If you’re a subscriber to Commercial Integrator or a frequent visitor to this site, you’ve probably read or at least noticed we’ve sprinkled a dozen profiles of unsung industry heroes into our coverage this year.
We called the feature Back Stage because we focused on people who are largely behind the scenes but without whom, the companies for which they work and the industry as a whole wouldn’t work as well.
In the beginning, that was truly the goal: to introduce readers to people who weren’t the CEO or in a corner office but who made their companies successful. What’s been interesting—and fun—is finding out that most of these people have hidden talents in addition to being good at their jobs.
Slideshow: 12 Unsung Heroes of the AV Industry
In one of my Reporter’s Notebook magazine columns, I mentioned how we could have made our own reality show out of all the talent we unearthed this year, largely from nominations by coworkers, industry association friends and others who wanted us to share these cool stories. As you might imagine, we found a lot of people with music running through their veins who eventually turned their attention to AV.
But we also were able to find a farmer, a military vet, a blog founder, a triathlete and someone who’s hoping to make this industry his new calling. Let’s take a look back at this eclectic group while we mull the idea of launching “AV’s Got Talent,” assuming we can find a snarky British judge for the panel.
