By Ryan Gray
I’ve never had an InfoComm like this, for a few reasons.
I’ve been going to InfoComm since the early ‘00s. Back when I was with a live event AV company we used to scrape together a little money to send some of our people up to Vegas. We could drive there, the floor was free and it was during our quiet season. Usually, the owner could get us passes to Crestron Swirl or Extron Bash. It was mostly a chance to hang out in Vegas together and see cool stuff that we knew we couldn’t afford to buy.
Once I had earned my CTS and was working in higher ed, the opportunity to earn renewal credits and look for specific tech solutions became primary. Like many other tech managers we had some manufacturer relationships but spent a lot of time wandering booths to look for something new or cool.
Then during COVID I found HETMA, so by InfoComm 22 I had a community of colleagues at InfoComm. I went to represent my college but also to network and share with friends from across the country.
What a difference a year has made since 22… HETMA has taken off and I’m proud to serve on the board of directors. When the opportunity arose for HETMA to become an exhibitor this year, we jumped at the chance. That meant I was no longer an InfoComm attendee, I was an exhibitor. This year I was able to be a presenter for the HETMA Summit and in an education session, an exhibitor building and staffing a booth on the floor, a podcast host recording shows live from the floor, and a tour guide leading colleagues across the show floor to see new tech.
This year I came to work.
My perspective of what trade shows actually are has changed in the past year. What used to be an opportunity to get away from the office and have fun has changed to the opportunity to accomplish objectives that can only be achieved when the whole of the industry is gathered in one place. I identified 40 objectives before this year’s event, not all were complicated. Some were as simple as making sure I shook hands with Tim Albright at the CTI event at Icebar. Check. Some were more involved. Some were personal, some were on behalf of HETMA, some on behalf of my institution, some on behalf of Higher Ed AV. On the plane ride home the tally came out to 32 of 40 accomplished, including some of the main ones.
I went to the show with a plan, and I worked that plan.
The success that HETMA had at this year’s InfoComm can’t be denied. That is the result of the work of a whole group of people, from across the country, who all volunteer their time for this organization. The account of the HETMA experience this year is being well documented on social media and there isn’t much more I can contribute, but the response is beyond what I expected. Higher ed tech managers are a force in the industry and that is being given a physical representation on the industry’s biggest stage. I couldn’t be prouder to be part of that story and this really is only the beginning.
I recorded 5 episodes of the AV/IT Amplifier Podcast and there’s just no substitute for being able to look a guest in the eye, in person. I’m excited to share those conversations in the coming weeks. The inaugural Higher Ed AV Awards were awesome! This year’s event set the stage for what will surely become an annual tradition. There is no better experience than being in a room of people gathered to celebrate the best work of our community.
I was able to make connections and see some technology that will benefit the students of Yavapai College. I’m beyond proud of the number of people in the Pro AV industry who actually know the name Yavapai, when they have no other reason to do so. Get ready, my team will be there in force next year.
I was able to network and meet with people that I had only followed before and make personal connections that I’m grateful to have made and look forward to those new relationships growing into the future. I was also able to show my wife, Molly, what our community is all about. She was able to join me for a few days and found nothing but welcome in our AV circles.
I was also able to keep up with press releases and information on new products and services from all kinds of manufacturers and providers. I look forward to sharing those in the future. But it wasn’t the tech that took center stage for me, it was the people, it was the connections, it was the enthusiasm, it was the experience.
My Take… InfoComm will never be the same. Not for me, not for the higher ed vertical. This year we came to do business, and we did that business. And what better business to be in? We get to work at the intersection of education and AV, we bring to bear the best technology for the benefit of knowledge. InfoComm is now a key lynchpin in that effort and this year’s event set the stage. Hope to see you all soon, if not, then I’ll see you all in Las Vegas 2024!