Commercial Integrator continues its ongoing #AVLivingLegends series, which celebrates the remarkable individuals who have shaped today’s commercial AV industry. This week, CI sits down with Bill Thrasher, chief operating officer of AV-Tech Media Solutions, our latest inductee into the #AVLivingLegends series.
Thrasher, son of a live sound engineer, started his career in AV after serving in the U.S. Marine Corps. He progressed from field installer to becoming one of the first 200 certified Crestron programmers in the U.S. Over two decades, he has expanded AV-Tech into a partner for Fortune 100 enterprises, emphasizing mentorship, leadership and company culture.
In this interview, Thrasher reflects on his journey in the AV industry, sharing the moments, mentors and mindset that shaped his path.
You can also check out our hub page to see all of our past #AVLivingLegends honorees!
Commercial Integrator: What motivated you to join the commercial AV industry?
Bill Thrasher: My dad was a live sound engineer — Billy Graham’s front-of-house guy — and a legend in the house of worship AV world. He was on staff at Walt Disney World, so I grew up in this industry — tech tunnels, events, gear. I tried to escape his shadow by joining the U.S. Marine Corps, aiming to become a career officer. But life changed — I met a gorgeous girl, started a family and realized military life wasn’t conducive for the life I wanted.
I asked my dad for an opportunity in AV, but I never worked full-time for him. I moonlighted with him while building my path. I got my start with Ancha Electronics Atlanta around 1999, as a grunt-level installer — racks, cable, sweeping the floor, everything. By the early 2000s, I was Crestron-certified — one of the first 200 in the U.S. That launched me into programming and changed my career path. I never looked back.
Commercial Integrator: What has kept you motivated and engaged in the decades that followed?
Thrasher: I’ve always said I’m a unicorn. I’m extremely technically strong, but people and culture are what drive me. AV is something I’m naturally great at, and it has provided for my family, but my real passion is leadership, culture-building and seeing others grow. I’ve blended my highly technical AV skills with the ability to connect with people.
AV-Tech let me live out my values: faith, family, work — in that order. Our culture reinforces that. I’ve helped build a place where people are respected, trusted and supported. That balance of the technical challenge and meaningful relationships is what keeps me engaged and has kept me at AV-Tech all these years.
Commercial Integrator: Reflect on your role as both a mentee early in your career and as a mentor later in your career. Who helped shape the trajectory of your professional life and how have you tried to help shape others’ careers?
Thrasher: A few people. Of course, my dad. He was the smartest audiovisual person I’ve ever met in my life. Colum Crilly, the founder of AV-Tech, saw me as a junior programmer, believed in me and gave me a chance in leadership. Bobby Smith, who works in our team now, taught me how to pull wire and build racks. Jon Waugh, AV-Tech’s President and CEO is an amazing friend and business mentor.
Today, I’ve mentored countless people. At AV-Tech, I’ve worked with probably 85 out of our 90-plus employees directly. About half the people here, I worked with before, either in the AV world or in my time working with the church. I saw raw talent in them and brought them here.
My newest focus is college-aged young adults. We put them in the field to learn the basics —cables, installing TVs, going up ladders — and then transition them into junior field engineers where they do programming, CAD, etc. Eventually, they’ll choose a path to specialize in, be it programming, project engineering or sales engineering. My goal is to help build their careers like others, who believed in me when I was younger and of course, we hope to retain them as well.
Commercial Integrator: What’s the most memorable story/anecdote of your career in commercial AV?
Thrasher: My car was broken into two times in the same week, working downtown Atlanta graveyard shift while installing AV in a new courthouse project, back in the early 2000s. I lost my tools and a valuable wedding gift, all in a matter of days. In hindsight, it’s kind of comical. But I never complained — it was just part of the job.
Ten years ago, my wife had brain surgery. People asked how I stayed positive, kept showing up and led the team. I didn’t have an answer —faith carried me. I’ve said it before: “This isn’t life or death, it’s just AV.” We’ve had people lose family members. We’ve lost co-workers. We’ve also celebrated 40-50 kids born to employees while at AV-Tech. Perspective matters. We focus on why we do what we do, not just what we do.
Life is too short to get upset about little stuff. I have my moments of stress, but in the grand scheme, I’m overwhelmingly blessed. Even if a meteor collapses AV-Tech and I’m lifting TVs again, as long as I have my family, kids, friends and my health, it is well with my soul. My faith gives me that peace and perspective.
Commercial Integrator: What has been your greatest professional accomplishment to date?
Thrasher: Achieving my certification in my early 20s. I wasn’t the best coder, but my programs worked — they were pretty bulletproof (outside of the occasional misspelled word on a touchpanel). That gave me a leg up. Second, helping build something special at AV-Tech. I joined when there were maybe a dozen people. Now we have over 90. That’s gracious, steady, targeted growth. Third, relationships. Lifelong friendships, clients and people both inside and outside the company. That’s by far the biggest accomplishment and blessing.
Commercial Integrator: What has been your biggest professional regret to date?
Thrasher: I don’t live by regrets – not at all. Every failure is a stepping stone. Leaving AV to pursue ministry for a little bit gave me perspective. Maybe I could’ve made more money or achieved more influence faster if I had made different decisions at specific turning points, but building something special here at AV Tech has been the most exciting and fulfilling experience.
Commercial Integrator: What’s the best advice or pearl of wisdom you either received during your career or came to realize on your own?
Thrasher: Patience. Allowing my career to unfold without chasing money or titles. It could’ve been lucrative to jump around, but [I believe] I have played the long game. That has provided me continuity and sustained relationships — way more valuable than anything financial.
Also, never make a decision from a place of fear. That’s one of my favorite sayings. And from World War II U.S. General George S. Patton: “A good plan violently executed today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.”
Get a good bead on it, pick a direction and run screaming ahead in that way.
Would you like to nominate a peer or colleague — or perhaps yourself! — to be featured in this #AVLivingLegends series? If so, just email Dan Ferrisi, [email protected].
