By Lauren Gonzalez, Olivia Hart and Morgan Manson
rAVe Reporters

Mike Walsh, author of bestseller FUTURETAINMENT and the CEO of Tomorrow, a global business consultancy, delivered the opening keynote at InfoComm 2014 on Tuesday, June 17 at 4 p.m.

InfoComm International CEO David Labuskes introduced Walsh as a futurist whose ideas are cohesive with InfoComm’s theme of “AV moving forward.”

Walsh emphasized that the future is “tension between disruptive technology and new patterns of human behavior.” He highlighted five key insights that every brand should apply internally to meet challenges that have been occurring as the next generation joins the workforce.

How will you meet the challenge of the next generation?

Walsh said that the way that the current generation thinks does not match the way that the next generation will think. Education, in particular, has to adapt and focus on what really drives innovation: computational thinking skills. The ability to solve complex issues in innovative ways is what will carry over into the workplace, and it’s important to include the next generation in the workplace model.

What role will AV technologies play in the future of customer engagement?

Walsh focused on the importance of collaboration between sales, marketing, technical and communications departments. When these teams understand the path that customers took to engage with the brand, they can apply it to designing a unified online and offline experience. He cautioned that “whatever made you successful until now may be exactly what kills tomorrow.”

How will technology reshape the future of work?

Walsh delivered shocking statistics that an estimated 70 percent of Americans are not engaged at work, and only 41 percent of employees actually know what their company stands for. It’s easy for an organization to lose sight of its culture as it grows, but companies like Google have shown that connectivity is driven by the way that people are managed. “The more you automate what you do, the human beings on your team will have to elevate what they do,” he said.

What if you let your customers be in charge of their innovation?

According to Walsh, true innovation results from being able to see through your customer’s eyes. Using China as an example, he discussed how manufacturers don’t base products on market research but instead on how customers are using products. With wearable computers as the next wave of technology, the key idea is that technology should be powered by human behavior.

How will the AV industry take advantage of the rise of big data?

“Big data by itself does not give you more insights,” Walsh said. “To survive, you need a new approach to change.” Companies must have the ability to adjust and create strategies in real time.

Walsh concluded by saying to “think big, think new, but most importantly, think quick. The future is now.”

To learn more about Mike Walsh, you can visi.