AVIXA, the owner and producer of the upcoming RESIDE and Lightapalooza events, has named Marco Pardi as its new chief executive officer. Pardi will take the reins of the Association on January 1, 2027, succeeding David Labuskes, CTS, RCDD, who retires on December 31, 2026.
Pardi joins AVIXA from the international events, digital media, and information services provider Informa, where he was president of the Tech Events portfolio. In this role, he was responsible for the strategy and execution of live and on-demand events, digital marketing services, and training serving the information technology and healthcare industries. He led a team of more than 200 professionals in multiple locations across North America, Europe, and Asia, stewarding a number of respected global brands including The AI Summit, Channel Partners Expo, Contact Center Expo, Data Center World, HIMSS Global Conference, IWCE, Network X, and Service & Support World Expo.
Pardi was educated at the University of California, Berkeley, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, and has more than 25 years’ experience leading high-performing teams in the field of B2B technology events and community-building.
“It is an honor to be leading AVIXA,” comments Pardi. “Very few non-profit organizations in the tech space have the brand reputation, global reach, and programmatic diversity of this Association. As the professional AV industry has broadened in scope, appeal, and value, AVIXA has kept pace with these developments, fully embracing the convergence with IT and related disciplines without compromising the passion and commitment which sit at the core of its identity. AVIXA doesn’t just provide connections and information; it enables AV companies to be more successful and helps AV people be the best at what they do.”
Pardi’s appointment concludes a 12-month search process during which some of AVIXA’s most senior volunteers evaluated applications from over 100 candidates from all over the world.
During his 14-year term as CEO, Labuskes oversaw the rebranding of the association from InfoComm International to AVIXA; the rebuilding of core association activities after the COVID-19 pandemic; modernization of the association’s governance and leadership search capabilities; and the introduction of multiple new programmatic offerings including the ANP (Audiovisual Network Professional) accreditation, the monthly Pro AV Business Index, the AVIXA TV online video creation and distribution platform, and just recently, the “Broadcast AV: Glass to Glass” training course designed to help AV professionals navigate the convergence of their traditional skillsets with those of enterprise broadcasting, live event production, and media asset management.
For more information, visit www.avixa.org.
