New AIMS Working Group Aims To Improve Education, Training for IP-Media Professionals

The Alliance will work with industry partners to address a skills and expertise gap

The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) announced in December that it is forming an Education Working Group focused specifically on education and training to expand the pool of industry professionals prepared to design, build, and operate standards-based IP media technology and solutions.

AIMS Board Chairman Steve Reynolds: “There is a need for engineers, professionals, and operators with the right skill set and expertise to work with these new IP-based systems.”

“Today, when we talk to various industry parties about IP adoption,” says AIMS Board Chairman and Imagine Communications President Steve Reynolds, “we consistently hear that SMPTE ST 2110 is mature, stable, and working but there is a need for engineers who can do the design work, professionals who can do the implementation work, and operators who have the right skill set and expertise to work with these new IP-based systems. The new Education Working Group will work with other industry organizations to connect media professionals with better training, broad-based educational programs, and possibly even testing and certification they can use to validate their proficiency for prospective employers.”

The new Working Group will build on the successful efforts of the alliance’s Technical Working Group and Marketing Working Group. Since AIMS formed six years ago, these groups have made significant strides in leading the industry toward an open, standards-based implementation for IP media solutions. The Education Working Group will join these groups as a top-level priority at AIMS and serve as the third pillar in the alliance’s ongoing work.

Its mission will be to define what is needed to improve training, expand educational opportunities, and collaborate with other industry organizations to develop programs and certifications to rapidly expand the base of qualified engineers and operators to meet the growing demand for IP expertise.

AIMS convened the first meeting of the Education Working Group in December to plan its formal launch. Participation from across the AIMS community will be vital to its success. Volunteers — particularly, integrators and end users — are welcome to join in the work. Further information is available at www.aimsalliance.org.