Our print publication, Commercial Integrator + Security Sales & Integration, uses a plus sign as a visual indicator of a mission to bring together two worlds — namely, commercial AV and electronic security — that have more in common than they do apart. The same goes for the co-located CEDIA Expo and Commercial Integrator Expo (CIX 2024), emanating from Denver’s Colorado Convention Center in September. The co-located shows will unite the worlds of custom-home integration and commercial AV to allow technology professionals of all stripes to learn, network and grow together. Three months post-InfoComm and after everyone’s return from summer holiday, it will be the perfect opportunity to prepare your business to thrive in Q4 and beyond.
Here, I’ll take a moment to highlight just a few reasons you should consider attending CEDIA Expo and CIX in September. (Registration is open now!)
IMCCA Content Tracks at CEDIA Expo and CIX 2024
First, we’re excited to welcome the Interactive Multimedia and Collaborative Communications Alliance (IMCCA) as a returning content partner. From Sept. 4-6, the IMCCA will present informative content sessions that illuminate the changing face of collaboration, whether in workplaces, education settings or smart homes. Sessions will include “Beyond Good Enough – Evolving Your Home Office to a Home Studio,” “AI in Collaboration Systems” and “Meeting Equity Explained.” Speakers presenting in this track include IMCCA director of emerging technologies David Danto, as well as QSC’s Amelia Vrabel, Starin’s Chris Neto, Let’s Do Video’s David Maldow, and other respected industry analysts and experts.
I’m excited to be reprising and expanding on a session that I moderated at InfoComm, focusing on how AV integrators can go deeper and wider with their existing commercial clients. Called “How to Add Security Integration into Your AV Business,” the CEDIA Expo and CIX session will offer specific, granular advice on how to widen your integration business’ aperture and seize opportunities in video surveillance, access control, gunshot detection and more. We’ll be announcing our panelist lineup in the days ahead.
Business-Enablement Sessions
Additional business-enablement sessions will be part of the conference program. These will include “Leading with AI: Leveraging AI Tools to Improve Your Business,” hosted by SaaviHome’s Gavin Lantzy, and “The Website Blueprint: Essential Elements for a Standout Business Website,” presented by One Firefly’s Ron Callis and Kendall Clark. A session that is especially vital now — at a time when recruitment and retention has become harder than ever for integration businesses — will be “Please Don’t Leave Me: Employee Retention Strategies to Keep Your Crew Inspired.” With CEDIA’s Jon Rehwaldt serving as moderator, session speakers will include Control Concepts’ Steve Greenblatt and StroTek’s Christina Stroh. Sessions of this sort align with CI+SSI’s raison d’être, as well as sister publication CE Pro’s reason for being — namely, to empower integrators to run better, more sustainable, more profitable businesses.
Of course, we can’t ignore the massive show floor, where some of our industry’s biggest names — for example, Crestron, Lutron and Sony — will co-mingle with tomorrow’s upstart innovators. I’m particularly excited to check out the show’s new Connectivity Pavilion, which will feature exhibits and kiosks from prominent connected-device platforms and product manufacturers that demonstrate their products’ interoperability and functionality on such platforms. At ISE 2024 and InfoComm, conversation swirled about IPMX, SDVoE, HDBaseT and other means of facilitating networked AV solutions. CEDIA Expo and CIX’s Connectivity Pavilion will bring together leading technology platform alliances and highlight manufacturers’ latest related products.
Indispensability of CEDIA Expo and CIX 2024
During this past Sunday morning’s #AVintheAM conversation on X, members of the #avtweeps community chatted about the indispensability of in-person events like CEDIA Expo and CIX. Yes, it’s harder than ever to step away from our desk these days. Yes, if you’re a business owner, it can be scary to delegate day-to-day decision-making so you can be fully “present” at a trade show and conference. But our group of influencers was nearly unanimous that doing so is exactly what integration businesses need. In-person events liberate us from groupthink, expose us to new ideas, immerse us in different surroundings, and challenge our biases and preconceived notions.
I hope to see you in Denver in September. Take three or four days to revivify your business and recharge your spirit. I promise: It’ll be worth it.