Professional Spotlight: Steve Miller CTS
A Lifelong Pursuit
Steve Miller CTS, is a project manager and the senior audiovisual technical lead with IP Design Group. Steve has amassed over 35 years of experience throughout various roles within the audiovisual design and installation industry. From a young age, Steve initially got involved with audiovisual technology through his father and grandfather’s family-owned electronics store, where he would join his father on service calls.
“Being involved in the installation and design of audiovisual technology has been a lifelong pursuit,” Steve Miller explained, “I have been working on televisions and VCRs since I was eight years old.”
In high school, Steve had built up such a strong familiarity with audiovisual technology that the teacher for the electronics class allowed Steve to provide instruction on the course material. As the 80s began, the mom-and-pop electronics stores were phased out by big box brands. In response, the family business pivoted: Steve and crew signed a contract to install patient information systems in hospitals around the United States. Steve found his fascination with design through this field of work.
“At that time, electronics were becoming more and more disposable. There was no need to have someone swing by the house to fix your TV,” Steve explained, “It was quite fortuitous that we made the hospital contract, which allowed me to work on networked systems and spurred my curiosity even further.”
Early Career
Eventually, Steve’s father and grandfather retired from the electronics business, and so too did the family store. At the time, Steve began working on integrating audiovisual systems at a firm out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which helped him become familiar with how to read construction drawings regarding AV systems.
“I learned design through installation,” Steve explained, “Being the person on the ladder installing the speakers and projectors…I quickly learned how to optimize system designs to benefit both clients and installers.”
From this formative career experience, Steve transitioned from installation to design. He went from being the installer on a ladder to the designer crafting drawings on a computer. Steve utilized this first job as a launching point into technology consultation.
After collecting years of experience, Steve moved from the East Coast to the Midwest to join IP Design Group. Steve’s first projects with the firm involved working in various markets, including K-12 education, corporate office, and mixed-use developments.
Previously, Steve had worked primarily in the higher education market and was able to harness his expertise to craft technology design that helps better prepare students for college and trade schools.
“It’s so important to start introducing children to technology in elementary and middle school,” Steve explained, “It’s such a big part of modern life, being able to effectively utilize technology.”
Current Projects
Projects that Steve has worked on throughout the very beginning of his IP Design Group career are starting to see fruition. One of the most recently completed projects in Steve’s portfolio is the First National Tower renovation project in Omaha, Nebraska. Winning ACEC Nebraska’s 2024 Engineering Excellence category winner and honor award (building systems and technology category), the project features an innovative, client-facing floor utilizing state-of-the-art technology to provide a stunning interior design that can be rebranded to fit the needs of a wide-ranging client portfolio.
Other projects include the Sherwin-Williams Global Headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio. The Sherwin-Williams project has invested millions of dollars in the design and installation of audiovisual technology equipment, making it a hallmark project and a forerunner for the future of corporate office technological integration.
“Far and away the largest project I have ever worked on,” Steve stated in regards to the scale of the Sherwin-Williams project, “It’s a very complex and technically robust project, but the result is a beautiful amalgamation of exquisite architecture and technological functionality.”
A notable uptick in activity within the higher education market has occurred throughout Steve’s tenure at IP Design Group. Steve headed the audiovisual design in the recently completed Sandhills Global Technology Center located at the Southeast Community College campus in Lincoln, Nebraska. The technology center includes advanced computer labs and active learning spaces that allow students to engage with their coursework in a more comprehensive manner.
“I find the ever-changing landscape of audiovisual technology to be exciting and challenging because it pushes me to continually learn,” Steve explained, “I enjoy being able to use cutting-edge technology to help students increase understanding and retention.”
Industry Outlook
Steve Miller sees the future of technology becoming more involved in school districts. As technology develops, so will the expanding technological capabilities that schools provide to their student bodies.
“As technology becomes less expensive, the technologically enhanced pedagogies implemented in higher education are filtering down into the K-12 market,” Steve explained, “I’m a big proponent of reinforcing this idea if the budget is available for it. I certainly think it benefits students, especially those who are planning to attend college.”
Steve believes the COVID-19 pandemic kickstarted a paradigm shift revolutionizing how clients view technology across multiple markets. Remote learning, for example, is a concept that took center stage in the four-to-five-year period after the pandemic occurred.
“So COVID-19 happens, and now all of a sudden, each and every student has to be able to learn remotely in virtually every classroom in America,” Steve stated, “That’s a pivotal shift. Technology-enabled classrooms had to also be remote-learning friendly, and that is still a heavy focus within these spaces today.”
The Mantle of Leadership
As a project manager and a senior audiovisual technical lead, Steve is in charge of directing the firm’s audiovisual department. Steve is also part of the firm’s technical standards forum, which helps implement operating procedures for the firm based on research-backed best practices and our firm’s successful experience in the field.
Steve started out at IP Design Group as an audiovisual designer and has turned into a firm leader. One of the biggest lessons he’s learned along the way is the value of enhanced collaboration with clients, architects, and team members.
“I came from a small company not attached to an MEP firm,” Steve explained, “Through my work here, I’ve learned a lot about multidiscipline collaboration through the opportunity to meet and work with people face-to-face. Being able to walk down the hall and talk to someone from electrical or mechanical…It’s a much more comprehensive level of collaboration that you can’t find just anywhere.”
Steve Miller has enjoyed working in a dynamic environment and getting to know the different personalities of those around him. He is continually fascinated by the industry with a never-ending thirst to discover more. Learn more about the team members that make up our distinguished firm below.
