Commercial Integrator: Buzz-Worthy CIs - Launched: Tomei AV Consulting LLC

The launch of Tomei AV Consulting was mentioned in Commercial Integrator's March 2015 print issue, in the Buzz-Worthy CIs section:

Buzz-Worthy CIs

Launched - Tomei AV Consulting LLC recently launched as an independent audio visual consultant based in Central New York.  Owned by Mike Tomei, it aims to provide AV management consulting, system design and project management to the higher education, K-12, corporate and commercial markets.  Tomei has worked in audio visual design/support departments at Harvard University, Ithaca College, Walt Disney World and as a freelance technician. 

Systems Contractor News: Shifting Needs - Integrators and Consultants Weigh in on Adapting to Higher Ed Changes

The editor of Systems Contractor News (SCN) asked me for some comments about the needs analysis process for working with higher ed clients.  It's on page 57 of the SCN April 2015 issue:

"Audio visual system design is at the forefront of instructional technology, with concepts like flipped classrooms, lecture capture and active/collaborative learning environments all very popular right now.  Not only are instructors the driving force behind these new teaching methods; administrators at brick and mortar higher education institutions see many of these ideas as selling points that will set them apart from the online institutions.  This means that anyone involved with AV system design in higher ed institutions has to put a heavy emphasis on the needs-analysis phase of the project, assuring that they deliver the kind of classroom technology that instructors and administrators are seeking.

Involving the end-users in pre-design focus groups is a must.  Include instructors, students, as well as representatives from the provost's office, facilities (interior designer) and your campus' academic technology support group.  Bringing end-users on a benchmarking field trip to a peer institution that has implemented some of this newer AV technology in their classrooms goes a long way.  Not only will the end-users get some hands on experience trying this new technology, but you can learn from the successes/mistakes made by others.

Most importantly, a semester or two after instructors have been using these newer classroom styles, reassemble the focus groups for feedback on how the AV technology is helping or hindering teaching.  

-Mike Tomei, owner, Tomei AV Consulting"

Higher Ed Tech Decisions: 5 Career Questions with AV Consultant Mike Tomei of Tomei AV Consulting

The editor of Higher Ed Tech Decisions interviewed me in March about my background, my services, and how I started my own consulting business.  She also recorded the full conversation and posted it online.

Here's some excerpts from the interview:

March 12, 2015 

written by:  Jessica Kennedy 

1)  What is your background in the realm of AV?

MT:  My interest in the audio visual world started over 20 years ago. I was a high school student and I signed up to be on the sound crew for my high school’s musical and I figured it was a good way to add something to my resume for college applications. I really had an interest in it and it pretty much stuck from there.

Most of my professional AV career I’ve spent working in various support and design roles at Harvard University, Ithaca College, and Walt Disney World as a freelance AV technician. Most of my AV career has been in higher ed, which is why I put such a strong emphasis on my AV management consulting service that I have. For professional development I’ve earned both the InfoComm CTS-D and CTS-I Certifications, so I’ve done a lot of AV design work and also installation work in the field.

2)  What kinds of projects do you specialize in higher ed?

MT:  The services I provide I separate into two separate categories. I provide what can be considered typical AV consultant services, which would be system design and installation project management services….I also work with academic AV support departments to develop AV strategic plan for the organization and then also look at their peers and do some benchmarking as far as what other institutions are doing or installing with AV in the classroom or on campus.

From a structural standpoint, I analyze their existing AV support staff, the organizational structure that they have, I train existing staff to get them up to speed and embrace a more modern approach to academic AV design and support and I also participate in the hiring of new staff for those departments to beef up their staff.

After the department’s strategy and structure are in place, I look at their management and operations.  That would typically include developing comprehensive system design standards documents for the campus. I would refine the project management process for equipment installations. I can assist with space planning on campus from an audio-visual standpoint. A lot of people don’t have technology life cycle replacement programs set up, so I work with them to develop those for the AV equipment installed in classrooms. A lot of AV departments just don’t have strong end user training documentation, so I work with them to write and develop that.

3)  What is the background of your new business, Tomei AV Consulting? Why did you start it?

MT:  I’ve always had an interest in doing my own business. I guess I just have that entrepreneurial spirit and finally decided that it was time to give it a try. I really enjoyed my job at Ithaca College and decided it was time to try my own thing. I saw a need in the market. A lot of [consultants] will come from New York City or Boston or pretty far away, and that’s tough with clients when [schools] need their consultant onsite to take a look at something that the contractor or electrician is installing and their consultant is many hours away, or a different a state. So there’s that need, and the need for AV management consulting.

4)  What is the most challenging part of your job?

MT: The most challenging part of starting the business so far has been the marketing. I’m a one-man shop – I do everything. Working on the end user side, I never really had to think about marketing working in higher ed, but now I have to do everything. I’ve been spending a lot of time networking and sending out marketing material.

5)  What is the most rewarding part of being an AV consultant?

MT:  So far, the response I’ve been getting from people. When I started the business I had done a good deal of research talking to other consultants, and other people in higher ed institutions that I developed relationships with. I had a pretty good idea there was a need for this sort of thing in Central New York. But you never really know until you do it, and my biggest fear was I was going to send out all this marketing material and just not hear a peep from anybody but that hasn’t been the case at all. Everyone has been really responsive and supportive of the idea. It was a really great feeling when I started getting those phone calls and emails coming back. I got over the hurdle of getting my first client and it’s been snowballing from there. It is a really good feeling when business starts picking up like that.

6)  What advice do you have for other AV specialists looking to start their own business?

MT:  I think it’s extremely rewarding, but you have to have the guts to do it. When I talked to my wife, she said she could never, ever do something like this. She needs that structure of working for somebody else, where I have that entrepreneurial spirit. So you need to make sure you have that entrepreneurial spirit where you have the guts to do it, and the patience of sending out the marketing materials and network and work these relationships knowing that business will come your direction. It’s just going to take a lot of work. People aren’t going to call you up and hand you money. You really need to prove why you’re going to be beneficial to them. That’s been the biggest part.

AVNation EdTech podcast: Episode 34 (March 2015)

After taking the month of February off because of some timing conflicts with ISE, the AVNation EdTech podcast is back this month.  Even though I no longer am working in higher ed as a tech manager, Tim was kind enough to let me stay on the podcast since I'm still very involved with higher ed AV support in my new consulting role.  In this episode we discuss an Extron amplifier with a Dante input, Panasonic's new 4K Blu-ray player, the need (or lack of need) for physical media playback in the classroom, the legality of instructors transferring their VHS tapes to DVD, flipped and active learning classrooms, and a chance for me to introduce my new consulting business, Tomei AV Consulting.

Tim Albright's AV Nation blog: Transitioning from Tech Manager

Tim Albright wrote a blog post and made a nice mention of Tomei AV Consulting:

"As I write this the AVNation team is about 24 hours from landing in Amsterdam for ISE 2015. We have talked extensively about it. For all the coverage we will be doing over the next week you can go to our ISE 2015 page.

Today, however, I have some of my fellow technology managers on my mind. As opportunities like ISE come up I am struck by where my beginnings in AV were; a technology manager. This is the sometimes thankless job of supporting faculty, managing budgets, staying up on the latest changes in technology, and staying current on certifications. Technology managers design, install, program, and maintain vast swaths of rooms; everything from a simple 20 person classroom to auditoriums. There are some great ones out there. Ernie Bailey from UAMS, Greg Brown of UCLA, Scott Tiner of Bates College and more. These people do what they do at their institutions plus volunteer to give InfoComm International the insight they need to help the tech managers.

There are some tech managers who have moved on to other endeavors. Matt Silverman who worked for George Mason University now works for Crestron. I went from Lewis & Clark Community College to Innovad, and independent programming and design consulting firm. Now my friend, Mike Tomei, has made the switch as well. Mike has ventured out on his own to start a consulting business of his own. Here’s why you should hire a tech manager, or former tech manager.

Design Breadth

Tech managers have seen nearly every use of AV in their schools. Educational institutions have board rooms, VTC, audio conferencing, classrooms, gyms, stadiums, and broadcast facilities. These tech managers need to be able to assess what the end user is trying to accomplish in their space and create a design that meets budget and performance requirements. They are some of the most creative designers I have run into.

Technical Education

This group is in an environment that values education, certifications, and degrees probably more than most. That being the case, most are encouraged to further their knowledge which means they are on top of the latest education AV companies and organizations have to offer.

Value Engineering

Most of us hate this word. However, tech managers have learned to use it to their advantage. This is why I say they are the most creative designers out there. They know the tricks to get what they need out of a room while balancing the budget arm of their institution.

Work Ethic

You want someone who knows the meaning of a deadline? How about a group of people who will work all weekend before a semester starts because “all these classrooms have to be ready by Monday”? Yeah, these are the folks. More than once the story has been told of starting on a Friday night and walking out at 12:01 Monday before a semester. These people know how to get stuff done.

Now, are there some tech managers who aren’t so great, sure. For the most part every tech manager I have encountered is a hard working, talented AV professional. If you get the chance to bring one on your staff you should at least have a conversation with them.

I am off to Amsterdam to get to know ISE better. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Have a great week."

Commercial Integrator: Tomei AV Consulting to Shine in Education Market

Commercial Integrator published an article about the formation of my company on their website in February 2015:

The AV integration industry is definitely growing, and the proof is in the number of new businesses blooming in this time of economic recovery.  The industry earned a new colleague this past January when Mike Tomei started Tomei AV Consulting LLC, an independent audio visual consulting firm based in Central New York.

Tomei spent over a decade working in AV design and support departments at Harvard University, Ithaca College and even Disney World. He has also worked as a freelance technician in the field, holding both of the InfoComm CTS-D and CTS-I certifications.  Mike Tomei is also a recurring guest on AVNation’s EdTech podcast.

Tomei AV Consulting provides AV management consulting, system design and project management to the higher education, K-12, corporate and other commercial markets. As the owner, Tomei will bring his unique experience of AV design and support in the education market to his firms’ projects.

“The unique aspect that sets me apart from most AV consultants is that in addition to providing clients with traditional AV consulting services like system design and installation project management, I also focus on providing management consulting to higher education and K-12 AV design and support departments,” says Tomei.

The consulting firm will supply services such as AV strategic plan development, organizational structure analysis, staff development, AV standards development, spacial planning and operations analysis.

Visit Tomei AV Consulting to learn more.

AVNation EdTech podcast: Episode 33 (Jan 2015)

I kicked off the new year by appearing on my third episode of the AVNation EdTech podcast.  In this month's episode, Tim, Ernie, Greg and I discussed a new Epson sub-$400 projector, mobile apps that are useful for AV professionals, who should own the campus mass notification system, our approaches to handling the BYOD trend in our classrooms, and does virtual reality have a place in the AV world.

AVNation EdTech podcast: Episode 32 (Dec 2014)

Tim, Greg and Ernie were nice enough to invite me to be on my second episode of the AVNation EdTech podcast.  We discussed Harvard photographing students to study attendance, Sony's newest 4K projector, mass notification systems, the internet of things increasing, and InfoComm's APEx program.  Make sure to tune into the January episode, since I'll be joining the guys again for more nerdy AV talk.

AVNation EdTech podcast: Episode 31 (Nov 2014)

I made my podcasting debut in this episode of AVNation's EdTech podcast.  We discussed Crestron's DMPS processor upgrades, Panasonic's new ultra short throw projector lens, Crestron's RoomView Connected (aka Crestron Connected) feature and SIMPL module, AMX's JITC certification, and other exciting topics in the world of higher ed AV.  I must have said something right, because the EdTech guys said they'll have me back for the December episode.

Rental & Staging Systems: InfoComm for the first time

I attended my first InfoComm Show in 2008, and Rental & Staging Systems Magazine asked me to write daily blog posts during the show.  After the show was over, they summarized my blog posts as an article in the August issue of the magazine.  I was working at Harvard University at the time, and a big part of my job was supervising the live event AV support on campus, hence the rental & staging connection.  I figured I would re-post my article for those of you attending for the first time (or even the show veterans):

InfoComm For The First Time
Rental & Staging Systems Magazine
August 2008

InfoComm 2008 has come and gone. It seems like just yesterday that I was battling the 105 degree heat on my way to check into the Las Vegas Hilton. This was my first time attending an InfoComm show, so I was really excited about the idea of going. Before going, I spent some solid time planning out an extremely busy schedule of classes, networking, meetings, presentations and parties. Even though I was heavily scheduled during the day, I still had a decent amount of time to walk the show floor and visit booths. 

My focus at the show was mainly one of education and networking. I'm obviously interested in the new technology on display, but that angle was well covered by my travel partner, our classroom installation project manager.

Here's a summary of what I ended up doing during the week, with a quick day by day dairy that follows.

Classes:
I ended up taking four classes at InfoComm: Rental & Staging Business Survival Kit, How to Train Rental/Hire and Staging Staff, Anatomy of a Las Vegas Staging Event and Entertainment Electrical Power. I didn't take any of the longer multiday certification prep courses, since I simply didn't have the time. Originally I had also signed up for two of the manufacturer's training courses, but I ended up cancelling them since my schedule looked way too busy. In hindsight, I'm really glad I cancelled them, and I think in the future I'll limit myself to only two or three classes. It was just a bit too busy with four classes in three days. 

Presentations:
The two big presentations that I attended were the Manufacturers Forum and the Rental & Staging Forum. Both had completely different feels to them, with the Manufacturer's Forum being more of a panel discussion and the Rental & Staging Forum more of an interactive event with the help of an audience response system. 

Networking and parties:
The major networking events that I attended were the InfoComm Opening Reception, Extron Educator's Reception, ExpoJam (with the Gin Blossoms performing) and the Rental & Staging Reception. At night I stayed busy with parties hosted by Extron, Crestron, and VER. 

Show floor:
This year you couldn't help but notice that digital signage related booths were all over the place. Professionally, I don't deal with much digital signage, but it was still interesting to see the advancements in that sector.  Telepresence technology was starting to make more of an appearance at the show, and of course everywhere you turned it was HD this and HD that. 

Day 1 (Tuesday):
I checked into the Hilton around 1pm and decided to make my way over to the Las Vegas Convention Center to check things out and get registered. The show floor didn't open until Wednesday, but I was able to sneak in the north hall and check out everyone scurrying about to get all the booths set. I had never been in the Las Vegas Convention Center before, so I was blown away at the sheer size of the place. That was just the north hall. The show also consumed the center hall, lobby and many meeting rooms too. They also rented out a large amount of meeting space at the Hilton too. It was InfoComm as far as the eye could see.  

The Manufacturer's Forum started at 4pm. The event was hosted by Gary Kayye, and featured a panel of Gerry Remers from Christie, George Feldstein from Crestron, Michael MacDonald from Harman, Joe Sigrist from Polycom, and Jeff Porter from Scala who was filling in for the CEO, who was stuck on a delayed flight. 

I found their opening remarks interesting, since they touched on issues and problems that are obviously at the forefront of the company and industry. In his opening remarks, Gerry from Christie made mention of the church market becoming increasingly important to them, and also the fact that many people are moving toward unconventional aspect ratios, rather than just sticking with 4:3 or 16:9. George from Crestron opened with talk of the convergence of all types of AV technology and mentioned that the adoption of new technology by the end user will push the industry through the recession. Michael from Harman commented on the challenge for them of the collapse of distribution layers. Joe from Polycom opened with the concept of "video is going mainstream" and talked about "HD" and "telepresence" becoming mainstream terms with even non-tech savvy individuals. Jeff from Scala, a digital signage software company, talked about a wide variety of industries jumping on the "digital signage bandwagon". 

After the Manufacturer's Forum I visited the InfoComm Opening Reception, the Extron Educators Reception, and the ExpoJam featuring the Gin Blossoms. All were well attended and kicked off the week nicely. 

Day 2 (Wednesday):
My day got started at 8am with the Anatomy of a Las Vegas Staging Event class. On a side note, the 8am classes were hard to wake up for after a night at the parties. Unfortunately, I had two 8am classes during the week. Anyway, back on track, the course goal of Anatomy of a Las Vegas Staging Event was to provide information about working a staging job in the Vegas market. It was hosted by JP Brozyna from AGF Media Services, and featured a panel of Joe Leone from the Wynn Hotel, Warren Tash from AV Concepts and Chris Prosio from Barco (and all those great Rental & Staging Systems articles too.)  All of the panelists provided some solid insight into staging a corporate event or meeting in the city with the largest amount of meeting space in the US. 

After the class I ran down to the show floor for my first exposure to it with all the booths fully set up. I met up with my coworker and our sales rep from our installer. I had just enough time to check out the Extron and Sanyo booths before choking down some food and running off to my next class.

The course I took next had to do with creating a training program for rental & staging techs. It was taught by Don Guzauckas from HB Group. I was really surprised at how many in the class don't have a training program in place. I think too many people put too much emphasis on the equipment angle and neglect the staffing side of the industry. As Don said, training is expensive, but think about the cost of losing one big client because of poorly trained techs. 

After the class I was immediately off to the Rental & Staging Forum and Reception. It was hosted by Tom Stimson, and featured a panel of Matt Emerson (the Chair of InfoComm's R&S Council), Doug Hunt from American Audio Visual Center, Bob Leon from Colortone, Janne Mummert from VER and Wayne Vincent from MVP International. Tom posed questions about industry revenue, fuel costs, green AV and HD. We all had a personal response system to answer questions posed by Tom. About 100 audience members usually voted on each question. At some point you'll be able to download all the questions and results from the InfoComm website.  

I, along with about 8,000 other people, scurried to the shuttle buses for the ExtronBASH at the Palms Hotel. Since it's Extron's 25th anniversary, they spared absolutely no expense. They rented out the Palms pool, 2 restaurants next to the pool and the Palms nightclub, Rain. A cover band playing in Rain, food and drink everywhere, blackjack games and Dwight Yoakam performing made for a busy evening. Apparently Dwight is one of Andrew Edwards' favorite performers, so the big boss booked him for this show. They had an amazing turnout and some great presence. I've never see so many Extron gobos projected in one place, and the event had what seemed to be an endless sea of Extron employees attending. 

Day 3 (Thursday):
Another 8am class kicked off this day for me, and this is the one I've really been looking forward to: the Rental & Staging Business Survival Kit taught by Tom Stimson. I'm a huge fan of Tom's newsletter and R&S Systems articles, but never had the opportunity to hear him speak in person. My conclusion: make sure you go out of your way to attend a class taught by Tom. He's an extremely interesting person and presents his material in a very interactive and compelling fashion. His class focused on many of the best practices tips that he's accumulated over his years of experience. He can back all of his tips up with real world examples, and really makes you think about how you go about completing your day to day operational tasks. You really need to catch him when he presents at one of the upcoming Rental & Staging Systems Roadshows. 

The next six hours was spent walking the show floor with my coworker. On the classroom installation side of my job, we use a bunch of Crestron and Extron, so we made sure to get full booth tours. Crestron's Quick Media technology is pretty exciting, and Extron's latest release of their Global Viewer Enterprise software was great to see. We also had the opportunity today to make our way through audio land.  

At 5pm I was off to the Crestron party, and man do they know how to throw a great party. We started at the MGM pool. They rented it out for a cocktail reception complete with a band and mermaids swimming in the pool. Then it was inside to enjoy a performance of Cirque Du Soleil's "Ka." Crestron rented out the whole theater. If you haven't seen a Cirque show, you must go immediately. From a tech standpoint they're just amazing. I can even begin to explain this stage they had that could raise and lower on a lift like I've never seen, and it could rotate and tilt on a central point. Just amazing. After the Ka show, Crestron rented out the MGM Grand's Studio 54 club for dancing until 10pm.  

After that party I jetted over to the Mandalay Bay's House of Blues for "The Party @ InfoComm", hosted by VER with partners AV Stumpfl, Green Hippo Video Systems, Martin and tmb. I got there just in time to hear Berlin and the Bangles play. Great show! VER and Green Hippo had the stage decked out fully in LED panels. Very fun night. 

Day 4 (Friday):
The end is near! I couldn't believe how fast my time had gone at InfoComm, but the final day was upon us. My final class was "Entertainment Electrical Power" taught by Alan Rowe from IATSE Local 728 in Burbank, CA. Power issues have always been an area I've been lacking in, so I was looking forward to this class. Alan was under the impression that most of us would be from the film and TV production end of things, but when he heard before class that most of us are sound guys or from the staging world, he did a nice job of changing and customizing his content on the fly. He talked about all the basics of show power: calculating loads, single and three phase power, cabling and most importantly, electrical safety. I was especially interested in the safety issues, so I can pass along this information to the techs I supervise. 

After the class I ran down to the show floor to join up with my coworker one last time. We finally made our way down to the Large Venue Display Gallery at the far end of the north hall. Sony, Christie, Digital Projection and Barco all had some massive projectors on display.  

We finished up the day at the Sanyo booth. My coworker and I entered to win one of 8 HD camcorders or a LCD projector. My coworker was a lucky winner of one of the cameras, so that was a nice way to end the show. 

So my first InfoComm has come and gone. I'm absolutely exhausted, but I'm glad that I kept my intense pace up during the show. There was a ton to see, and I feel like I really pushed hard to experience all that I wanted to. It was great to see so many enthusiastic people involved with the AV industry in one place. It was a very inspiring atmosphere, and gave me a great feeling about the state of the industry. See you in Orlando in 2009!