AVIXA has announced four appointments who will lead RESIDE and Lightapalooza, shows for the custom integration and lighting communities, joining InfoComm 2027 in June in Orlando, Florida. Lisa Staszewski joins as show director, Keisha Wooten-Smith as senior manager of live content, Vanessa Sayen as senior manager of audience development and marketing, and Jody Larsen as senior account manager.
Together, the four bring expertise spanning business development, marketing, event strategy, and live content. Sayen and Larsen offer decades of experience serving manufacturers, integrators, and industry partners across the residential market, while Staszewski and Wooten-Smith have led the growth and delivery of successful conferences, live events, and content programs.
“As we prepare for RESIDE and Lightapalooza to debut at InfoComm 2027, it was important to assemble a team that understands the needs of this community and opportunities ahead,” says Jenn Heinold, senior vice president, expositions, Americas, AVIXA. “Vanessa, Jody, Lisa, and Keisha bring unique strengths and a shared passion for advancing the residential integration community. Together, they create a strong foundation for the shows and will help shape them into a destination for technology launch, learning, business growth, and industry connections.”
During her most recent role as vice president of marketing for NTP Events, Staszewski developed marketing and audience development strategies for major events, including SpaceCom, APTA, and NAB Show. Throughout her 13 years in the event and trade show industry, Staszewski has helped build audiences, generate large-scale partnerships, strengthen stakeholder engagement, and grow flagship events for nonprofit organizations and global brands.
Wooten-Smith brings more than 15 years of experience developing conference programs and live content experiences for nonprofit, corporate, media, and association audiences. Previously, Wooten-Smith led annual executive summits at Coqual, bringing together more than 500 leaders and professionals from Fortune 500 and other global companies. She also served as vice president of events at Magnet Media and held senior production roles at Essence Communications, contributing to high-profile live events and audience experiences.
Recognized as a CE Pro 40 Women to Watch honoree in 2024, Sayen brings more than 25 years of experience supporting manufacturers, dealer networks, buying groups, architects, and designers across North America. Most recently, at LK & Associates, Sayen managed dealer engagement initiatives and communications programs supporting more than 30 partner brands. She has also served as a CEDIA Outreach Instructor.
Larsen joins AVIXA after more than 20 years with CEDIA. During her time there as director of business development and sales, Larsen built strategic relationships with residential integrators, manufacturers, and industry partners while driving membership, sponsorship, and revenue growth across the residential integration industry.
Debuting at InfoComm 2027 in Orlando, Florida, RESIDE will be a purpose-built event for integrators, manufacturers, and service providers shaping the residential market. Developed through a joint venture between AVIXA, HTSA, and ProSource, RESIDE will strengthen connections across the residential and commercial AV industries. Lightapalooza was established in 2022 by HSTA to serve the residential lighting channel, growing from 225 attendees in its first year to more 1600 in 2026.
For more information, visit www.avixa.org.
