Consultant of the Year APAC 2022: Maureen Aw, PTS Consulting

• Features

• 04/04/2023

Consultant of the Year APAC is always a heavily contested title and Maureen Aw from PTS Consulting bested strong competition to win the accolade at the Inavate APAC Awards 2022. The victory is well deserved as Aw has become an established figure and leader in Asia Pacific’s AV industry. Aw is the workplace technology lead at PTS Consulting and was inducted into the Inavate APAC 40 under 40 Class of 2020. She also serves as co-chair of the AVIXA Women’s Council Singapore.

Her role at PTS puts her at the forefront of how technology, spaces and people intersect, and she is also taking an active role in helping all stakeholders reimagine what this intersection can be. She says: “We’re now seeing the rise of ‘hybrid work’ and this transition has been happening at a fast pace as we’re seeing on the projects that we are working on, and this is what excites me. As consultants, I’m seeing our role change and we are becoming more involved in the ‘strategy’ side of things. We are no longer just technology specialists we are becoming change managers.”

Aw continues: “We come in from the angle of technology and user experience because technology is what creates the user experience and people tend to forget that. Not many people see or realise the key nature of technology but that is changing. It is being seen as a crucial component to bring people back into the workplace and there is a lot of talk around the user experience, meeting equity and about how technology partners can assist in finding solutions to make hybrid work successful for all parties.”

With the rising importance of technology, Aw believes that AV needs to up its game. As end users begin to understand the crucial role technology plays, technology needs to deliver. She says: “Technology has always been the bread and butter of AV and it is natural to fall into a sense of familiarity. AV professionals could walk into a project and have a sense of what the user requirements were based on conversations and their accumulated experience. But now, the shape and direction of conversations with end users have changed and that is bringing into question how ‘things are done’. We are looking more critically at equipment and product, does it need to be used, does it serve a purpose? We are looking at workflows, how users interact with spaces, what the experience will be, and these things are a gamechanger for AV and it is very exciting.”

She continues: “The meeting room had stagnated in terms of the experience it delivered because the experience required for VC was something that the user did not place great importance on before the pandemic. Bad acoustics for example were something that was just accepted. Today, acoustics have become critically important because of the rise in use of VC with hybrid work and the emphasis from the end user on the experience in meeting spaces is allowing AV to really shine.”

Practising what she preaches, Aw details how she and PTS are able to tailor their approach towards modern client needs and requirements: “One of the strengths of PTS as consultants is the fact that we don’t just do ‘audio visual’, our expertise and strengths cover IT, network infrastructure, cabling and much more. We can look at technology systems from their building blocks and from the very start. This means that we don’t have to just be a part of the conversation where we decide what the display end point needs to be, or what UC devices are required. PTS finds itself in the unique position of being able to guide our clients and help them along as their spaces evolve and take shape into what they need them to be.”

In addition to her professional achievements and numerous accomplishments, Aw’s engagement with the AV industry on a wider scale was also a contributing factor in her winning the Consultant of Year APAC Award last year. Aw talks about what drives her to give back to the world of AV: “My mentor, Ranjit Singh [former principal consultant for workspace technology and experience at PTS Consulting] really inspired me. He had always been a big proponent of giving back and despite all his professional commitments he was always looking at ways to contribute and to uplift the entire industry. Whether it was volunteering his time for initiatives with AVIXA, mentoring and grooming newcomers under his wing, leading and imparting training, he was always ready to help. Having benefitted from his mentorship and seeing the impact it had on my life, both personally and professionally, I decided it was time that I started to contribute in a way like him. I hope that with where I am in my career and with whatever strength I may have, I can make an impact on the lives of others and on the greater community. I always believe that in gentle ways, we can shake the world. No matter how small we think it may be, but just like the flowers in a room, its scent will diffuse across the space.”

An initiative that Aw is spearheading is the growth of AVIXA’s Women’s Council in Asia Pacific. She details: “I think my role as a consultant made me suited for the task because it means that I am vendor agnostic and neutral. And of course, the causes of equality and diversity are something that I stand strongly for. AV is a very male dominated industry, and it is hard to notice the challenges that women face and as a function of this it is also hard to find other individuals who are facing the same challenges. The role of the AVIXA Women’s Council is to rectify this and provide a platform for women in AV to come together and support each other. I believe that this support system is exceptionally important in this day and age where mental health and wellness is of concern. My hope is that through the relationships and trust that we build over time, this can be a safe space where women can come together to share their experiences and grow together in their careers.”

Aw stepping up to a leadership position in APAC’s AV industry is something that she believes she is doing for the right reasons. She concludes: “At PTS and even across the wider AV industry in APAC, I am one of the few women who is in a management role. On top of that, I am also one of the few women who works on project delivery, who will roll up my sleeves and work on site to see the project to completion. I think my work and accomplishments are proof that women can excel in these roles and fields. I think it is a matter of encouraging women and showing them that the path forward in the world of AV is not barred to them. I am not about shouting for diversity for the sake of diversity. But I believe that diversity and inclusivity can result in better decisions and better outcomes. And it is also a fact that the experience of women in the industry is different to the experience of men. If I can use my journey to help, guide or even provide a small bit of support to the next generation of women in AV then I feel that it is my responsibility to contribute.”