The Memphis Grizzlies and FedExForum announced the appointment of Dwight Johnson as Vice President of Arena Operations. Johnson joins the organization after working for SMG Richmond as the General Manager since 2009. Prior to his role as General Manager, he acted as Director of Operations with SMG Richmond beginning in 2005. During his 13-year career at SMG, Johnson developed a strong background in building operations, construction, and event management while overseeing operations at the Richmond Coliseum, Altria Theater, Dominion Energy Center, and the Bon Secours Washington Redskins Training Center.

Johnson began his career in facility management in 1997 as an Operations Lead at the 15,000-seat Pete Maravich Assembly Center on the campus of Louisiana State University. After receiving many promotions, Johnson oversaw all daily operations and booking for the facility during his final position as Director. In his time at LSU, Johnson managed multiple national sporting events including the NCAA Women’s Basketball Regional, Men’s Basketball NIT Tournament games, and SEC Championship events.

A native of Thibodaux, Louisiana, Johnson is a graduate of Louisiana State University. He and his wife, Katy, have two children, Avery Kate and Drew.

Johnson’s first day with the Grizzlies and FedExForum will be March 19.

The Diversity and Inclusive Leadership Committee (DILC) “unofficially” hit the ground running last August in Nashville at VenueConnect when Robyn Williams, CVE, made an impassioned appeal at the committee’s networking reception for IAVM members to become engaged and involved in committee service work within IAVM. Not just involvement, but for individuals representing the diversity within the ranks of membership to step forward to serve to better represent the range of the Association’s membership, be it by color, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc.

The response? Money poured in faster than Williams could speak as individuals indicated their desire to assist the committee in upcoming initiatives. After two conference calls and a talented stable of individuals on the committee including four — count ’em, four — IAVM Past Chairs, some of those initiatives are in the early stages of formulation.

That still does not stop the need for the initial appeal of asking you to consider applying to volunteer on a committee. Any member of the DILC is available to help and advise you.

“The Diversity and Inclusive Leadership Committee has begun the purposeful work of developing opportunities to promote a diverse membership into leadership roles at IAVM,” said Julia Slocombe, Committee Chair. “We continue to seek those willing to serve and build a culturally inclusive and diverse IAVM.

“As we focus on bringing targeted education topics, consider joining this engaged committee and lend your voice to this important and impactful work.”

DILC committee members include: Chair Julia Slocombe, Vice Chair Robyn Williams, Kim Damron, Jimmy Earl, Shura Garnett, Daniel Huerta, Joyce Leveston, Jennifer Norris, Steve Peters, Naz Sabripour, Jill Schinberg, Troy Thorn, and Kletra Newton.

In its January Awards & Recognition issue, SportsEvents Magazine named Monty Jones Jr. as a Parks & Recreation Leader To Watch in 2018. Jones is general manager of the Sports Facilities Management/Hoover Metropolitan Complex in Hoover, Alabama.

The basis for the award states that “A great concept needs a great venue to meet the lofty expectations of aspiring athletes, and the Sports Venue Professionals who take care of the fields, competitors and spectators are key contributors to any event’s success.

Jones assumed his position last December and oversees the management and daily operations of the new Finley Center, the Hoover 11,000-seat Metropolitan Stadium, and outdoor facilities to include five regulation soccer/football/lacrosse fields, five regulation baseball/softball fields, 16 tennis courts, a pro shop, a walking track, splash pad, event lawn, and playground.

Jones certainly knows the business and boasts an impressive resume in the public assembly venue industry.

Before taking on his new role, Jones managed the Spectra by Comcast/Macon Centreplex in Macon, Georgia, that includes a 9,000-seat arena and was responsible for overall management and operations of the Macon Mayhem hockey team and the 2,700-seat Macon City Auditorium.

In comments about the recognition, Jones said, “The most rewarding part is being able to work with a great group of individuals for a common goal to be a part of a community that enriches the overall quality of life for the locals and provide a destination for others.”

The Los Angeles Convention Center (LACC), managed by AEG Facilities, revealed its new 9,500 square foot rooftop garden in January. The project began taking shape in April of 2017 and features various citrus trees, herbs, vegetables, and seasonal flowers above the South Hall lobby.

“Sustainability and innovation are core values at AEG Facilities, and at the Los Angeles Convention Center we take this to heart,” says Brad Gessner, CVE, Senior Vice President and General Manager at the LACC. “The idea for the rooftop garden has been developing over the past few years and we are thrilled with this addition to our facility.”

The garden will not only contribute to the green efforts of Downtown Los Angeles, but will also provide produce for LACC’s in-house caterer Levy Restaurants. Currently 90 percent of produce at the LACC is locally sourced; Levy plans to build on this by utilizing oregano, chili peppers, citrus, lettuce, and carrots grown in the garden and use them regularly in their recipes to showcase the originality of the convention center.

The rooftop garden is an addition to more than 30 environmentally friendly practices and procedures implemented at the LACC under the management of AEG Facilities. These various implementations have resulted in conservation of energy and water, consistent increase in waste diversions rates, responsible purchasing of in-house goods, and the demonstration of leadership to local real estate and broad convention center communities.

By Christianne Beringer

For 50 years, Daktronics has been innovating and engineering new solutions for its customers. The company is a pioneer in the electronic scoreboard, programmable display system, and large-screen video display market and it continues to provide the highest quality products and custom-designed, integrated systems for customers around the world.

Daktronics, a contraction of Dakota and electronics, was founded in 1968 by two university professors, Dr. Al Kurtenbach and Dr. Duane Sander. Kurtenbach was determined to retain South Dakota’s best and brightest college graduates through the development and growth of high tech industry in the state. Fast forward to today, he achieved this goal as 30 percent of Daktronics employees (more than 2,500) began their careers as students. In the five decades of business, more than 8,000 students have worked for the company.

In the beginning, the company initially planned to design and manufacture equipment for hospital and medical uses. One of the first stock holders suggested the company consider electronic voting systems. They set about manufacturing a prototype to present to the State of South Dakota, and later the State of Colorado. However, neither were seriously looking to purchase such a system.

Kurtenbach had a subscription to the Wall Street Journal and would browse through the week’s papers on Friday nights. One

Friday night, he happened to see an advertisement from the State of Utah, looking for a company to make and install an electronic voting system in its House of Representatives.

“I got ahold of them, went out and met with them and submitted a bid,” said Kurtenbach. “When I met with them, I learned that they had actually gone out for bids two years prior, but had rejected all bids.

“So I said, ‘Was that a public bid opening?’ and they said it was, and I said, ‘I’d sure like to have a copy of those bids.’” Kurtenbach laughed as he added, “That helped a lot with our bidding.”

Daktronics successfully secured the project, and would continue to find success in that market. Around that same time, the wrestling coach from SDSU reached out to Kurtenbach after returning from a national tournament.

“Warren Williamson was a family friend, he became a family friend through by brother Frank. Frank wrestled for him,” said Kurtenbach. Williamson asked to meet for coffee because he wanted to talk about the scoreboards at the national tournament. The two met, and Williamson described how the scoreboards used were inappropriate; they didn’t show the correct information and they blocked the view of the fans.

Daktronics designed the patented Matside® wrestling scoreboard with a truncated pyramid-style structure, and added advantage time so referees would no longer have to keep that time on a stopwatch. “Warren helped us get exposure at the national tournaments in ’71,” said Kurtenbach.

From the beginning, Daktronics reinvented the way messages are shared with audiences in every situation, market, and location. They gathered talented individuals who shared their passion for developing useful, cutting-edge technology to make life easier for those who needed it. After 50 years, the same is still true as Daktronics employees carry that passion into their daily work to provide customers world-wide with the best display solutions available on the market.

During the 50th year, the people of Daktronics will be sharing their stories to give a glimpse of the Daktronics life with this world-wide company.

Christianne Beringer is in Employee Communications with Daktronics.