Following the retirement of long serving chief executive Peter Harper, PacPrint organiser Visual Connections has restructured its management team.
Karren Challoner-Miles will take the role of executive general manager – association with Sarah Moore becoming general manager – trade shows and events.
Peter Harper founded the original sign industry supplier association 30 years ago. He helmed Visual Connections for the past 18 years and announced his retirement in July.
Mitch Mulligan, president of Visual Connections, says Challoner-Miles’ appointment came after an exhaustive recruitment process, with the board given the difficult task of making the call from a field of very qualified candidates.
He explains, “We were impressed and encouraged by the calibre of candidates who expressed interest in the role, but Karren’s experience and qualifications made her the obvious choice to lead Visual Connections into the future.
“We are very pleased that Karren has agreed to lead our operational team, and we know she will bring fresh ideas and a new energy to Visual Connections.”
A senior marketing, brand and product leader, Challoner-Miles has worked within the energy, technology, telecommunications and news and real estate publishing sectors, managing consumer, business and affiliate marketing strategy and execution for private and board-led organisations across APAC.
She has deep expertise in strategy, organisational operations, market expansion and product development and promotion, with experience covering everything from optimising technology and process automation for marketing and acquisition teams, to driving successful omni-channel lead-generation, acquisition and retention campaigns.
She says, “I am excited to join the association and to capitalise on all the great work Peter Harper has achieved during his 18-year tenure. I am fortunate that I can work alongside him for the next few weeks and benefit from his extensive knowledge of the industry.”
Mulligan adds, “We have a strong team in place at Visual Connections, and I know Karren’s expertise and leadership will complement their operational strengths and deep industry knowledge as we seek to support a sustainable future for the industry in this fast-moving, ever-evolving space.
“We welcome Karren most warmly and look forward to seeing the association go from strength to strength under her leadership; it really is the start of a new era.”
