What’s So Spectacular? | Business of AV
Joe Way, PhD, CTS
This last week–depending upon when you are reading this… Friday, December 9, 2022, to be exact–I was #HumbledAndHonored to participate with the AV Superfriends as a guest on their AVSF Live! Holiday Spectacular. It was so nice of them to invite “just a guy” to join them for such a prestigious annual tradition.
During the harsh interrogation that followed my rookie microphone mute-unmute debacle and Christmas sweater lighting strangulation, I was asked about all the travel I did in 2022. This was in reference to my recent Business of AV column where I mention I had 167 speaking engagements (slash) media appearances (slash) interviews (slash slash slash SLASH) and 53 conferences. … Psst… There have been four more appearances since that article was published on November 29, 2022, so the real count is now 171 for the year thus far, but who’s counting? [Well, me, because I have a fragile ego and my self-esteem and imposter syndrome desperately needs it.]
I was asked which of the conferences I enjoyed most this last year. My initial reaction–sorta to the dismay of the esteemed hosts, still learning how to master live graphic overlay (slash) camera shot timings–was ISE in Barcelona. And it really was. It was an honor to have my wife, Amy, join me at a conference for the first time. (Well, except for when she kept poking me in the ribs saying I was embarrassing myself at the VIP rooftop party in front of Mike Blackman and David Labuskes… and again at the Poly VIP dinner party with David Danto and friends [PS., yes that’s Amy sticking out of the corner in that pic… I suck.]). ISE really did put on a great trade show, in a great venue, in a great city. It was great. Great, it was. Great, I tell you. And, it was topped-off with a week’s vacay in Portugal.
But then, they continued to prod. They asked which shows could the “average folk” go to… i.e., which conference was awesome, but maybe AV peeps wouldn’t normally think about attending. To that, I answered Campus Facilities Expo. In a poorly-worded and possibly uh-not-so-thought-out response I said it was great because I left feeling smarter by not being around our regular AV peeps at our normal AV trade shows. (Doh!) But, I didn’t mean it like that! I swear! As I slowly backed myself off that cliff, I explained that what made it special was that I got to collaborate with a different group of higher ed staff, who we are also so reliant upon. As #InHouseIntegrators, we often complain that our IT departments and our facilities people are on their own islands, and that we need to work more together. Upon finishing my keynote address, I was bombarded by university vice-presidents, presidents, facilities directors, capital planners, and others saying that they too wish they had the same collaboration with us. So in other words, WE ALL WANT THE SAME DAMN THING! But yet, we often don’t take the time to build relationships, have conversations, and understand their needs, to know how to work with each other. Rather, we stand in our own silos and point to one other, blaming them for us not being able to get done what we need. The post-conversation was so incredible that the conference organizers invited me to give the same talk again to their EduTech Academics Conference crowd in 2023.
This brings up an important point… While there is, of course, value in our AV conferences. My favorite ones really are HETMA Conference (psst, registration is now open!), InfoComm, CCUMC/ETC, NW/MET (psst, registration is now open!), ISE Show (psst, registration is now open!), etc., where our people get to gather. But, the ones that I “came away smarter” and felt like I made an impact outside our vertical were the AV-adjacent conferences and events: the ones where I could collaborate with IT-professionals, capital planners, provosts, presidents, emerging tech leaders, facilities people, instructional designers, finance & CFOs, and others around our campuses who are not in our normal daily meetings. We may see them during miscellaneous capital project meetings, but often we stick to ourselves, and then complain when the other trades’ timelines and demands get in our way.
If I had one takeaway from this year’s travel, it was to learn to collaborate more in order to build bridges with departments I normally wouldn’t. Coffee (and/or cocktail) meetings will be a high priority moving forward. What also stuck out was that they were just as curious about what we do–and really respected what we do in supporting the classrooms and academic learning outcomes–as I was about them. We really really do all want the same thing… we all want our students to be successful. We just have different roles in making it happen. Let’s not forget that.
I am blessed to be invited to speak to such a wide range of audiences this past year. Campus Facilities Expo wasn’t the only “out of the norm” conference I attended. Here are a few other non-AV-specific ones that really impacted me most… Ones that I left feeling like real change, a real difference was made:
– United Nations: I mean, duh, invited to consult the UN on hybrid learning!?! It was a life-changing honor.
– Times Higher Education: THE oversees our global university rankings, so the crowd was provosts, presidents, and other administrative leaders. Truly humbled to share our vertical’s impact… Oh btw, they enjoyed it so much, I was invited to host next year’s global conference at USC in November. 🙂
– Chronicle of Higher Education: Amazing thinktank opportunity to share and collaborate on the future of the immersive campus.
– Techrity Conference: Non-profit organization in Nigeria focused on equipping teens and college-aged kids with IT and tech skills. ‘Nuff said. So amazing what they are accomplishing there.
– RTM Higher Ed: CIO conference that takes place three times per year. I serve on the advisory council alongside other CIO’s and director-and-higher IT professionals. I love hearing what my boss worries about and sharing the impact of AV in IT, since #AVisIT.
– Innovative Learning Spaces Summit: Looking at how we design our spaces from an architectural and space aspect is important as we integrate hybrid and collaborative learning. Plus, it was in Amsterdam. So there’s that.
– Metaverse Expo: Start-up event featuring all the players in the metaverse space. While still early, there are incredible opportunities for improving learning outcomes by leveraging this emerging technology.
The ability to represent our AV community and higher ed vertical outside our little bubble, and onto the global stage, I don’t take lightly. My goal for this next year is that I continue to represent us well, expanding our reach, building more bridges to non-traditional partners, and that I can continue to share the importance of what we do everyday. My holiday wish is that other higher ed AV pros are able to follow in my footsteps, stepping out of our normal scope, and have an impact with their AV-adjacent partners.
And in case you’re wondering about my 2023 calendar… Outside of the Los Angeles area, my travel plans so far include stops in… Spain, Japan, Germany, Austria, UAE/Dubai, UK-London(ish), Austin, Orlando, Washington DC, Denver, San Diego, Palm Springs, Helena, Las Vegas, San Antonio, San Francisco, and I’m sure a couple other cities that I can’t remember right now.
Oh, and my last takeaway from the AVSF Live! Holiday Spectacular… I blame Raj Singh (Start at the 36 minute mark) for jinxing USC’s championship opportunity.
