Rahi team helped Envoy optimize the experience in its smaller conference rooms while also creating an all-hands space that worked well with the facility’s open floor plan.

1. A/V DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION FOR ENVOY
CASE STUDY SUMMARY
Envoy wanted to outfit the conference
rooms and all-hands space in its new
offices with consistent, high-quality A/V
technology.
Rahi Systems designed and implemented
the solution in a very short timeframe,
accommodating Envoy’s budget and
technology preferences.
The Rahi team helped Envoy optimize the
experience in its smaller conference rooms
while also creating an all-hands space that
worked well with the facility’s open floor
plan.
Design standards help ensure a consistent,
intuitive user experience throughout all
meeting rooms.
Envoy develops solutions that challenge the status quo of
workplace technology. It started in the lobby with Envoy Visitors,
which enables visitors to use iPads to enter their information, obtain
a guest badge, sign documents and more. Envoy Deliveries is a
mobile app that allows front desk and mailroom personnel to take
photos of packages, notify the recipient and track when the
package is picked up.
As the company continues to develop new products, it needed
larger office space to accommodate its growing team. Envoy
moved into a large open space at 410 Townsend Street in San
Francisco, and wanted to outfit it with high-quality conferencing
and A/V equipment. “Our previous office space was very DIY,”
said Matt Harris, Head of Workplace Technology, Envoy. “We had
a couple of Google Hangouts rooms, mounted a projector in the
conference room ceiling, put up a screen, all those sorts of things.
When we moved into our new workplace, we agreed that it was a
priority to improve on that.”
“We have a large remote employee population scattered
throughout the U.S. and a few international as well. We wanted
to make sure that every employee feels just as connected and
able to impact the work we’re doing here. After reviewing all the
videoconferencing products, we determined that Zoom was the
right choice.”
Envoy didn’t want to go the do-it-yourself route again and began
looking for a partner to assist in the design and implementation
of A/V solutions. The company’s office manager had previously
worked with Rahi Systems, and recommended them for the project.
“When we started this project, we had 14 conference rooms and
since then we’ve expanded into the other half of the space. We’re
up to a full 26 collaborative meeting spaces, and we’ve outfitted
20 of those with Zoom,” Harris said. “Rahi has helped us with all of
that, as well as our all-hands space.”
Rahi is focused on building what we want
rather than what Rahi wants, The Rahi team
was always willing to go the extra mile to
make things work well. Rarely do we have
problems. And people who come into our
space are impressed.
- Matt Harris
Envoy
© Rahi Systems+1-510-651-2205 www.rahisystems.com

2. The Rahi team began by developing standards so that the A/V
technology would be consistent across Envoy’s environment.
Envoy wanted every conference room to have videoconferencing
features, but also had to work within a fixed budget.
“We didn’t want to have some rooms with videoconferencing
and others with only a whiteboard,” said Harris. “Rahi dug into
those details and put forth a proposal with the right balance of
high-quality technology but also saving some expense where
possible.
“We did prioritize certain things. For example, when we were
talking about what cameras to use, Rahi said that Panacast is
probably the most expensive but it makes a beautiful 180-degree
view in these small rooms. We set them up in a couple of rooms
and agreed that it worked really well.”
Rahi then turned to the all-hands space. The Rahi team installed a
projector, multiple monitors, and a full sound system with ceiling
speakers that direct sound downward. The sound system consists
of two zones, enabling Envoy to control the volume depending
on the size of the meeting.
“Our offices are one big open floor plan minus the conference
rooms,” Harris said. “People are sitting at desks 30 feet away
from the all-hands space. Also, it’s not a dedicated all-hands
space — we also have our lunch tables there. It’s a dynamic space
where people might be eating, working, or there could be a
meeting or event. “We had to think about how we could control
the sound, and Rahi came up with solutions that allowed us to do
that.”
Because of the open nature of the facility, Envoy didn’t have
space for any equipment in the all-hands space. In addition, the
company wanted the user interface to be intuitive so that anyone
could start and control a meeting. iPads were the obvious choice
for the interface. “All of the equipment is in another room down
the hall and it’s remotely managed through iPads,” said Harris.
“Behind the scenes we have an audio controller, an app for video
switching and control, and another app for running Zoom
meetings.”
All of this had to be done in a very short timeframe. Envoy
planned to move into its new space just a few weeks after signing
the lease, and wanted the A/V equipment to be in place from day
one. “We told Rahi that we needed to move fast and they were
able to pull it off,” said Harris. “We had all of the gear here within
two weeks and by the end of the third week all of the conference
rooms were online.”
Rahi’s project management was the key to meeting the deadline.
Rahi procured all of the equipment and made sure that the
project stayed on track despite the inevitable logistics issues.
“I would work alongside the Rahi team so that we could
problem-solve together,” Harris said. “The Rahi team handled
every aspect of it — I was just there to make on-the-fly decisions
because we hadn’t had the luxury of planning every detail.
I appreciated the Rahi team’s ability to make things work.”
Despite the rapid pace, Rahi helped Envoy implement A/V
technology that enhances the employee experience and the
Envoy brand. Harris has been particularly impressed with Rahi’s
ability to accommodate Envoy’s requirements, such as using iPads
to control the equipment.
Envoy naturally asked Rahi for help when it expanded into the
other half of its office space. Building on lessons learned in the
first project, Rahi made improvements in the design of the Zoom
Rooms and enhanced the capabilities of the all-hands space.
“We returned to Rahi and said, ‘This is a bigger space and we’re
going to be here longer. Let’s make this even better.’ Rahi helped
us leverage all of the wiring and equipment we had in place and
took it to the next level,” Harris said. “Rahi has been a thought
partner in helping us imagine what this space could be.”
SOLUTIONS
RESULTS
© Rahi Systems+1-510-651-2205 www.rahisystems.com