UK - With the announcement of Paul Wong as its new Managing Director, Avolites has signalled the next phase of a development strategy that has been in play at the company for some time. The appointment follows previous board-level additions and other internal measures designed to ensure longevity for the brand, say Avolites.
There’s no doubting the calibre of the recruit. Hailing from Southport in the North West of England, Paul has held many roles in technology, from apprentice toolmaker to managing director of Bosch Security Systems. His years of director-level experience with high-tech engineering and manufacturing firms is backed up by a B.Eng degree in Electronic Engineering and an MBA.
He says, “My experience includes the product business, distribution, product marketing and the live event sector - all in a high-tech environment. All of which will be highly relevant to this role.”
Avolites’ plan is to ensure business stability and continuity throughout the process, allowing previous managing director Richard Salzedo to conduct a seamless handover. Ric has held the roles of both chairman and managing director for a number of years. Alongside fellow co-owners Steve Warren and Meena Varatharajan, he has overseen a number of Avolites’ innovative products and the successful acquisition and integration of Avolites Media.
Ric says, “As part of our long-term plan we have been introducing young talent into the executive which started with JB Toby and Koy Neminathan joining the Board. The next step was Paul joining the company as managing director.”
Ric now continues as Chairman. Also continuing in their roles are Steve and Meena as Business Development Director and Finance & Logistics Director respectively - and fellow board members Koy, Sales Director and JB, Technical Director.
When asked about his attraction to the role at Avolites, Paul says, “First and foremost, Avolites’ vision and values resonated with me personally. Its strengths make it an exciting proposition to work with - a talented and committed work-force, a great history as one of the pioneers of lighting consoles and a major innovator, a loyal fanbase of users, and a great product portfolio . . . I feel our software is hard to beat in terms of reliability, capability, performance and user experience. What really excites me is the vision and sharing the journey with our customers and employees.”
Far from appearing overnight, Paul has been involved behind the scenes at Avolites for months, getting to know the company, its staff and markets. Now fully integrated into the business, he is ready to bring his experience to bear. He says, “We are focused on developing our product range and further global expansion of the product portfolio.”
As a long-term fan of live music and all of the various genres of the performing arts, Paul is also enthused by the dynamics of the entertainment business which drive companies such as Avolites. He says, “Live events must continually stimulate their audiences such that the viewer is happy to pay the price of entry, and therefore technology is being pushed to its limit from a feature/functionality and performance point of view. The business challenge is to constantly deliver faster performance, ensure ease of use whilst delivering ever more complex performances, in tighter timescales, whilst continually innovating for tomorrow - something we are well equipped to achieve.”
Paul Wong will be with the Avolites team at ProLight&Sound in Frankfurt (10-13 April).