USA - ESTA has announced that Katie Jang is the new Protocol editor, taking over the role when Beverly Inglesby retires in April.
Jang (née McCulloh) has over two decades of marketing, communications, and advertising experience in the live entertainment industry working with Broadway venues, touring productions, traveling exhibitions, regional theatres, and more. Additionally, she worked for both ESTA as a marketing executive and Lighting&Sound America as a media executive.
“I am thrilled to re-join the ESTA team in this capacity and look forward to new opportunities within the publication while maintaining the core of Protocol for our dedicated members and subscribers,” says Jang. “And I am honoured to carry on Beverly’s undeniably enormous legacy.”
Erin Grabe, Executive Director of ESTA, notes, “I am very excited to work with Katie again

USA - Richard Cadena, technical editor of Lighting&Sound America and Light and Sound International has joined the 3LR Design team as senior consultant. His focused discipline is lighting design, control systems, and electrical design and implementation, with a knowledge of multiple technical systems. His career has covered a variety of industry segments including concert/touring, television/film, theatre, architectural, and corporate events.
"As we continue to grow our global reach, we are absolutely thrilled to have Richard join the team," says 3LR Design global director of design, Joshua Allen. "His extensive experience and passion for design -- and guiding others through the design process - will be extremely valuable assets to our company and our clients."
In his role as senior consultant, Cadena will be collaborating in the design of architectura

World - UK based A.C. Worldwide Group has announced a number of senior appointments as part of its strategy for continual growth.
In the UK, Phill Capstick, who has been with the business for 37 years, will step up to the role of CEO in UK based A.C. Entertainment Technologies and, following 25 years of success, Jonathan Walters becomes the company’s managing director.
In other UK news, Andy Dodd will be retiring from his executive role on the Board of Flashlight Ltd, but the Company says he has accepted a non-executive directorship so will still be helping the Flashlight team and their customers.
Across the Atlantic, the sales and distribution businesses operating as A.C. Americas (incorporating A.C. Lighting and A.C. Promedia) will be led by long-serving board member Phill Capstick who is appointed as CEO. Joining him on the board as president, after six yea

USA - Elation Professional has announced the promotions of Eric Loader to global vice president of sales & marketing and John Dunn to director of sales – U.S.
ADJ Group President, Toby Velazquez, has worked closely with both Eric and John over many years in building the Elation brand. He comments, “Eric and I have a successful history spanning over three decades and John's contribution to Elation's ascent as a premier brand in the industry over the past decade has been extraordinary. We couldn’t ask for a stronger team to drive the company's growth and keep Elation at the forefront as an innovative, reputable, and leading brand in the industry.”
Eric Loader, with 17 years of dedicated service to Elation, has been instrumental in driving the company's growth and expansion. In his new role, he will continue to lead the company's strategy and growth vision th

USA - Bandit Lites has announced the promotion of Mark Scherer to client representative. Scherer is the latest addition to the leadership team at Bandit where his recent adventures on the road will ‘offer a fresh perspective to clients as well as practical applications of the latest in lighting technology’.
Scherer joined Bandit Lites fresh out of college and quicklyestablished himself as a vital team member, working as a lighting tech on Chris Young, the dimmer tech for Carrie Underwood’s Cry Pretty Tour, crew chief on Alanis Morrisette’s Jagged Little Pill Tour, dimmer tech on Shinedown’s Revolution Live Tour, and most recently as the lighting director on Maren Morris’s Humble Quest Tour, as well as many other roles over time.
“I am excited to step into the role of Client Representative at a company that has taken care of me from the beginning,” said

USA - Pixellot has announced the appointment of Connor Thinnes as the vice president of sales in North America.
Connor brings considerable sales and marketing experience to Pixellot, with over 20 years of accumulated knowledge in these fields. He has worked in sales for 10 years and marketing for an additional 10 years. Prior to joining Pixellot, Thinnes held the position of VP of marketing at HomeTown Ticketing, a provider of digital ticketing services primarily for the high school market. In his new role, Connor will be responsible for leading both the club sales team and the Vidswap analytics sales team in the US.
"We are thrilled to welcome Connor to the Pixellot team," said David Shapiro, president of North America, Pixellot. "Connor's background in both sales and marketing, combined with his deep understanding of the High School and club sports market, make him

UK - Lighting controls specialist Pharos Architectural Controls has announced the appointment of Simon Hicks as its new chief executive officer. Simon takes over from Chris Hunt, a founder of the company, who will continue to serve as chief financial officer.
Chris comments, “Simon is the right person to be leading Pharos into its next phase of growth. He has been at the centre of our product innovation and development for many years now, resulting in the expansion of the company’s product portfolio, which now includes our new Expert range, our rebranded Designer range and our remote management solution – Cloud. It’s an exciting time for the business, and with Simon’s appointment Pharos will be in the best possible position as it prepares for significant growth during 2023 and beyond.”
Simon’s extensive experience in the sector spans 20 years and has feat

USA - ESTA has announced that Richard Nix is the new technical standards manager for the Technical Standards Programme (TSP). His predecessor, Karl Ruling, will stay on in a supporting role.
Nix’s involvement in the development of standards spans decades. In early 1994 he was already actively involved in the USITT Rigging Standards project when discussions began about the TSP and its mission. He immediately came on board as a volunteer and has been, as he puts it, “a rather hyperactive standards evangelist ever since,” having led multiple tasks groups over the years before joining ESTA as assistant technical standards manager in May 2019.
Former technical standards manager Ruling will now be senior technical standards manager. “I am stepping back so that Richard can step forward, and I am sure he will excel. Richard has been involved in the TSP for as long as

Italy - To celebrate this current year as its 50th anniversary since incorporation, Outline has been working behind the scenes to restructure, resulting in the appointment of a new management team.
The new organisation stems from the retirement of Giorgio Biffi from his role of CEO, which he carried in addition to his head of sales function, since the passing of founder Guido Noselli, whom he had joined in 1976.
"Giorgio has undoubtedly driven Outline's success on a worldwide scale during his 47 year-long tenure – which is why it wasn't exactly easy to find a suitable candidate to replace him,” says Michele Noselli, majority shareholding partner together with his brother Stefano – who adds, "It explains how we came to appoint not one, but two younger guys, as a team, in order to keep up with Giorgio's own pace, willing to grow Outline to lead tomorrow's technolog

USA - GLP Inc. has appointed Tyler Wise as its new director, sales & marketing (Americas). He brings more than 20 years of experience spanning the entire production management spectrum – in particular within the live events, integration and entertainment technology sector.
His knowledge of production lighting was honed during his time with prominent professional audio and lighting distribution company, Group One, where he was national sales manager of the lighting division, and as business development lead for Production Resource Group (PRG), the global service provider, which is where he first came into contact with GLP.
Wise’s experience in sales and marketing made him the perfect candidate for the position, as GLP Inc. president Mark Ravenhill emphasised. “Having known Tyler for many years, I am delighted that he is joining GLP to lead our sales and market

UK - DiGiCo has announced the appointment of James Baker as senior international sales manager, and long-standing DiGiCo team members Jaap Pronk and Tom Williams from their present roles to international sales managers.
Baker previously served as a business development manager and international sales manager. “I wanted a new challenge where I could leverage everything I’ve learned over the years,” he explains. “I’m looking forward to making a longstanding contribution to DiGiCo, bringing my flair for communication and relationship building to my new position and to being part of the amazing pool of talent the company already embodies.”
Pronk and Williams, meanwhile, are familiar DiGiCo faces and have been part of the DiGiCo family for many years. Both are well known for their expertise, reliability and excellent customer-facing skills.
Pronk’s assoc

USA - Renkus-Heinz has announced the appointment of test engineer Joel Enkhorn.
Enkhorn joins Renkus-Heinz with an extensive and impressive work history. Most recently, he worked for SpaceX in the Space Simulation Lab where he was a part of Avionics flight hardware and software testing. Enkhorn performed root cause analysis on failure modes and product defects utilizing Python scripting and hardware measurements.
Before his employment at SpaceX, Enkhorn gained experience acquiring, deploying and diagnosing issues with hardware and software across various platforms at Western Digital as a Cloud Server Quality Assurance Engineer. Here, Enkhorn worked to develop and troubleshoot automation scripts to assist with flashing product firmware.
“As a guitar nerd, I grew up with a love for music and the live audio atmosphere. It was an easy decision to be able to combin

Europe - Leyard Europe has announced the appointment of Markus Korn to the position of vice president of sales. Korn joins the Leyard Europe team from Samsung Electronics.
“After my very enjoyable and fulfilling decade at Samsung, it was time for a new challenge,” says Korn. “And what better place to take on my next challenge than at Leyard Europe. The company is constantly pushing the boundaries of display technology and breaking into new and exciting markets. I’m very much looking forward to joining the team.”
As VP Sales for Leyard Europe, Korn will lead all sales teams across the organisation, reporting directly to CEO Thorsten Lipp.
“We’re delighted to have Markus join us at Leyard Europe,” says Lipp. “His knowledge and connections will be a valuable asset to us as we continue to explore new opportunities and consolidate our position in the

UK - Bradford-based Pro Audio Systems has announced the recruitment of Martin Bailey to the post of projects director. Martin has enjoyed an international career that has encompassed every aspect of project and production management, system design engineering and integration.
From apprentice scenic painter at Bristol Old Vic, to live and studio freelancer, Martin graduated in 3D Design (Theatre) from Wimbledon School of Art. Further stints as a sound engineer at Good Earth and Sound Design studios in London (and regular work as theatre technician in the West End) preceded a move into the live sound arena working for a diverse range of artists including Motörhead, Fela Kuti, Nick Cave and Squeeze.
Leaving the road to take up the Technical Manager’s position at Phoenix Arts Centre in Leicester, Martin enjoyed a seven-year tenure, with responsibility for an extensive

Spain - Creative Technology (CT) has announced the appointment of Alvaro Cantos as the company’s systems integration manager for Spain. Cantos will report to CT Spain’s managing director, Oscar Ramal, and oversee the growth of the systems integration division in the Spanish market.
With over three decades of experience working with high-level corporations and public bodies in Spain and South America, delivering audio visual solutions to theatres, meeting rooms, auditoriums, conference rooms, museums and exhibitions, Cantos now brings his knowledge of the systems integration market to CT.
“Completing many notable audio-visual projects in Spain allowed me to lead and take part in some of the most important projects in South America,” explains Cantos. “I had the opportunity and privilege to work on both the AV and scenotechnic design of prominent venues such as

Europe - Clear-Com has announced the appointment of Richard Palmer to the role of sales director for the EMEA region, following the retirement of Nicki Fisher.
Richard’s prior experience includes over 10 years at Clear-Com, managing sales for Southern Europe and Africa, as well as several roles in sales for other leading industry manufacturers, including Audio-Technica and Solid State Logic. In his early career he spent time as a lecturer of music technology at various institutions, as well as serving as a recording engineer for CTS Studios.
Chris Willis, senior VP of worldwide sales, comments, “Richard’s deep understanding of the audio industry and his track record of growing even well-established channels made him a natural choice for this critical role, further strengthened by his strong interpersonal skills and wicked sense of humour.”
Richard’s ap

USA - Elation has announced the addition of Nick Saiki to the company’s U.S. sales team as product application and customer experience specialist – PACE. With an MFA in lighting design and technology from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Nick brings extensive knowledge and experience from his previous roles in live event production and system integration, as well as five years as a field project coordinator at ETC.
As PACE specialist, Nick will be responsible for leading product presentations at trade shows, showrooms, and sales team demos. He will also bridge the gap between sales and product management, ensuring that all customers and sales staff are fully trained on Elation products, up-to-date on industry trends, and familiar with the latest standards and technologies. Furthermore, Nick will expand on the Elation Educational Experience (E3

Germany - Following the realignment of the company with a focus on the professional audio business, the Sennheiser Group is entering 2023 with a newly formed management team. The audio specialist’s new executive management board includes representatives from the three business units Pro Audio, Business Communication and Neumann, as well as Supply Chain, Corporate Functions and Development. Together with Co-CEOs Daniel and Andreas Sennheiser, the board members will implement the strategic goals of the Sennheiser Group.
As of 1 January 2023, the operational business of the Sennheiser Group will be managed by a team of six: Greg Beebe (executive vice president professional audio), Ron Holtdijk (executive vice president business communication), Ralf Oehl (CEO Georg Neumann GmbH), Steffen Heise (CFO), Dr. Andreas Fischer (COO) and Markus Redelstab (CTO). Peter Claussen and Thom

Canada - Robe Lighting has announced that John Bilyk, a well-known and colourful figure in the Canadian and American stage lighting communities, died on the evening of 11 December 2022. He was 70 years old. John passed away at home peacefully, after a nearly year-long battle with brain cancer, and he is survived by his wife, Tracey.
John had a storied career in stage lighting that spanned 40 plus years. However, one of John’s early formative work experiences was with a men’s clothing store in Winnipeg owned by Marc Raymond. Raymond later co-founded Westsun, which grew to be a major Canadian production and installation company. Soon after, John started his stage lighting career at Westsun in Winnipeg. John then relocated to Toronto, partnering with Brock McGinnis to establish the Canadian lighting distribution firm Novatec.
Novatec represented notable lighting manuf

USA - Bandit Lites has announced the hiring of Allen Deneau as its newest client representative.
Deneau brings decades of experience having previously owned a Chicagoland production company as well as years on the road as the lighting director for Grammy-award winning country music group, Diamond Rio. As a client representative for Bandit Lites, he’ll utilise his understanding of touring productions to provide his clients product and personnel solutions to ensure their creative endeavours are achieved.
“I’ve used Bandit gear on numerous occasions,” shared Deneau. “I was always impressed with the cleanliness, the quality and reliability of the gear I received from Bandit. Above the quality of the gear was the quality of the people Bandit sent. They were professional, dependable, ready to work and knowledgeable.”
“We are very happy to have Allen jo

Europe/Singapore - Robe lighting starts 2023 with the announcement of two new roles boosting its international management team, both looking ahead and eyeing the company’s expansion over the next several years.
Bram De Clerck adds ‘key account manager Europe’ to his existing ‘business development manager’ detail, while Jens Poehlker takes on a new role as regional sales manager for Asia on top of his position as MD for Robe’s Singapore office.
This follows the announcement at the end of 2022 of Ingo Dombrowski as Robe’s new international sales director, while Harry von den Stemmen became key global account manager as well as taking on a more ambassadorial role in the company.
Like Ingo and Harry, both Bram and Jens have already been integral to the growth and success of the Robe operation for some years.
Bram’s new role as key account man

Germany - ARRI has announced Dr. Raphael Kiesel as its new head of quality management. Based at the film technology company’s headquarters in Munich, he will ‘convert customer requirements into products and services in an even more structured manner’.
Dr. Matthias Erb, chairman of the executive board at ARRI, comments: “ARRI has stood for the highest quality in the film industry since 1917. These high-quality standards must be further advanced globally in all business and corporate areas. I wish Dr. Raphael Kiesel every success with this important task.”
Dr. Raphael Kiesel adds: “I am very much looking forward to this exciting position and am well aware of ARRI’s heritage and the responsibility that comes with it. Our goal is to further improve upon the quality of ARRI’s products and services and to offer customers the very best that is possible.”

UAE - Aram, a specialist in entertainment design and complex technical production, has announced the appointment of Bartosz Jankowski as its new senior production manager in Dubai. Bartosz was previously associated with Visualsupport.
“From now on, Bartosz will be our permanent senior project manager responsible for the events and productions in the MENA region including Saudi Arabia. We believe that our knowledge and expertise in execution events like TV productions, trade fairs, esports, or festivals will be beneficial for clients in the Emirates and Saudi Arabia,” said Rafal Mrzyglocki, CEO of Aram.
Aram provides design and production services, together with the latest audio-visual solutions for live events, TV shows, festivals, esports, and conferences.

UK - David Morbey has been appointed to the position of product manager for Optimal Audio. Having worked with Denon, Martin Audio, InMusic, Allen & Heath and Neutrik, David has, at various stages, specialised in the area of installed sound for the leisure and hospitality sector - experience which aligns with his new role.
David Morbey comments: “I’ve maintained a close relationship with Dom Harter and James King since my Martin Audio days and very much admired the Optimal Audio launch in 2021. The disruptive marketing and clear messaging around the ecosystem isn’t let down by the product, which proved to be as simple and intuitive as it promised, so when the opportunity arose to get involved, I didn’t hesitate. It’s an exciting brand with clear objectives that’s just starting out on its journey, and as part of the Focusrite group, will have the space to grow

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