EDGE Bandwidth

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth,  a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

What if corporations reinvented the way they manage and lead their teams? For the longest time, businesses have followed pyramid hierarchy-based schemes without even questioning them; but there are much more effective, impactful and humane ways of collaborating with others. In today’s episode, we welcome Brent Lowe, Founder & Lead Coach at BASE Associates Inc., coach, and author of Leading Together, to talk all about new leadership styles, alternative ways of distributing power, and how to transition your business from a pyramid scheme to an organic, functioning ecosystem. Welcoming vulnerability, being willing to learn, stepping back and allowing others to lead, these are all key traits that true leaders must possess. Tune in to learn how you and your collaborators can completely transform your business culture, leading together.

Jump straight into:

(02:51) - The secrets to becoming an impactful leader - “There's so much as a company starts to grow where all that entrepreneurial energy starts to get stripped away and replaced by bureaucracy, and I started to wonder, is there a different way that we can do this?”

(07:00) - Leading Together: Reinventing leadership & management styles - “It is about moving away from a hierarchy, into an ecosystem and more of a peer to peer network. These systems only work if the individuals who are leading are ready to do the personal work.”

(20:54) - What about the team?: How to manage collaborators’ resistance to the transition - “We have a tendency often when we see resistance, to attempt to bulldoze right through that resistance, it doesn't work that well.”

(23:47) - Shifting the language to impact the culture - “The fact that we use slightly different language is very purposeful to make people find changes much more natural.”

(31:03) - Titles, promotions and stiff hierarchies: Why leading without power is possible - “It is about expanding our portfolio of knowledge and experience, so that we can take on higher levels of responsibility within a dynamic context.”

(36:06) - How Liberating Structures distribute power - “We need tools to help bring everybody's voice into the conversation and for ideas to bubble up and get traction for people to get answers.”

Episode Resources

Lead Together by Brent Lowe

Base Associates Inc.

The ETG Way Handbook

Liberating Structures

Connect with Brent

Through LinkedIn

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production services, feel free to check out their website. Special thanks to our sponsors over at Shure. 

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth, a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

The workforce for the AV industry is cutting short. Are there people out there interested in this industry? How do we reach out to them? In this episode, our host Chris Salazar-Mangrum and Jay Kowalsky talk to Chris Hope, Founder and Executive director of The Loop Lab, a BIPOC-led nonprofit that specializes in empowering women and people of color to develop careers in audio and video through job training and job placement. Chris’s social project provides not only career-focused services but holistic human development programs. He believes in building bridges and thinking about the world in terms of transformation rather than a transaction. Join this conversation and begin to shift the way you think about the AV industry. 

Jump straight into:

(00:11) - Who is Chris Hope and his social project The Loop Lab - “My personal mission is to advance equity in the tech workforce by creating opportunities and intersections between communities of color and the tech economy.”

(05:18) - More workforce and opportunities: The Loop Lab’s AV Apprenticeship Program - “The idea is to learn their craft and trade using the software and hardware that they're going to be expected to use on day one in their job in the industry.”

(09:13) - How to attract more talent? Show people what it could be - “They'll bring the skills, they’ll bring the talent, but we have to get out of this archaic way of how we even talk about what it is that we do.”

(14:01) - Empowering holistic human development - “People don't think about the barriers that are realities for people holistically: access to healthcare, access to adequate housing, behavioral and health concerns.”

(20:03) - The benefits of participating in mentorship as an organization - “You're bringing in somebody that has the skills and the knowledge necessary to actually perform on day one, which is something that new hires don't even have.”

(23:36) - The touching story behind Chris’s work - “How many times do we have to hear another young adult suffer because of challenges that we are just not able to live up to?”

(30:20) - Diversity and representation in the AV industry- “You want to be able to have that representation for folks that we want to be included. At the end of the day, I believe diversity really strengthens your ability as a company to sell your products to a broader demographic.”

Episode resources:

Connect with Jay through LinkedIn 

Connect with Chris through LinkedIn or email

The Loop Lab

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production services, feel free to check out their website. Special thanks to our sponsors over at Shure.

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth,  a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

The sequels that COVID-19 brought upon the integrator’s business are far from gone. The industry is experiencing supply and staff shortages, plus all the changes from remote working are still a relevant topic. Nonetheless, there are always new business opportunities and ways to accommodate services for clients. In this episode of USAV Bandwidth, we have Jay Kowalsky filling in for Chris Salazar Mangrum and Travis Deatherage of Linx Multimedia to talk about what’s going on in the industry, the new opportunities found in video conference rooms, and preventative maintenance in addition to the best ways to facilitate an equitable office culture for remote workers. Join now and learn about the integrator’s business from its best professionals!

Jump straight into:

(00:11) - Travis Deatherage’s knack to pivot: On Travis’s experience on the .com bubble and how he started his own business during a crisis - “I don't know if it was visionary to change into commercial or if it was survival.”

(03:05) - Providing the best possible environment for employees - “We're trying to create that kind of organization where it doesn't really matter what we're delivering. It's how we do what we do and the people we do it with, that's the glue for the organization.”

(05:07) - New business opportunities: Where is the integrators market going? - “We have a lot of spaces that are going to need to be refreshed with technology. That's going to create an engaged hybrid work experience where some people are in the office and some, or many people are still remote.”

(08:52) - Remote vs. in person: How to facilitate an equitable office culture for clients - “Their approach to bringing folks back to the office varies and it means different things to different folks. I think that's why it's so important to have that empathy in the process and understand their needs.” 

(14:47) - The supply and demand issue: Is the shortage in video equipment real? - “Yeah, it's happening there's constraints across the board in many industries with a variety of factors that have caused that.”

(20:55) - Preventative maintenance services: Getting everything ready to get back to the office - “We certainly have seen that uptick in service over the last 60 days, where those clients are reaching out and taking advantage of some of the offers we made.”

(22:20) - Staff and people: Should we be subcontracting or recruiting? - “We have been recruiting for some design engineers, have expanded that to be anywhere in the country and the talent pool that opened up was tremendous.”

(37:01) - Communication strategies to keep all collaborators up to date  - “As we continue with more remote working, one cultural thing we've learned is that the speed of communication has to pick up.”

Resources

Connect with Travis through LinkedIn

Connect with Jay through LinkedIn

Connect with Patrick through LinkedIn

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production services, feel free to check out their website. Special thanks to our sponsors over...

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth, a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

After the COVID-19 outbreak, remote work became the norm for the majority of companies throughout the world. It was, without a doubt, technology that allowed us to continue working even during the toughest part of confinement. Now, after almost a year working from home the question arises, will we ever go back to the office?

In this episode of USAV Bandwidth, our hosts Chris Salazar-Mangrum and Patrick Whipkey, sit with Jay Kowalsky, Director of Operations and Technology Leader at Red Thread to talk about the trends for home office spaces and return-to-work technologies. How an ergonomic chair and good internet connection helped us be as efficient as ever during the pandemic, plus how are companies going to adapt to a new scheme of work once the offices reopen. Will they keep a hybrid work experience for their staff or will we go back to business as usual? Join this conversation now and discover the new business opportunities and trends that the pandemic has brought upon us and how companies are making the best out of it. 

Jump straight into:

(00:11) - Return-to-work solutions - “We were forced into trying to understand how to keep businesses moving, and we leveraged technology to do that.”

(06:14) - The technological challenges of wellbeing - “Now safety brings on a whole nother level of health, safety, cleanliness, air quality, and air purification and all those weren't even thought about a year or two ago.”

(09:08) - Integrations to bring home comfort and safety into the office - “How to make the corporate feel a little bit more like a living room? Let's replicate the home office now with the corporate offices”. 

(12:54) - On diversification of products during the pandemic - “We had to read and react as well. What types of different products and solutions did our group need to either return to work internally or help with their clients?”

(17:12) - How video calls have changed people’s mindsets - “It's this circle of home, mobile and office, and being able to communicate and collaborate in any shape or form that way.”

(19:48) - The hit to commercial real estate - “Is not going away. Companies might take a look at the short-term and say ‘we're going to have to downsize given the circumstance’ but in the long-term, you're going to see no change.”

(22:37) - Reimagining better and more efficient workspaces - “You're going to see workspaces integrated with these technologies that we're seeing now more and more as time goes on.”

(28:24) - Closing thoughts on return-to-work tech - “You absolutely have to embrace technology. If you haven't yet you're gone. You're not going to be relevant, period.”

Resources

Connect with Jay through LinkedIn

Connect with Patrick through LinkedIn

Connect with Chris through LinkedIn

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production...

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth,  a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

Acquiring a company is one way to expand and diversify your business but... What kind of company should you look into? Should you sell or buy at a lower price? In this episode of USAV Bandwidth, our hosts Chris and Patrick sit for the second time with SCN’s 2021 Hall of Fame and industry expert, Tim Albright, to chat about the future of integrators, what are M&As going to look like in 2020, plus the different paths your company can follow if you are looking to expand.

Does an M&A help or hurt your end user? Is your company buying or are you the one getting bought? Tune in now to listen to the second part of this conversation with Tim. This episode was made to understand how to expand your business in the best way possible and learn what the trends indicate for this year and next!

Jump straight into:

(00:10) - Different types of M&A growth: Family-owned integration firms vs investment bankers - “Neither one is good or bad or otherwise, neither one is better than the other. It's just understanding that the two different philosophies and the two different things that are moving those decisions.”

(04:07) - Who is going to be buying who in 2021? The pros and cons of buying a diverse company to expand - “The traditional AV integrator is looking at the IT integrator because everything is network-based now, so that's just a natural progression to have more network offerings. Or vice versa, that IT guy is looking to the AV side of things.”

(06:19) - Selling at a lower price? - “I think that if I could make ‘21 work, I would write it out because 2020 was a hell of a year from a financial standpoint.”

(09:09) - On getting partner networks to diversify your products - “If you're looking at a different discipline partner with someone first, see how they're doing it. Number one, you can learn from them. Number two, you could buy them.”

(12:07) - Does your acquisition help or hurt your final client? - “When you start going down the merger and acquisition route, you eliminate people, you eliminate that diversity, you eliminate those choices. Now that also gives rise and makes margin and gives room.”

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production services, feel free to check out their website. Special thanks to our sponsors over at Shure. 

Welcome to USAV Bandwidth, a show hosted by Chris Salazar-Mangrum, Vice President of USAV and Patrick Whipkey, Director of USAV, to share their expertise and have insightful conversations with professionals from the AV industry.

It’s a fact, the way to do business is changing: clients want more complete services plus markets are shifting. But what can companies do to face these challenges? Diversify and converge. Diversification of disciplines, as well as convergence with other industries, have become more and more common for companies who look to grow and explore new markets. In this episode, we talk to Tim Albright, President at AVNation Media, Inc, about what diversification and convergence mean for a business and how to make the right decisions when looking to expand. 

Should I develop new divisions in my company? Is cybersecurity a good growing path to follow? What is the best market to work in? Diversifying may sound scary but we’ve got the answers to all your questions. Join us on this chat where we analyze the latest trends of the industry and discuss the pros and cons of introducing new tools to your toolbox. 

Jump straight into:

(01:03) - Why you should diversify disciplines: How having multiple offerings can benefit integrators - “If you do that little Venn diagram, that overlap between industries seems to get closer and closer.”

(09:00) - Developing new divisions: Learn from what your competitors have to offer - “Look at your biggest competitor: What do they have? What are the certifications? What lines do they carry?”

(12:14) - Cybersecurity: a growing opportunity - “If you have any business, you have a network. And if you have a network, you need to have security standards of some way, shape, or form.”

(15:49) - Should you get into the residential or commercial market? - “The same people that use your AV at the office are the same people that use it at home, and that’s an important note.”

(21:55) - What you should take into account when expanding your company to new markets - “Look at your A guys and see what their passions are. There is where I would look to grow.”

Thanks for tuning in! USAV Bandwidth is a show produced by StudioPod Media, for more information about their podcast production services, feel free to check out their website. Special thanks to our sponsors over at Shure.