Utz Baldwin Leaves CEDIA

Thanks for the hard work, Utz.

Hope he lands in the industry as Utz was a great evangelist for ESC’s everywhere.

Shocking news.  Utz Baldwin took over Cedia just as the industry was being rocked on it’s heels from this economic recession.  I thought he was highly adept, listened to clients (dealers), and worked to enact needed changes. 

This is not good news, and provides yet another reason to ask why we should value Cedia as a necessary resource?

what exactly does CEDIA do with its money again? Certainly not communicating with the public about ESC’s.

Cedia is a good org to train you and your team on topics manufacturers can’t and don’t train on.  I was on the board for a while and I too wish it had the money to make you and I a household name but, it doesnt add up.  Read the yearly financials they send us.  Celia has a huge board of dudes brainstorming how to add value to members business.  in 2007 I voted to add a CEO that would help brand us.  The economy crashed as they hired Utz.  Weather you think he rock or sucked credit couldn’t have created a brand either way.  The majority of their money comes from the trade show and manufacturers support the associations revenue more than dealers.  Brand yourself, blame yourself for not being a brand and get more business if you want it.  Celia or any association isn’t going to make you any busier than you already are, if you want it go make it happen.

I agree, Jeremy. While everyone wants a major consumer branding initiative, I can’t fathom how CEDIA could finance such a thing.

This is sad news for CEDIA, and comes at a time when the organization needs a fresh new energetic approach.

When I was an integrator, I always loved CEDIA expos, but never found any reason to join. Adding their logo could not provide any ROI for me. While much of the training is good, some training classes are so poor, CEDIA should be embarrased to offer and charge for them.

CEDIA could do much more to be relevant to our organization!! I hope for this, but see no evidence they are moving forward.

Thanks UTZ for your efforts. The press release of your departure was cold.

Utz will be missed. I was lucky enoug to get some lessons from Utz during my running for Cedia Board of Directors. I shared the vision that Utz has for the industry. Taking a hard look at Cedia as a whole this year I see it’s direction changing, but in a way that I think will benifit all ESC’s. Hopefully Utz will keep his hands involved in a changing Cedia in an ever changing industry.

Thanks Utz for everything.

Thank you Utz, for your leadership and contributions. We will miss you and wish you the best of luck.

I don’t think alot has changed in the last 10 years within CEDIA? Sounds like same old story, as independents, we have to embrace new technologies, mostly school ourselves, and go out and attempt to find the business. No organizations or manufacturer’s are going to do it. It sounds like Utz attempted to take CEDIA in the right direction at the wrong time?
Happy Holidays to all!
Dan C - Audioplus

I never had a chance to see Utz at work, but I’m sure he had a great impact on CEDIA.  I feel bad that the board couldn’t wait to have this discussion until after the holidays.  It’s always sad to see someone lose their job right before Christmas. 

Rich is right, the press release is very cold.  For someone that has been there for 3 years, a bit more than 3 small paragraphs seems appropriate. 

On another note, though, where was the press release when Margaret Sheehan and CEDIA parted ways?  I HAVE had the pleasure of seeing Margaret at work, and it was a very large surprise to see her go.  Trade show and marketing aside, when it came to all the education efforts, I have never seen someone work so hard as Margaret did. 

Overall, the CEDIA shakeups, at the VERY least, need to be properly discussed by whomever is leading the pack now, whether that be Don or Randy.  The “wait and see what happens next” mentality that seems to be apparent with current PR efforts is alarming.  The email that came from Utz a couple weeks ago discussing the new take on certification was a start, but now I can’t take much merit away from that since the person who sent it to me was just canned. 

It is my hope that we see a reassurance release come from CEDIA that discusses all these current staff and policy changes.  There’s a reason we pay all these membership fees, surely we should all know what’s going on with the state of the organization.

PM, it’s always tough. There’s never a good time. I believe this might have been the 3-year end to his initial contract.

Rich, there has been a lot of discussion about the press release. I personally like the one Premiere just issued on this challenging subject:

Premier Mounts Announces its Next Phase of “Creating Positive Customer Experiences”

Owner and CEO of Premier Mounts Len Dozier returns to steer the company into its next phase of growth

Len Dozier, founder, owner and CEO of Premier Mounts, will steer the company into its next phase of “creating positive customer experiences” in the A/V industry.



Lee Dodson, who was brought in to re-position Premier Mounts from a retail focused mount manufacturer to a major player in the pro A/V market, has completed his mission and is moving on with his own plans. For the past two years, Lee has made fundamental changes and improvements to the company and laid the foundation for future growth and capabilities of Premier Mounts.



“I brought Lee in to run Premier Mounts because I knew he was the right man for the job. I have known Lee for a long time and with his experience and his personal contacts in the pro A/V industry I knew he could make these needed changes,” said Len Dozier, Owner and CEO of Premier Mounts. “I’d like to thank Lee for the contributions he has made to Premier Mounts and the dedication he has put into steering the company onto its new path. I truly believe this shift to focus on the pro A/V, OEM, hospitality and security markets was necessary to re-align ourselves with our core strengths. With the completion of his goal, Lee will be moving on to focus on his own projects. Our Premier Mounts team and I wish Lee all the best in his new ventures.”



I think those of you that thought the CEDIA press release was cold, is a little much. I worked with Utz at Expo and I find no disrespect in that release. Utz is a GOOD guy and worked hard. In my business I had to let my general manager go after 10 years. He too had worked very hard for my company. I had no press release and it was tough for everyone involved and there was a lot that went into that decision much of it was economic but there were other considerations as well. I’m sure the CEDIA board has had to make tough decisions in this time of change. One thing is always constant in the world and that is change. Adapt or die.

I too would love to hear what the future holds for CEDIA members. The $500 I spend is still some of the best money I spend as the owner of a company. Compared that to the $1500-2000 a year that some manufacturers are charging us for “Tech Support and Updates” I think my $500.00 goes a long way. Jeremy hit the nail on the head CEDIA is not your sales guy, but a resource for YOU to sell and GROW and become whatever you want to become in this industry.

Thanks, Eric. I do believe that $500 is such a small price to pay for an organization that clearly works for the benefit of all of us ... that joining is simply the right thing to do.

Even if dealers don’t THINK they are seeing immediate returns, I think they just have to put their faith in the board and recognize that it’s a small price to pay in our quest to become the most important people in the home technology business.