Meetings — Blog Editor

Last week the USAV integration service group met virtually for their annual fall meeting. Normally the event is in person but with COVID spikes, it was decided that it would be better to do a fully virtual meeting. The format was 3-days with only 2 hours of meetings per day. This gave the integrators the ability to have time each day for their normal work tasks.

Day one kicked off one with presentation by Bluewater Technologies, USIS Audio Visual, Rahi Systems, and CTCI. It was an impressive group of presentations. Attendees then broke out into smaller groups to discuss various industry topics. Everything from supply chain to labor shortages and even bid spec projects were discussed.

Day two started with wins, losses, and lessons learned from USAV integrators. Up first was IMS Technology who presented their project at the US Squash Headquarters. It was an impressive installation with a beautiful end result. Then ET Group in Canada took us through their process working with an international client. Not only was their approach a little different, they also leaned heavily on the USAV International Partner Program to deploy all of the projects globally. Lastly, Lightwerks present on a few projects that went south very quickly. The key take away from their presentation was to not be a sub of a sub. It will run your people through the mud and the risk vs reward does not make it worth it.

To close out the meeting, on day three, Marina Blickley, a human resources Attorney from Odin, Feldman & Pittleman, presented on HR law and Covid-19. It was a lot of information to take in and our group was hanging on Marina’s every word. There is no hard and fast rule but you have to be careful. “Document, Document, Document” was the key phrase. After the HR and Covid-19 Q&A, the USAV/PSA Executive team present their five year plan along with some other key highlights that are being worked on behind the scenes. The day closed out with a virtual happy hour sponsored by Almo and Sharp. Participants played four rounds of Kahoots and it was a lot of fun.

It was great seeing new and familiar faces and getting everyone together to discuss what is going on in everyone’s different businesses. Watch for information regarding events to meet together in person in early 2022.

From “What is your because?” to performing in high-pressure situations, USAV took their members on an incredible two-day journey with the integrator members and strategic vendor partners in the annual Spring Partners Meeting. In the age of virtual meetings being the norm, USAV group set out on a mission to change the game for the Spring Partners Meeting. Planning began in December with the dealer advisory council (DAC) and with Brent Lowe who is the “Scale Coach for Founder CEOs”, esteemed author, and master facilitator. The option of regional hub-hosts was offered for small groups to gather in different regions of the country all linked through a virtual platform enhancing the hybrid feel of in-person interaction and online. The hub hosts, LINX Multimedia in Downtown Denver and Almo Professional AV in Long Island, NY led the pack with successful and safe execution of hosting. The Denver hub was set up with a full production team and the result was awesome.

Day 1 started on Tuesday, March 23rd with an opening keynote from Gerry O’Brion. Gerry is a keynote speaker, branding strategist, and franchise expert. His branding and marketing mastery walked the audience through his framework of “what is your because” to allow customers to pick your business from a crowded market. Gerry then spent time with the audience through a hands-on workshop to help companies identify their ideal customer, what are the customer’s insights and outcomes, to land on what is your because? We ended the day with some partner roundtable discussions and small breakouts to discuss how everyone can pivot from surviving to thriving.

Day 2 started on Wednesday, March 24th with a business review meeting and dealer advisory council (DAC) voting for USAV integrator members. Transitions within the DAC include:

Travis Deatherage of Linx Multimedia and exiting DAC chair is now replaced by Jay Kowalsky of Red Thread. Travis will stay on in a past-DAC chair role to help with the transition
Debbie Williamson of Tempest Technologies was voted into a DAC seat
Dennis Schliske of VICOM was voted into a DAC seat

We then moved into virtual breakouts with our vendor partners and discussed how to transition our businesses from surviving to thriving in 2021. The energy in the room was fantastic and most people are confident in the pent-up demand and are hopeful for a big Q3 and Q4.

We wrapped up the 2-day session with a powerful closing keynote speaker, John “Gucci” Foley. John is a former lead solo pilot for the Blue Angels. His message of “Glad to be here” was powerful and simple, and a strong ethos to live by. He talked about how to work in high-pressure situations all while keeping a cool head. From G forces to 18” distance to the next plane his pictures and videos were truly jaw-dropping. John pointed out how important the debrief was after a flight. In this meeting, you point out everything that went well and the things that need improvement. Through this process, the team grows and builds everlasting trust.

In the closing, John mentioned three simple words that sum up the USAV model. “Give, Learn, Grow.” Here at USAV, we talk about this a lot but these three words really summed it up nicely.

The more you give to USAV, the more you learn, and the more you learn the more you grow as an individual and as a company.

We thank you for attending the two-day session and hope that you are bringing back the tools you learned to your organizations. Keep an eye out for some upcoming events on our website. Glad to be here!