On the surface, a few mismatched AV systems across rooms, buildings, or campuses may not seem like a big deal. But if you’re managing technology across multiple locations, you already know: inconsistent AV is expensive, frustrating, and unsustainable.

Whether you're in higher ed or corporate enterprise, poor integration leads to more than just inconvenience. It creates gaps in security, drains IT resources, and delivers a terrible user experience for the people who rely on the tech every day.

Here's a closer look at what fragmented AV systems are really costing you — and how to fix the mess.

If your company is looking for a systems integration contractor, you may be wondering whether to go with a large conglomerate, like IBM, or a smaller company. In the world of managed AV services, is it best to trust big businesses—or “shop small”?

While large system integrators may offer a variety of IT-focused services, we believe the quality of those services won’t compare to a small or mid-sized firm. The provider you work with will assume most of the risks of your AV systems and will need to actively monitor your technology and always be available to troubleshoot.

So, for a more tailored and customized experience, we recommend working with a smaller contractor. Here are three reasons why.

Some years ago, AV systems tended to be separate projects and departments within organizations. While important, they were not tied to the computing and communication systems organizations used to run their business. The convergence of all information on digital technology has changed that. Today, collaboration platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams integrate communication, collaboration, and productivity to serve workers in offices and remote locations. This level of integration is forcing organizations to rethink AV infrastructure as an integral part of their technology strategy.

Managing your company’s audiovisual system is a full-time job, even in the best of circumstances. And it can be more than a full-time job if you are constantly trouble shooting and repairing malfunctioning AV systems. All that time rushing from fire to fire takes time away from your day-to-day tasks and mission-driven work, and you end up burning the midnight oil—and eventually burning out. Instead of spending your time helping an unreliable AV system limp along, you can start your AV project off on the right foot, with a qualified integrator that can save you all that anxiety—and save you money, too.

They say it takes a village to raise a child, but a lesser known proverb says that on every successful audiovisual systems integration team is an AV design engineer. AV integration projects are rarely the work of a single person—they are a group effort. And making sure the right people are in that group is critical to your AV project. With an AV design engineer on your team, you can rest easy knowing that the planning, implementation, and installation of your AV system is in good hands.

If you’ve ever invested in technology only to learn later that it needs to be rewired, reconnected, or even replaced, you know that can be both frustrating and expensive. You may end up spending more by having to replace cables, tear out walls or ceilings, or even find a more effective solution altogether. It’s especially discouraging if you hired a company to help but you still didn’t get the results you needed. If that’s happened to you, you’re not alone.