Commercial Integrator March 2023 - 55

C llab rati n
TODAY and TOMORROW
his questions to the client
and would learn more from
that in-person experience, "
Jacoby states.
Now they use tools such
as Bluebeam Studio or
Teams to collaborate over
projects and drawings. Jacoby
admits that it is sometimes
tough being virtual
when you have to coordinate
with a general contractor
or a colleague onsite, but
they have learned to work
through that.
A frustration point for
Jacoby with virtual meetings
is the sometimes lack
of meeting etiquette such
as not having set agendas,
not beginning and ending a
meeting in a timely manner
and not turning the camera
on. They state, " When
cameras are off you have no
idea what the other person
may actually be feeling or
thinking. " They continue,
" It is hard to be empathetic
because you don't know the
full story. " On the flipside,
Jacoby sometimes enjoys
that visual anonymity of a
turned-off camera. " I have a
terrible poker face and wear
my emotions on my sleeve, "
they acknowledge.
Jacoby maintains a
WFH routine that includes
breathing exercises,
listening to 30 minutes of
podcasts and spin bike
workouts before looking at
emails and beginning work.
" Success is measured by
hitting deliverables when
remote, so, unfortunately, a
person's story is written by
the data and documentation
they produce, " they say.
Remote work had Jacoby
relying on social media
commercialintegrator.com
to feel connected to a
community. " I probably
became a bit dependent on
Twitter for connections to
my #avtweeps during the
pandemic, " they confide.
Social media also provided
Jacoby a safe outlet to step
up as an ally to non-binary
people. Non-binary is an
umbrella term for people
whose gender identity does
not sit defined as " man "
or " woman " but, rather, is
more fluid. " Back in 20182019,
I started learning
more about myself, " they
reveal. And, in 2021, Jacoby
officially came out as
non-binary. With Jacoby's
new self-awareness and
comfort with themselves,
they felt a need to help others.
" We are all hurting, and
we are all going through
things. Diversity is about
others; we can be stronger
together, " they add.
According to Jacoby,
inclusion in the workplace
matters, whether in person,
hybrid, or remote. " We
all end up being an ally
for someone. If you see
something, say something
- if you are in a safe place, "
they advise. Some people
are unsure how to address
someone who is gender
non-conforming. " Just use
their first name, " Jacoby
recommends.
When not working on projects
for Diversified Systems,
Jacoby is playing in their
jazz band or being an AFOL
(adult fan of Legos) with
their twin 16-year-old kids.
Connect with Jacoby via
LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/
jacobyaudio.
Lifetime Achievement
Randy Pagnan,
principal,
NSyte LLC
Randy Pagnan started his
career in the AV industry
in 1984 at Electrohome, a
Canadian-based company,
but not in AV. Rather, he
was an accountant in the
motor division - motors
that powered bathroom
fans. He quickly realized
that the electronics division
was 'way cooler' than the
bathroom-motor division
and that salespeople made
more money than accountants.
That was the beginning
of Pagnan's 40-year
career in AV which spanned
incredible firms such as
Christie Digital Systems,
American Video Communications,
Hoffman Video, and
Large Screen Displays.
Pagnan spent 17 years as
president and owner of rp
Visual Solutions and DNP
North America until he sold
the business to Mechdyne
in 2018 and started his own
consulting firm, NSyte, in
2022. Pagnan feels that the
balance between WFH/
return to office/hybrid will
continually be debated, and
he thinks working remotely
or in a hybrid manner will
only increase in popularity.
He believes some jobs will
always have to be done in
an office space, though,
and that there will always
be a struggle to effectively
measure accountability
and trust with hybrid/remote
workers. " It is great to
not own a company now, "
states Pagnan. He is also
concerned with the large
amount of empty office
spaces he sees while visiting
clients. " There are empty
offices in D.C., New York and
San Francisco. Corporations
will be more demanding to
bring people into the office, "
he observes.
He is uncertain how
a possible impending
recession will play out for
our industry, but he states
that AV has always " trailed
into the recession. " AV
remains important as ever,
especially as companies
evolve to handle the hybrid
workforce and are relying
more and more on AV for
day-to-day operations. " We
sell 'integrated experiences'
and create the 'wow [factor]'
for companies, " states
Pagnan. Thus, he feels the
workspace will move closer
to where we want to be, not
where we are told we need
to be.
Connect with Pagnan via
LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/
randy-pagnan-339ab612.
Lainie Mataras is senior
director, Consultant,
Architect, Design Group at
Planar.
Marla Suttenberg is partner
at Sapphire Marketing and
Audio Associates.
MARCH 2023 Commercial Integrator 55
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Commercial Integrator March 2023

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