and videowalls
every day.
The Deep Dive report quantifies the
strong growth that digital signage and
videowalls are currently experiencing,
while also giving insights into whether
that growth is sustainable. Download the
report to learn all those details, plus more.
Download at commercialintegrator.
com/download/2022-digitalsignage-deep-dive.
Sound
Masking Creates
Disruption; Speech
Privacy Enables Protected
Conversations
Join Commercial Integrator as we dive
into the newest addition to the Yamaha
Unified Communications product line.
Yamaha UC is broadening its support for
productive and confidential conferences
and meetings with the new VSP-2
Speech Privacy System.
Designed to be quickly retrofitted
into almost any office, the system
features Yamaha's unique, high-performance
audio technology that prevents
speech-privacy problems by effectively
reducing human-voice intelligibility with
customizable sound options.
This presentation explains the difference
between " speech privacy " and
" sound masking. " Moreover, it dives into
the how and why of speech privacy and
its importance. In addition, the presentation
helps everyone understand the use
cases for such a system: open workspaces,
executive suites, transom gaps and
other situations in which keeping your
conversations private matters.
Watch at commercialintegrator.com/
webcast/sound-masking-speechprivacy-differences.
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40
Commercial Integrator MAY 2022
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Commercial Integrator May 2022

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