In January, Jeff Day, president of North of 10 Advisors, stepped up into the role of chairman of AVIXA's Board of Directors. We caught up with Day, who has been a member of the board since 2016, to get his take on the way AVIXA and the industry are reacting to this challenging time, and what we can expect going forward.
AVNETWORK: The last two years, we've asked about the AVIXA chairman about the integrated experience. What does the integrated experience look like right now, and what will it look like in the post-COVID-19 world?
JEFF DAY: I would say that the foundation of integrated experience was always around this notion that experience drives everything. Customer experience is everything, user interface is everything. The integrated experience is really the culmination of great products in the context of how they get used.
COVID-19, I believe, has underscored why integrated experience is truly still relevant—probably more so now than we ever could have imagined-because we are clearly living squarely in the middle of a crossroads of virtual and physical. We've got people without the same kind of experience in AV technology becoming really astute in using cameras and microphones properly to operate more effectively in a virtual world. So I think the relevance is super high and AVIXA and our industry have the stage-we have a stage to really communicate to the world what integrated experiences are all about.
AVN: What technology trends do you see flourishing going forward?
JD: The collaboration market is absolutely exploding. The name Zoom has become household, and we've got grandparents connecting with family on their TVs. A large portion of planet earth has participated in some form of a virtual call in the last 90 days. And I would say that that is our industry.
Then you have categories like display and audio, where people won't settle for virtual all the time. There will come a day that we are going to get back together again in places like stadiums and arenas, so the consideration for experience is going to be more important than ever. Also, now more than ever, brands want destination experiences that are immersive and engaging. And I expect that a big part of the future will include destination immersive experiences, and that's true certainly from corporate through entertainment.
AVN: Why is InfoComm 2020 still a can't-miss show, even in the virtual format?
JD: What's great about this year is there will be more opportunities to connect virtually than perhaps you could have ever accomplished face to face at the show. Such a big part of InfoComm is opportunity to connect with each other and make connections either for personal or business reasons. This year, we'll be using video and chat and other networking tools to be able to build upon those connections. And I think it will create excitement and buzz for the next time that we actually get together.
AVN: What are you looking forward to most in the remainder of your year as chairman?
JD: I am watching today the conversations I was part of in 2016 come to reality. Four years later, we are watching the integrated experience unfold in its majesty. For me, it's not about an event; it's about witnessing firsthand within my tenure on the board that these things actually materialized-they've actually happened.
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