The Future AV Workforce: Building Stronger Talent Pipelines

Finding qualified AV professionals has become a challenge across the industry, but speakers at "Who Will Build It? The Future AV Workforce" on the InfoComm 2026 Vision Stage argued that the solution may lie in places many employers haven't considered.

Moderated by Joseph Valerio, Director of the AVIXA Foundation, the discussion centered on one idea: partnerships with nonprofits, schools, and workforce organizations aren't just good for the community but can also be a business differentiator for employers. To illustrate that point, Valerio asked each panelist to choose one word that best captured the value of those partnerships. Their answers — readiness, retention, pipelines, and access — shaped the conversation that followed.

Christopher Hope, Founder and CEO of the Boston-based nonprofit The Loop Lab, which operates paid apprenticeship programs for young adults, chose the word "readiness."

Too often, he said, employers assume community organizations are asking them to take a chance on someone who lacks experience. In reality, participants have already been challenged in real-world environments before they ever interview for a job.

"They're not just in the classroom," Hope explained. "They're on the job; they're receiving training and eventually earning BICSI certification and other certifications. By the time employers hire them, they've already worked with clients, solved problems, and experienced what it's like to work in the field."

Hope encouraged employers to think differently about where they search for talent.

"We don't serve underrepresented populations," he said. "We serve underestimated populations."

Many successful AV professionals didn't arrive through traditional educational pathways. Some developed their skills while playing in bands, volunteering at churches or experimenting with technology before discovering the industry. Organizations like The Loop Lab help transform those interests into careers through mentorship, paid apprenticeships and hands-on learning.

For Juan Carlos Guitiérrez, CTS, Sustainable Designs and Installations at Integración AV SAS, workforce development starts with retention.

Because technical training takes time, he explained, employers need to invest in interns from the beginning and create reasons for them to stay.

His advice was straightforward: clearly define the role, partner with the right educational institution, and carefully select candidates whose skills align with the position. Once they're hired, don't keep them on the sidelines. Instead, involve them in real projects immediately while providing supervision and mentoring throughout the process.

"The intern is the future of our company," Guitiérrez said.

Laura Moeller, Audio Educator and Partnership Coordinator at Tech25, selected the word "pipelines."

For Moeller, workforce organizations do more than train future employees — they create direct connections between students and employers.

By partnering with organizations like Tech25, employers can help shape the curriculum, introduce students to their technology, and prepare apprentices for the jobs they'll eventually fill.

Many students enter Tech25 because they enjoy music, podcasting, or live production but haven't yet considered AV as a career. Through hands-on instruction, they discover opportunities they may never have known existed. One Tech25 intern illustrated that point, explaining that a high school teacher introduced her to the program through its Start On Success (SOS) initiative. Although she initially joined because of her interest in music, she has since expanded into video production and camera work.

Moeller noted that technical instruction is only part of the equation. Apprentices also learn workplace habits such as arriving early, preparing equipment, building résumés and networking with employers at industry events. Those soft skills, she said, are often just as important as technical expertise.

Lindsay Pope, Senior Director of Talent Acquisition & HRBP Programs at Shure Incorporated, focused on "access."

Simply posting job openings, she said, isn't enough.

"As employers, we can't just post jobs and expect candidates are going to find us," Pope said. "We need to be creative. We need to be strategic. And we need to partner with organizations early on to get that talent."

She encouraged employers to identify where they're struggling to hire, challenge assumptions about where qualified candidates are found, and find community partners that align with those needs.

Pope shared how Shure faced persistent hiring challenges at its distribution center, where the company had become overly reliant on contractors. The constant turnover wasn't creating the stable workforce the company needed, so the team looked beyond traditional recruiting methods.

"We took a step back and tried to be really creative and think outside the box around where talent could come from," she said.

Shure ultimately partnered with The Cove School, which helps students with complex learning disabilities transition from education into the workforce. The partnership continues today, allowing students to build confidence and develop real job skills while creating a stronger talent pipeline for the company.

Pope said those partnerships also deliver long-term business value. Citing data she reviewed before the session, she noted that employees hired through internship and apprenticeship programs have a five-year retention rate of about 50%, compared with 38% for employees hired through traditional recruiting methods.

While each organization represented on stage operates differently, the panelists agreed that successful workforce partnerships require ongoing collaboration.

Hope encouraged companies to look beyond hiring and build deeper relationships with nonprofits. One example he shared involved Audible, which not only hires graduates from The Loop Lab but also supports the organization through leadership involvement, curriculum input and project opportunities.

"It's opportunities like that on the employer side to shift away from transactional relationships with community organizations and think about the different ways we can work together to empower not only the community, but also the business," Hope said.

Moeller echoed that sentiment, comparing successful partnerships to building "brick by brick." Those relationships often begin with a single workshop before expanding into ongoing training programs, apprenticeships and hiring relationships. Consistency, she noted, matters far more than trying to accomplish everything at once.

Pope agreed, saying employers need to remain engaged throughout the partnership.

"It's not just one event or hiring one group of people," she said. "It's showing up and building it together."

By the end of the discussion, the panelists agreed that building the future AV workforce requires more than filling open positions. It requires employers to invest in organizations and programs that help develop the next generation of talent.