Zane Au, Director Shen Milsom & Wilke Hong Kong office has more than 30 years of experience in the professional AV industry. Au graduated from HKU with a B.Sc. (Eng.) degree in 1989. Since joining SM&W in 2000, he has been responsible for all of SM&W’s projects and the operation of other SM&W branch offices in Asia. Au is a member of AES, SMPTE and ASA.

Au is a highly respected professional in the AV industry. He is known for his expertise in multimedia design and installation, as well as his strong leadership skills. Au is also a passionate advocate for the AV industry, and he is often called upon to speak at industry events and conferences.

In 2019, Au was inducted into the SCN Hall of Fame, which recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the AV industry.

Kate Kelly, CTS. Director & Theatre Consultant, Studio Entertech

Kate has dedicated her career to the Australian theatre industry, joining Entertech as a recipient of the Denis Irving Award. As a director of Studio Entertech, Kate champions theatre makers delivering excellence in venue design, designing spaces and systems that can facilitate the ever-changing technical demands of modern productions including lighting, AV and rigging systems. 

Keen to continue the legacy of mentorship, Kate leads education theatre projects and is proud to partner with VAPAC on the new Industry Development Initiative to address chronic shortages of technical staff in our industry.

Tom Miu, Managing Director of PTS Singapore, a Technology Design Consultancy that offers AV, acoustic and IT design solutions for workplaces and data centres throughout APAC.  Tom has over 25 years’ of experience in consulting, project management and technical design. He leads PTS with the vision of being an impartial and independent design consultancy that puts the user experience first. 

PTS believes that technology can transform the workplace into a destination that attracts, engages and educates, especially after the pandemic. While not an AV designer by trade, Tom collaborates closely with his clients and partners to deliver impactful and meaningful spaces underpinned by technology. Tom is passionate about tech innovation and appreciates what it takes to wow people with amazing experiences.

Scott Doyle, CTS, Swinburne University of Technology & President, AETM.  

For the past 6 years Scott has been the AV Manager at Swinburne University of Technology with responsibility for the AV infrastructure, learning & meeting spaces, technical support, and event teams.  Previously Scott worked at Monash University for over 25 years in the Television, Audiovisual and IT divisions.  

This experience in the higher education sector led to him to join the AETM where he has been an Executive Officer of the association for the past nine years, currently sitting as President.  Scott strongly supports the AETM Community and AV workforce development in both his Swinburne and AETM roles.  Pre-COVID Scott was a judge for the previous AVIA’s and he supports both Integrate and AVIXA in their annual initiatives.

Emerson Pratt, Head of IT Support Services, University of Otago & Vice President AETM. 

Emerson has been involved in the AV and IT sectors for over 30 years and in strategic leadership roles for the past 20 years. Both in his role within the education sector and as Vice President of AETM, Emerson is particularly interested in supporting and developing the next generation of IT and AV professionals and is excited to see where they will take the industry in the next 30 years.

Emerson is a strong advocate for designing IT and AV technologies & services which allows all to reach their full potential, no matter the environment. He is a firm believer that it is important that technology does not dominate the teacher/student experience but rather enhances & supports it and that the most important two questions that can be asked are ‘why?’ and ‘why not’?​

Penny Karvelis, AV Governance & Strategy Lead, RMIT University

Penny has been the AV Governance & Strategy Lead at RMIT University for the past 2 years, with core responsibilities of overseeing daily AV operations and technical teams, design governance for project delivery and managing the AV infrastructure across learning, teaching and meeting space environments.

Whilst Penny is relatively new to the education sector, she has a prior history of working in the audio visual industry for the past 8 years in a technical management role. This demonstrated experience has enabled identifying and researching emerging technologies to ensure continuous improvement, aligning the AV standards and supporting the strategic direction of the University.

Penny is also an active member within the AETM community.