Rise AV, the not-for-profit organisation working to attract, support and retain more women in the AV industry, has launched a North America Regional Council ahead of its first mentoring programme in the region. The council will provide local insight, help build relationships with women, businesses and potential partners, and support the programme’s development, along with events and professional development opportunities.
The inaugural council is chaired by Gina Sansivero, vice president of marketing and communications at AtlasIED. Its other members are Scott Josephson of Google, Siobhan Stewart of National Audio Visual, Steve Samson of Turtle AV, Jeremy Elsesser of Level 3 Audiovisual, Lainie Mataras of Planar, Meg Sciarini of Apple and Noreen Esson of Diversified Canada.
The programme brings together three elements. Participants are matched with an experienced industry mentor, take part in expert-led sessions on skills including communication, public speaking, personal branding, leadership and career planning, and join a peer community with their cohort. It is free to participants, thanks to Rise AV’s global partners QSC and Neat.
Applications open on December 1 at rise-av.com/mentoring and close on January 31, 2027. Mentor and mentee pairings will be announced in March, and the six-month programme begins in May. Vanessa Tolisano joins as North America programme coordinator, reporting to Carla Maroussas, Rise AV’s global mentoring manager.
Rachael Hamilton, managing director of Rise AV, said: “We’ve already seen the difference mentoring can make through the women we’ve supported in the UK and APAC – helping them build confidence, develop new skills, navigate career changes, step into leadership and, importantly, feel more supported in their careers. We don’t just want to help women progress; we want to help them build careers they enjoy, feel valued in and want to stay in.”
Sansivero added: “I’ve spent my career watching talented women leave this industry because they didn’t have the right person in their corner at the right moment. Rise AV gives us a real structure to fix that – mentorship, skills, and a community that supports each other well after the programme ends.”
Wayne Mason, vice president of EMEA at Neat, added: “Supporting the development of women and creating opportunities for diverse talent to progress is incredibly important to us at Neat. We’re proud to now become a Rise AV partner and help support the launch into North America, bringing these opportunities to more women and helping to build a stronger, more inclusive AV industry.”
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