If 2020 and 2021 are remembered as the years of the pandemic amid lockdowns, 2022 is quickly becoming the year of not being able to buy what you need with confidence. As part of the AV industry, those that work in higher ed are accustomed to being organized and being able to upgrade rooms and bring new buildings online without having to guess or blindly have faith in that gear showing up. We have had challenges in the past to accomplish these tasks but a lot of the obstacles are usually ones that we can get around or improve. Normally once your project is approved in terms of budget it seems like all you need to do is come up with a good plan of action to get things up and running. That was before. Currently, nothing seems certain. This month I will attempt to discuss a few of my observations so far about this crisis of supplies not being in stock to hopefully allow us to commiserate together and learn from each other.
Predicting isn’t any fun
As I already mentioned, being in the dark about when things are going to happen is not fun. Whether it is your yearly summer refreshes or five floors of a building that was just erected our processes depend on a schedule. When that gets off track this leads to higher stress levels and the spirit of cooperation goes out the window. Crews need to get in and out of rooms and almost act like we were not there. We don’t normally have time to come back to a room if it gets missed and when a new space is ready for the AV people the completion date has almost passed or the space is already needed for use. One benefit of all this supply madness is that people are realizing that we can’t perform magic. Just wanting the tech to show up does not mean it will happen. The campus is starting to take notice of what they depend on and appreciate what we provide. Our jobs are seen as a more integral part of the project instead of just an optional topping that goes on last. This year I have learned how to provide warnings along the way.
Setting expectations is key when the product showing up is out of your control.
Communicating with your stakeholders is very important. If a good relationship is established, then the bad news of the project being delayed will be better received because there is some form of trust already. I will never say that any of this is fun but instead a new reality that we need to calculate for.
Workaround genius
Speaking of magic, what is reasonable for us to provide when we have to have a solution in place for a room? I know bigger projects have been scrapped at many schools, but I think making compromises with older equipment or something you already have sitting on the shelf is worth looking into. This can help buy some time and allow you to focus your efforts to make what you have work better so that when the supply does show up you are ready to go. This, again, is where it helps if you have already had conversations across your campus about what are the essentials for spaces to have. Then you can prioritize and figure out what your best options are. It won’t be perfect, but it could be good enough for now. I hate coming up with an interim plan that seems like a waste of time, but if that is what is needed we have to be up for the task. Hopefully, you will only have to find a workaround in a few areas. This is not something that you want to scale up everywhere. Highlight the problem cases that need attention so you have something that will allow you to reduce frustration on the user and support side. It can be a challenge to be creative and a lot of times we know what we need. We just can’t purchase that product right now so that makes it tougher but these can sometimes be the best growing experiences. You can learn to think in new ways and find a solution by looking at things from a different perspective.
“Workarounds” for me are like that spare multi-use tool in your back pocket. Know when to use a temporary solution and align the user with what they should be ready for.
Support systems are stretched
I admit that I might be wrong on this but, I continue to feel like the support structures we had in place before COVID don’t seem as strong as they used to be. Replies are lacking or delayed, experts have retired early, and they have not been replaced at the same rate. In general, everything seems to operate at a slower speed. Excuses seem to abound and the ball keeps getting passed to the next person to blame. These systems, especially for the young tech manager, are so vital. Supporting AV can sometimes be very lonely. Long days with not many answers can be tough. It is nice to know who to turn to internally at your school but then who can you call outside of your campus to partner with you. Any manufacturer, integrator, or vendor that can provide some of this peace of mind should be treasured.
Please take a moment and reach out to someone else in higher ed. Start that friendship and maybe just pass along a bit of what you have learned over the years. An encouraging pat on the back or a DM that brightens their day will do wonders.
Our breaking points seem more fragile these days so let us surround our community with love and care. We also should recommend those that have helped you across the industry. Highlight the folks that have given above and beyond and gone the extra mile to support what you are doing.
I maybe did not deliver a ton of good news with these words but I encourage you to understand the predicament that we are in and try to make the best of these new, ever-changing times. Maybe learn something new while you wait or fix something that keeps failing every time you have to support it. Take the time to be aware of what we took for granted when products usually arrived on time. Whether your summer is full of preventative maintenance or you were lucky enough to get some parts to install please share your story. Enjoy the journey that your planning adventures bestow you!
