Built-in Programs Europe is positioning its 2026 version as a extra strategically targeted occasion, reflecting broader modifications in how organisations method office expertise, unified communications, and hybrid working.
Chatting with UC In the present day, ISE Managing Director Mike Blackman mentioned the emphasis this yr is much less on scale and spectacle, and extra on serving to attendees perceive what’s coming subsequent and tips on how to put together for it.
“ISE 2026 goes to be extra strategic, extra future-focused than ever earlier than,” Blackman mentioned.
“You’re going to see much more about what’s coming sooner or later, not solely from exhibitors, but in addition from the convention content material.”
Product Cycles and Sensible Demonstration
Product launches stay central to ISE’s function within the business, notably as producers have more and more aligned their R&D and launch cycles with the beginning of the yr.
Blackman mentioned that shift has labored in ISE’s favour, each for exhibitors and for integrators planning their buying cycles.
“Producers have modified their R&D cycles to launch merchandise originally of the yr,” he mentioned. “It suits their schedules, it suits integrators’ shopping for intervals, and it really works extraordinarily effectively.”
Alongside new launches, ISE 2026 is predicted to put higher emphasis on exhibiting how expertise is definitely used.
This implies a rise in dwell demonstrations, use instances, and tech excursions designed to maneuver the dialog past specs.
“You’re going to see extra demos, extra use instances, and extra alternatives to go exterior and see in-situ installations,” he mentioned. “That’s about seeing how different firms are implementing UC options in the actual world.”
The method displays a wider shift in purchaser behaviour, with organisations more and more searching for proof of interoperability, scalability, and operational worth slightly than remoted options.
Unified Communications and the Hybrid Office
Unified communications stays a core focus of the present, formed by the continued progress of hybrid working.
Blackman mentioned ISE continues to draw each channel companions and end-user organisations, however famous that the expectations of finish prospects have modified considerably.
“UC has change into a central a part of how organisations work,” he mentioned. “It’s not nearly programs in workplaces anymore, it’s additionally about how these programs are managed on desktops and private units.”
He added that workforce flexibility and rising actual property prices are pushing extra organisations in the direction of hybrid fashions, rising stress on IT and amenities groups to ship dependable, scalable collaboration environments.
“We’re seeing extra organisations saying hybrid simply is smart – younger individuals coming into the business nonetheless anticipate it, and corporations want to supply options that truly permit for that.”
For UC professionals, a lot of this exercise shall be concentrated in Halls 1 and a couple of, which deal with unified communications and schooling expertise and host lots of the main platform suppliers.
Safety, AI and Increasing the Scope of the Present
Cybersecurity is predicted to be extra distinguished at ISE 2026, following a sequence of high-profile incidents affecting main organisations and infrastructure.
Blackman mentioned these occasions have shifted the dialog with prospects.
“Quite a lot of what’s been within the information has made each integrators and their prospects much more conscious of what the threats might be,” he mentioned. “The thought is to tell prospects what they should do, but in addition to offer integrators clearer solutions for the questions they’re being requested.”
The Cybersecurity Summit will deal with sensible issues, slightly than summary danger, whereas a brand new space of the present, Spark, expands ISE’s remit into content material creation and inventive applied sciences.
“Spark is de facto about supporting the artistic industries – it covers areas that have been lacking earlier than, notably round content material creation and software program options.”
AI implementation may also function throughout the occasion, largely as an embedded functionality inside merchandise.
Blackman pointed to a keynote from Sol Rashidi as one of many highlights for organisations making an attempt to maneuver from experimentation to implementation.
“Quite a lot of producers are already utilizing AI to boost how their merchandise work,” he mentioned. “What firms are actually searching for is steering on tips on how to implement it correctly within the office.”
Planning, Preparation and Takeaways
With greater than 1,700 exhibitors anticipated, Blackman mentioned preparation stays vital.
The commonest mistake attendees make, he mentioned, is making an attempt to see all the pieces.
“ISE is simply too massive to see all the pieces in 4 days,” he mentioned. “The secret’s to deal with what issues you’re making an attempt to unravel and plan round that.”
He additionally inspired attendees to make higher use of the present’s planning instruments and convention content material, which he believes are sometimes ignored.
“Lots of people miss the content material that provides them actual perception into what’s occurring within the business – that’s the place you begin to perceive what you really need to think about when placing programs in place.”
Finally, Blackman mentioned the intention of ISE 2026 is for attendees to go away with readability slightly than overload.
“It’s about going away with a greater view of the place the business goes – and understanding how different organisations are coping with the identical challenges.”
