Posted by Kelly | May 25, 2015, 1:53 pm
We all know what a difference 2 years can make in the world these days, the AV industry, and especially to organizations like the Women in AV(WAVE). And, it certainly has been the case for WAVE. Within our 1st hour of launching in 2011, it blew me away WAVE had over 30 members. I thought to myself, WOW. Did we just find ALL 30 of us women in the AV industry!?! Little did I know, it was the 1st of many awe-struck and inspiring moments the last 4 years would see for our organization.
As I stand here in 2015, WAVE is an international women’s advocacy group providing mentoring, education, professional career development, local WAVE chapters, scholarships, and JUST LOADS OF FUN!! to its 980 members and more than 6,000 friends and supporters all working to recognize, value, and advance women in the AV industry.
One of our early initiatives in 2013 was to collect membership demographics on Who We Are WAVE and with InfoComm15 next week, it’s timely to reaffirm our contact information, expand our member database, and gather new ideas for growing our place in the AV industry.
It is noteworthy the Women in AV have a significantly high number of business owners, VP’s, and other senior management positions. Over 50% of WAVE are in top level positions across the total AV and STEM industries.
Key highlights about WAVE are:
- We are 984 members on LinkedIn over 5 continents (Africa and Antarctica we need you!)
- Our friends on social media include 5,868 Twitter, 156 Facebook, and 221 Pinterest who support WAVE
- Our group has never had a negative Week over Week Growth Rate in its 4 years
- Over 50% of WAVE are business owners, VP’s, Directors, and senior and executive management positions
- Sales and Marketing are the two leading functions performed by WAVE at 30%
View all the LinkIn Group Statistic here.
Get involved with all our Social Media Channels and Women in AV Friends!
LinkedIn: Women in AV Group
Here are some highlights from the 2013 survey. Please check back during InfoComm15 to take our 2015 WAVE Survey- Where are We Now!!
It continues to thrill me every day to see the diverse, accomplished, and talented women in AV across our global markets and how women are being encouraged to get join us and pursue their goals and dreams. Our deepest Thank You for all of your support and love of the Women in AV. I can’t wait to look back in 2020 and see what we have achieved together by then!!
~Jennifer H. Willard, Founder
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Posted by Kelly | May 22, 2015, 12:52 pm
Mark your calendars for the 4th annual Women in AV NSCA/FSR/Synnex Reception in Orlando!
What: Women in AV 4th Annual Reception at InfoComm15
When: Wednesday, June 17th, 7-8:30pm
Where: Marlow’s Tavern, 9101 International Road, Orlando
How: Event is free, but registration is required and space is limited.
Come together with your AV industry colleagues to share tips, ideas and success stories about being a woman in a male-dominated industry. This one of a kind event honors the accomplishments of women in AV and offers networking and business opportunities to those females new to the industry and long-time veterans.
Women in AV THANK YOU to NSCA, FSR, Listen Technologies, and Synnex for your generous and continued support in advancing the Women in AV and making us feel welcomed and important!!
~ Jennifer H. Willard, Founder of Women in AV
“It is rare we as WAVE have a chance to all come together and this exciting event is YOUR NIGHT to say hello to old friends and make new ones. We are thrilled to again honor one amazing award recipient with the 2015 Women in AV Mentoring Award for their outstanding achievements in advancing women with our AV industry! The incredible support of our sponsors makes it possible to continue helping women advance and be recognized for their accomplishments and value they bring to the AV industry remaining relevant and successful.”
Immediately following, we’ll join NSCA and our favorite Drunk Unkles Concert as they Rise From the Swamp at BB King’s and really get to see real Rockstars of AV as they jam live, toast often, and raise the roof all in support of offering and growing education to all AV industry professionals. Drunk Unks concert details here.
Questions about Women in AV Reception, email womeninav@gmail.com
See you there WAVE!!
THANK YOU TO OUR 2015 WAVE INFOCOMM15 SPONSORS!!
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Posted by Kelly | November 6, 2014, 1:05 pm
Thank you for applying for the Women in AV (WAVE) Leadership Award through the NSCA Education Foundation. The NSCA Education Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization supporting educational initiatives focused on the future growth and stability of the commercial electronic systems industry. The goal of the NSCA Education Foundation is to ensure the future success of the commercial electronic systems industry by building the next generation of workers through continuing education and training.
Please note the deadline to nominate a Women in AV is: Thursday, January 1, 2015. Don’t wait to nominate a deserving female in the commercial AV systems integration industry today!
You can find the nominate form here.
Requirements
- A female currently employed by an industry-recognized commercial electronic systems integration company.
- Must be in a management or decision-making role within the company.
- Must be a first-time attendee to the Business & Leadership Conference.
- Must be recommended by an owner or executive of the company, if not currently in a leadership position.
- Must provide at least one letter of recommendation. If not an owner of the company, two letters must be provided; one letter must be provided by current manager and the other from a colleague, co-worker or client. If owner of the company, only one letter is required and must be provided by a colleague, co-worker or client.
For questions or more information, please contact: kchism@nsca.org.
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Posted by Kelly | September 28, 2013, 10:51 am
Hello WAVE,
I am delighted to let you know that our region has been selected as a Women in AV (WAVE) pilot chapter!
If you aren’t familiar with WAVE, I invite you to visit WomenInAV.com. Our group mission is to empower women in the AV industry through collaboration, research, mentoring and networking opportunities. Our goal is to develop women leaders within our industry and to promote AV as an industry of choice. There are no membership fees, and, as a woman in the AV industry, you are automatically already a WAVE! You can participate in our LinkedIn group discussions, follow us on Twitter and join other WAVE women and men for various events and webinars. Next up – a WAVE webinar celebrating a few of our industry leaders during AV Week 2013 (October 13-19, 2013) – stay tuned for more info!
Over the course of this past year, we also identified a need for WAVE activities at the local level. This came from requests from women, just like you, who were interested in networking and meeting other WAVEs in their local area. As a result, WAVE introduced a pilot local chapter program to help launch the initiative. We are proud to announce seven pilot chapters including London, Orlando, Minneapolis, Baltimore, Dallas/Ft. Worth, New York City and Salt Lake City!
As the Chapter Leader for the region, I would like to personally invite you to join our local WAVE chapter. We will be announcing a schedule of events and activities shortly, including quarterly meetings, an annual event, networking opportunities and more. I’ve attached an FAQ with some additional information you may find helpful, but should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I do hope you’ll consider joining our WAVE chapter. I am confident you will find it a rewarding and meaningful endeavor.
Sincerely,
Your WAVE Chapter Leader
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Posted by Kelly | September 11, 2013, 12:27 am
I had the privilege of interviewing Ms. Miri Park, co-founder and COO of Chromis Fiberoptics, a leading manufacturer in the design of high-performance polymer optical fibers. Parks is an inspiration to all Women in AV, as a multi-patent holder, Ph.D in Physics, renowned author, and mother of two young daughters. She exemplifies that women and young ladies can not only have a successful career in the technical side of STEM, but, lead the industry regardless of gender.
Please tell us about your background. When and how did you get started in the AV industry? How did it feel being a woman in a male-dominated industry? Have you seen any evolution over the years and where do you feel we are at now?
I came to the United States from Korea at the age of 15, so my first challenges were to learn a new language and a new culture. Coming to America to study abroad was so exciting. I had fun staying in dorms with other kids my age, and I was young enough to adapt quickly. Still, I preserved my Korean traditions, so I would not forget where I grew up. Now I instill those Korean values in my children so that they grow up with broader cultural perspectives. I graduated from Cornell University with a Ph.D. in experimental physics and then went on to Princeton to complete my post-doctoral program. I started my career in 1998 at Lucent Technology, now known as Alcatel Lucent, in their opto-electronics field which led me to the plastic fiber optics and then eventually to the AV industry.
I’ve always been in a male-dominated environment. When I was in engineering school, I was often one of two or three females in a classroom filled with 20-30 male students. I’m very accustomed to working around males. So when I entered the AV industry I did not feel uncomfortable. In the evolution, I certainly see more women in the AV industry now than before. For example, look at WAVE, your organization! We now see many more women not only in the AV but also across all industries. It is no longer my mother’s days. There is no longer the bias that you cannot have certain careers because you are a female. A male or female, whoever has value-adding talents is now being recognized.
Look around. There are many industry leaders who are women – CEOs, politicians, engineers, and professors, and many more. They are recognized and respected as leaders not because of their gender but because of their hard work, professionalism and talents. There are still fewer women than men in general in leadership positions in the current workforce. However, it is a matter of time. We, as a society, have advanced and matured, and will continue to do so. I have two daughters, and I have no doubt that it will be even better when they are ready to enter the workforce.
Please tell us about your business, its history, how you’ve evolved, what market you serve, and what you do for the AV industry?
Chromis Fiberoptics was established as a spinoff from Bell Labs in 2004. My partners and I did a management buyout of the plastic optical fiber business unit that we had been a part of, developing plastic optical fiber technology and its manufacturing process. Since then, Chromis has commercialized the technology and continues to pioneer the use of plastic optical fibers for ultra-fast connectivity solutions. We fill needs for high-bandwidth data/video links covering the last 100 meters with active optical cables (AOCs) that have unique performance and cost advantages compared to glass fibers and copper wires. For example, our AOCs are thinner and more flexible than comparable copper cables, and are also tighter-bending and less expensive overall than glass fiber AOCs. We produce a variety of industry-standard interface AOCs – such as InfiniBand, HDMI and DVI – for high-speed links in data centers, professional audio/video, consumer electronics and high-performance computing applications. For your readers who may not be familiar with AOCs, they have the same electrical inputs as a traditional copper cable, but use optical fiber for data transmission “between the connectors”. The connectors perform electrical-to-optical conversion at the source and then reverse it at the destination. We serve customers who are looking for a fast, reliable and plug-‘n-play connection solution. Glass fibers changed the world in terms of high-speed data transmission over long distances. Chromis will do the same with plastic fibers over short distances!
How do you see the AV industry in being welcoming and/or encouraging women? What, if anything, do we need to do to bring or open the possibilities for women to want to join us and make a career of AV?
What WAVE does is great – supporting, encouraging, and mentoring. Those of us who are already in the industry should continue to reach out to those considering this field. Let them know that, while male-dominated, it’s a welcoming industry. Yes, you need to work harder at times, but women do bring different perspectives, and diversity is healthy for the industry. On average, most industries reflect the gender split of our population; about 50:50 male to female ratio. Exceptions such as the AV industry need more women, especially those who are talented and add value.
You are elite in being involved in a highly technical and future (IT-centric) side of where our industry is headed. What are the differences, similarities, and where do you see the two markets converging?
The AV industry is already extremely high-tech so convergence is a reality. Consumers are looking for a very high quality auditory and visual experience, but without complication. There is an incredible amount of science in the optics, electronics, circuit designs, image processing, sound technology, and many other related fields that come together to create and deliver that perfect AV experience. Note that even a seemingly simple product like one of our HDMI AOCs – just plug one end into a source, the other into a display – is the result of many years and millions of dollars of development in plastic optical fiber technology, starting with its origins at Bell Labs and continuing to the present day. Yet the consumer is blissfully unaware of all of this technology, which is exactly as it should be.
Most importantly, you are a female leader in the technical side of our industry for your achievements in fiber optics, patents, and co-founding a company. What does it mean to you to be recognized and what advice do you have for people who want to follow in your footsteps and pursue a career in the technical side of AV?
Being recognized is a huge honor, and I feel flattered. To the women who want to pursue a career on the technical side of AV, or in any other field, I would tell them to go for it. As long as you have passion, are willing to work hard and are prepared to add value; any endeavor is fair game. You should approach your career dreams without any prejudgments. Do not shy away or be discouraged by the fact that the industry you would like to enter is male-dominated. Being a minority as well as a woman, there are additional challenges, but we have come a long way and the number of women represented in the industry can only go higher.
What would you say to women who want to be a business owner such as yourself — what do they need to know and do to achieve success?
My honest answer is, it requires a lot of work, but once you do, it is one of the greatest feelings. I am working hard to be a successful business owner. I believe what makes successful business owners—those characteristics and skills—don’t differ between men and women – strong work ethic, determination, creativity, strategic thinking, and etc. Of course, everyone has their own share of unique strengths and weaknesses. I think that hard work and devotion are keys because you will face challenges that will test you. But the good thing about the difficulties you face is you either overcome them or learn from them (even if you fail). At the end of the day they make you stronger and wiser.
Now, my advice to women who are wives and mothers who want to be business owners is to prioritize your life and find a balance. You can’t be the best at everything you do. You can’t be the perfect wife, mother, friend, and business owner. Set realistic goals and expectations. I am not saying to lower your standards, or set easy goals. But learn to be flexible and adapt to your different roles. Once you realize that you can set realistic goals and expectations for yourself, you will enjoy what you do more, and you will be happier as a person. That enjoyment is the fuel that will give you perseverance through low points and challenges. That feeling of happiness is what makes you successful.
As simple as it sounds, very few woman, let alone men, achieve what Miri Parks can say in her lifetime. We should all take a picture from her book in terms of how you can lead an industry and love what you do.
To find more about Chromis Fiberoptics, please visit www.ChromisFiber.com
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