“About 20 years ago I was an integrator in South Florida when I was plucked from obscurity by Julie Jacobson,” said Avi Rosenthal, vice president for security and control at Nortek Security and Control. “Little did I know then that this was the beginning of a very long journey.”
That long journey culminated in Rosenthal being named the recipient of the 2016 Consumer Technology Association (CTA) TechHome Division’s Mark of Excellence Leadership Award. The honor is given to an individual that has made a significant contribution to the growth and success of the TechHome industry and we are grateful for their continued dedication and devotion to the industry.
Rosenthal has been a passionate management executive for more than 20 years in the IT/CE convergence space creating successful start-ups and building successful organizations. He has been on both the integration side of the business, running his own company – Homeworks Automation in Florida for many years – and on the manufacturer side, where he has held positions at OnQ/Legrand, Superna, Evolve and currently as the vice president for security and control at Nortek.
“Our industry has come a very long way and I am proud to say that I played a small part in it,” said Rosenthal as he accepted the award at CES during the Mark of Excellence Awards ceremony. “As we stand here tonight celebrating the best and the brightest within our industry this past year it warms my heart to see that we are just scratching the surface and we still have a lot more of the journey left in front of us.”
Rosenthal used the opportunity to pass on some wisdom for attendees about challenges facing the custom integration market. “Some of the challenges that we face have been the same for a long time: the education of technicians within our industry, the widespread marketing of the understanding of what we actually do for a living, but it has gotten easier today with more and more companies entering our marketplace.”
He added, “What we do for a living and the value that we bring to people’s lives has increased beyond our imaginations. I don't think that any of us could’ve imagined that 15 years ago when the home automation and networking association merged with the consumer electronics association that the CES show would become a showplace for connected devices and home automation. But here we are standing at the largest trade show in the world highlighting some of the most incredible technologies that affect the daily lives of literally millions of people.”
He concluded by noting that the industry “has allowed me to turn a hobby into a career through the connections and friendships that I have made. I thank you very much for this honor.”
Previous CTA MOE Leadership Award Winners
Eric Bodley, Bodley & Associates (2015)
Julie Jacobson, EH Publishing (2014)
Michael Pope, Audio Video Interiors (2013)
Walt Zerbe, Legrand (2012)
Roland Graham, HDHomes.TV (2011)
Ric Johnson, Elite Systems Solutions (2010)
Ian Hendler, Leviton Manufacturing Co. (2009)
David Rodarte, NuVo Technologies LLC (2008)
Bill Maronet, ETC Inc. (2007)
Tom Callahan, Sawyers Control Systems (2006)
David Hanchette, EH Publishing Inc. (2005)
Peter Hoagland, BG Corp. (2004)
Duane Paulson, GE Security (2003)
Richard Scholl, Worthington Distribution (2002)
John Galante, EH Publishing Inc. (2001)
Ken Kerr, Home Controls Inc. (2000)
Jay McLellan, Home Automation Inc. (1999)
Ken Moyes, EH Publishing Inc. (1998)
Joe Freeman, J. P. Laboratories LLC (1997)
Doug Fikse, On-Q Home (1996)
Mark Hollcraft, Leviton Manufacturing Co. (1995)
Pete Lesser, X10 (USA) Inc. (1994)
Bill Scheffler, Zensys Inc. (1994)
Dave Rye, X10 (USA) Inc. (1994)
