• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

My TechDecisions

  • Best of Tech Decisions
  • Topics
    • Video
    • Audio
    • Mobility
    • Unified Communications
    • IT Infrastructure
    • Network Security
    • Physical Security
    • Facility
    • Compliance
  • RFP Resources
  • Resources
  • Podcasts
  • Project of the Week
  • About Us
    SEARCH
Unified Communications

You’re Officially Out of Excuses: Time to Prepare for IT Convergence

The convergence of AV and IT continues to transform the industry.

March 4, 2015 TD Staff Leave a Comment

InfoComm’s response was to develop a three-tiered course system with a section on the basics of networking; a network technology course similar to training you might see from CompTIA but with an AV focus; and the specific Networked AV Systems course that gives those with good fundamentals a more hands-on experience.
InfoComm even went so far as to create and publish a book, Networked AV Systems, with McGraw Hill.

Melissa Taggart, senior VP of education at InfoComm, says, “We [at InfoComm] converged our curriculum a long time ago. Our curriculum is current in that regard through all the tracks that we offer.”

By providing training opportunities throughout the year with live classes at the annual InfoComm tradeshow, regional events and online — both instructed webinars and course material — there is always something that can be learned. But when it comes to the IT training, it really begins with the IT skills diagnostics test available online to help AV professionals understand which level of training/education is most appropriate for them to continue advancing their development.

Taggart says InfoComm is “always looking at supplementing some of the new trends that are going on” and that the organization is always “looking for new things to release through our webinar series and other opportunities.”

In continuing to push the industry forward InfoComm is always thinking a year ahead, planning for next June’s tradeshow almost as soon as the announcement bellows to close this year’s. As the attendance at tradeshows starts shifting to include a lot more IT professionals, Taggart says, the “us versus them” attitude in AV seems to be less pervasive and that there is “more healthy respect for unique expertise.”

And those seeking the integration knowledge are not necessarily representing just AV professionals anymore, but now there are also IT directors, technology managers, and media specialists attending the shows, making it harder to get a seat in some of the education courses.

Taggart encourages people to “come to the show a few days early to take courses so that [attendees] can put into context what they are seeing on the show floor.”

There Is Always a Best Practice

The thing that is sometimes forgotten in the AV industry is that there are more places to turn than just manufacturer specific training and InfoComm International.

One of the other groups that works with the technology industries is BICSI. Tom Bennett, an ICT training delivery specialist for BICSI, emphasizes that the organization is “all about best practices,” and touts how they develop their training courses by taking input from the professionals that are out there designing and installing IT and AV systems.

Bennett says he spends a lot of time teaching IT technology, from infrastructure and network cabling backbones, to best practices and standards in proper system design. BICSI has even gone so far as to develop Standard 002 in which they define all that is entailed in the proper design of a data center.

When asked about the AV/IT convergence, Bennett says he sees it as “a common evolution” and raised the comparison to the telecommunications industry and its evolution from analog to digital. “If manufacturers do their jobs and everyone understands the limitations of the systems and the training is provided, it is not a difficult transition to make,” he suggests.

Since the BICSI focus is on establishing best practices and standards, Bennett explored some of the options that come into consideration for AV/IT design. He specifically addressed the idea of building a separate network for AV infrastructure as they do in the security industry to ensure there are no bandwidth issues due to the amount of data involved in passing video over IP.

Toward that end, BICSI hopes to ensure that integrators and systems designers always ask, “can this [existing] network withstand the network requirements of this AV system I’m about to overlay on it?”

Pages: Page 1 Page 2 Page 3

If you enjoyed this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our digital newsletters!

Tagged With: Corporate

Related Content:

  • Engaging virtual meeting with diverse participants discussing creative ideas in a bright office space during daylight hours Diversified Survey: Workplace AV Tech is Falling Short,…
  • women using Yealink WH64 Hybrid wireless headset Hybrid Work Trend Arises: The Impact on DECT…
  • Yealink banner WH64 Hybrid Wirless Headset Yealink Introduces WH64 Hybrid DECT & Bluetooth Wireless…
  • Children using smartboard in classroom | Interactive learning with modern technology PPDS & DisplayNote Introduce Philips ScreenShare for Wireless…

Free downloadable guide you may like:

  • Practical Design Guide for Office SpacesPractical Design Guide for Office Spaces

    Recent Gartner research shows that workers prefer to return to the office for in-person meetings for relevant milestones, as well as for face-to-face time with co-workers. When designing the office spaces — and meeting spaces in particular — enabling that connection between co-workers is crucial. But introducing the right collaboration technology in meeting spaces can […]

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Downloads

Practical Design Guide for Office Spaces
Practical Design Guide for Office Spaces

Recent Gartner research shows that workers prefer to return to the office for in-person meetings for relevant milestones, as well as for face-to-fa...

New Camera Can Transform Your Live Production Workflow
New Camera System Can Transform Your Live Production Workflow

Sony's HXC-FZ90 studio camera system combines flexibility and exceptional image quality with entry-level pricing.

Creating Great User Experience and Ultimate Flexibility with Clickshare

Working and collaborating in any office environment today should be meaningful, as workers today go to office for very specific reasons. When desig...

View All Downloads

Would you like your latest project featured on TechDecisions as Project of the Week?

Apply Today!

More from Our Sister Publications

Get the latest news about AV integrators and Security installers from our sister publications:

Commercial IntegratorSecurity Sales

AV-iQ

Footer

TechDecisions

  • Home
  • Welcome to TechDecisions
  • Contact Us
  • Comment Guidelines
  • RSS Feeds
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin

Free Technology Guides

FREE Downloadable resources from TechDecisions provide timely insight into the issues that IT, A/V, and Security end-users, managers, and decision makers are facing in commercial, corporate, education, institutional, and other vertical markets

View all Guides
TD Project of the Week

Get your latest project featured on TechDecisions Project of the Week. Submit your work once and it will be eligible for all upcoming weeks.

Enter Today!
Emerald Logo
ABOUTCAREERSAUTHORIZED SERVICE PROVIDERSYour Privacy ChoicesTERMS OF USEPRIVACY POLICY

© 2025 Emerald X, LLC. All rights reserved.