When Nyere Hollingsworth describes InfoComm as “summer camp,” he means it as a compliment.
For the Managing Director of Endpoints and Workplace Experience Technologies at law firm Winston Taylor, the annual AV industry gathering in Las Vegas is a chance to reconnect with peers, absorb new ideas, and take stock of where the industry is heading.
But beneath the enthusiasm lies a serious message – one he delivered from the stage this year.
Hollingsworth spoke at a session exploring cybersecurity practices that AV professionals and end users alike need to take seriously.
“It has to be intentional,” he told UC Today.
“You have to be thoughtful and strategic about how you deploy systems, what systems you actually buy and purchase, and the things that you do to secure and configure them on your network.”
For a law firm like Winston Taylor – whose clients include some of the world’s largest corporations and most powerful individuals – the stakes are particularly high.
But Hollingsworth is quick to point out that the underlying challenges are not unique to legal. Secure connectivity, reliable support, and strategic technology planning are universal concerns. What differs is the pressure to get it right.
That pressure, he argues, is something end users should be channelling directly at manufacturers. AVIXA has made a deliberate effort to amplify the end-user voice at InfoComm – and Hollingsworth wants that voice to be heard clearly. “If you don’t have the certain features in your security stack in order for me to reliably put it on my network, then I’m not going to buy it,” he said. “And that’s not in your interest.”
It’s a straightforward message, but one the AV industry would do well to take seriously. End users aren’t just consumers – they’re a force for change.
