Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 3

EDITOR'S NOTE
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commercialintegrator.com | @commintegrator
A Marketplace
of Ideas
AS AN EDITOR and a content curator, I am
deeply committed to Commercial Integrator
being a marketplace of ideas. I want to gather
the best, most provocative, most illuminating
thought leadership that the commercial AV
industry has to off er and then let you, our
audience, decide what makes sense for your
business and what doesn't. From the editorial
team's standpoint, our job is to educate and
inform the commercial AV integration community,
perhaps by inspiring you
to think of something that had
never crossed your mind before.
But we don't presume to tell you,
" This is the way things ought to
be. " We recognize that diff erent
integrators have individual business
models, divergent
vertical-market focuses and
unique client demands; those
facts make it impossible to prescribe
one-size-fi ts-all solutions.
In recent months, Commercial
attracting talent back to a communal space.
On the other side of the coin, Commercial
In recent
months,
Commercial
Integrator's
marketplace
of ideas has
Integrator's marketplace of ideas
has been not only open but also
bustling. In this month's cover story, we amplify
voices from design, architecture, engineering
and planning fi rm HOK: Kay Sargent, director
of workplace and senior principal, and Rachel
Rouse, director of interiors for the Dallas offi ce
and principal. They make the case that it is imperative
for offi ces to become more engaging
and experiential places, boasting intentional
design and thoughtful technology integration,
to entice workers to return to in-offi ce
environments. Although Sargent and Rouse
are under no illusions that the work-from-home
(WFH) movement is in decline, they articulated,
during a one-hour interview, many of the
complications inherent in WFH. Those include
diminished employee engagement, weakened
company culture, depression resulting from
loneliness and isolation, and the " there-are-norules "
perception that causes some WFHers to
spontaneously take the aſt ernoon off . Sargent
and Rouse describe meaningful ways that a
reimagined offi ce could serve as a magnet,
commercialintegrator.com
been not only
open but also
bustling.
Integrator regularly hosts thought leaders from
the Interactive Multimedia & Collaborative
Communications Alliance (IMCCA), including
its director of emerging technology, David Danto,
whom I've known for years and of whose
wisdom I have no doubt. Although David and
likeminded peers are hardly sounding the
death knell of physical offi ces, they oſt en make
the point that most knowledge
workers simply do not need to
commute two hours a day to
complete most of their job duties.
Indeed, these experts argue,
when knowledge workers are
liberated from being " chained
to their desks " for eight hours a
day, they're oſt en more productive,
more responsive to client
requests and happier. It can even
free up fully remote workers to
buy a home based on factors like
the school system or proximity to
the beach, rather than prioritizing
commutability. (Ecologically conscious individuals
might also point to a diminished carbon
footprint due to less frequent traveling.)
As a fully remote employee who, up until my
current position, had been an in-offi ce worker,
I see both sides of the coin. WFH is great for
some (like me) but not so great for others.
Likewise, some vendors and integrators have
enthusiastically embraced the " hybrid world "
model; meanwhile, other integrators continue
to believe that technology-enriched physical
conference rooms will ensure not only their
own profi ts but also their clients' successful
business function.
In the marketplace of ideas, you needn't
buy everything you see. We ask only that you
browse. Sooner or later, you're bound to fi nd
something that you like.
Dan Ferrisi, Editor-in-Chief
dan.ferrisi@emeraldx.com
@danferrisiedit
EDITORIAL
Editor-in-Chief
Dan Ferrisi, 914-383-9030,
dan.ferrisi@emeraldx.com
Chief Content Offi cer
Jason Knott, 774-505-8042,
jason.knott@emeraldx.com
Associate Editor
Zachary Comeau, 774-505-8006,
zachary.comeau@emeraldx.com
Associate Editor
Amala Reddie, 774-505-8039
amala.reddie@emeraldx.com
Technology Editor
Robert Archer, 774-505-8049,
robert.archer@emeraldx.com
Web Editor
Alyssa Borelli, 774-505-8057,
alyssa.borelli@emeraldx.com
Design Lead
Katie Stockham, 774-505-8051,
katie.stockham@emeraldx.com
Designer
Taylor DeForrest,
taylor.deforrest@emeraldx.com
ADVERTISING SALES
Group Publisher, Connected Brands
Ray Lyons, 774-505-8017,
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Chelsea Cafi ero, 774-505-8020,
chelsea.cafi ero@emeraldx.com
Marketing
Marsha Marsh, 774-505-8023,
marsha.marsh@emeraldx.com
EMERALD CORPORATE
Executive Vice President
Brian Pagel, 770-291-5438,
brian.pagel@emeraldx.com
President and CEO Hervé Sedky
Chief Operating Offi cer Brian Field
Chief Financial Offi cer David Doſt
Chief Information Offi cer Bill Charles
Senior Vice President, Finance Melanie Pereria
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and
Secretary Stacey Sayetta
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Amy Sklar
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Ren Akinci
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Creative Services Director
Manuela Rosengard, 774-505-8052,
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Jeff rey Miller, 774-505-8055,
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Commercial Integrator February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Integrator February 2022
