Where are you originally from, and where do you currently reside? What do you enjoy doing in your free time? Any favourite sports or hobbies?
Born and raised outside of Seattle, WA. I currently reside in Boston, MA. I enjoy just about anything that involves competition, especially athletic pursuits. My wife Jennifer and I are passionate about travel, food and wine and pursue adventures that bring these together. My favourite sports include baseball and basketball which I’ve played since my youth.
How do you think the AV industry has evolved post-Covid, and what are the key challenges for industry AV consultants and planners today?
The AV industry accelerated meaningfully during the pandemic, becoming a ubiquitous means of communication. It kept businesses online and operational, kept people connected around the world, and alongside the M&E industry became the centre for innovation that enabled media organisations to maintain programming during the most challenging conditions.
These innovations in remote and virtual production along with software-based media platforms like AMPP, have become core elements of the production landscape post-Covid, enabling media organisations and content providers of all sizes to expand their capabilities and engage their audiences in new and captivating ways.
Consultants and integrators are dealing with an evolving set of customer expectations but also lots of questions as organisations come to grips with the potential of the latest technologies. Guiding customers through this process will be both challenging and rewarding.
What are your thoughts on the future of the industry, and what potential challenges or pinch points do you foresee?
Broadcast-grade production technology is no longer the preserve of traditional broadcasters and TV networks. Access to cutting-edge media production solutions is now within reach for a far broader swathe of organisations, and companies like Grass Valley have been instrumental in enabling this transformation.
The ongoing democratisation of media solutions will see accelerating deployments of technology in non-traditional broadcast environments such as corporate, education, and houses of worship, as well as providing areas like sports, live events, and esports with new production and streaming capabilities.
The opportunities for knowledge sharing and collaboration between peer industries such as pro AV and M&E are very exciting. Pinch points will emerge as we work towards the ‘sweet spot’ of where the industries converge, but this is where growth and innovation accelerates through collaboration.
How’s business going and how have you coped post-Covid and with supply issues?
Business is great. We have enjoyed a record-breaking period of growth in 2024, which we have solidified through strategic partnerships with key players such as Diversified, ES Broadcast, and Arabsat.
Key to that growth story has been our software platform AMPP, which has become a cornerstone for major global events such as the Global Leadership Summit and the G20 Summit in India. These high-profile projects are great examples of how the Grass Valley Media Universe enables customers to reduce operational costs while increasing revenue through innovative media production approaches.
In terms of supply chain, one of our greatest strengths and biggest challenges is the sheer breadth of our hardware portfolio. Through the height of the post-Covid supply chain ‘crunch’, lead times were extremely challenging and significantly strained our operations. But entering 2024 our lead times have normalised across every product which is a huge testament to our industry-leading operations team.
Tell us about your accord with Diversified
The agreement with Diversified is a perfect illustration of our commitment to support client needs via our trusted partners. Combining our industry-leading solutions with Diversified’s integration expertise means that we’re able to deliver unparalleled value and innovation to our clients.
It’s a strategic partnership that enables both parties to expand their global footprint, while accelerating our collective ability to address the emerging trends and challenges we’re seeing in the marketplace, which is something we’re very excited about.
Any exciting news you’d like to share – upcoming projects, developments, or plans for 2025 and beyond?
We’re heading into 2025 with a focus on expanding our market leadership position in the M&E industry, and bringing the revolutionary power of AMPP to new customers and markets. As more and more non-broadcast organisations understand the benefits and accessibility of high-end media solutions, our focus is on enabling them to experience the best possible production values at a price point that works for them. And we’re able to deliver this value through our software-centric, platform-based approach to our technology.
What plans have you got in place for ISE and any thoughts on this all-important pro AV show?
ISE is an incredible showcase of technology innovation. It has become the show where inter-connected technologies from peer industries such as M&E, pro AV, pro audio, and CE come together on the same show floor. It’s also the show that brings together these peer communities, and we’re looking forward to meeting the diverse range of innovation leaders and talent that the show is renowned for attracting. On our stand in Hall 4, we’ll be showcasing our range of solutions for the corporate, education, houses of worship, live events, and sports sectors, including our high performance LDX range of cameras, bundled software-based application solutions for simplifying live event production (Live Producer X/Event Producer X) and of course our AMPP ecosystem. We’re looking forward to meeting our partners, existing and new customers in Barcelona, as we showcase the game-changing power of the Grass Valley Media Universe to the AV community. .