Commercial Integrator proudly continues its ongoing #AVLivingLegends series! This week, we spotlight Thomas (Tom) Berry Jr., CEO at Verrex. This series exists to celebrate the individuals who have shaped today’s commercial AV industry, and Berry brings not only a wealth of industry knowledge but also universal respect among his peers.
As CEO, Berry has 30-plus years of professional AV systems integration experience where he has provided technical and strategic guidance to organizations seeking solutions for visual communication and collaboration requirements.
In this conversation, Berry reflects on his various achievements, and emphasizes the value of relationships not just at Verrex, but in the AV industry itself.
And if you’d like to read even more coverage relating to our #AVLivingLegends, check out our hub page, which includes direct links to every living legend!
Commercial Integrator: What motivated you to join the commercial AV industry? What has kept you motivated and engaged in the decades that followed?
Tom Berry: I was born into the industry. My Uncle Glenn always told me I was born so he and my father could retire someday. I worked at Verrex when I was young during summers and after school doing inventory, shipping and receiving and fabrication. Sound systems involve a lot more fabrication than videoconferencing does today. I would build things like ceiling speaker assemblies back when I was young.
I was the first in my family to get a college degree. My dad encouraged (well, told) me to get a degree in Accounting so I would always have a complete understanding when anyone was talking about finance. He would also say, “Four for Forty.” He’d fund four years of college for 40 years of service at Verrex. We’ll see; I’m in my 32nd year now!
In the beginning, after I graduated and started working full time at Verrex selling service contracts, I was motivated by the responsibility of working and proving myself to people who thought I was only there because of my dad and uncle, my “Jr. Entitlement.” I found I was motivated by selling something the customer needs, and when you succeed, it snowballs. From there, I quickly built confidence that I exuded to co-workers, clients, partners, etc.
In 2000, after running the Sales department for several years, I became the CEO and president of Verrex. I realized then, as I do now, that it is an honor and a responsibility to run a family business that was around for 45 years before my arrival on the scene. I have a legacy to continue. Also, I often think of my grandfather and grandmother who started the business and all the work they put in to start the company and I still work every day to make them proud.
CI: Reflect on your role as both a mentee early in your career and as a mentor later in your career. Who helped shape the trajectory of your professional life, and how have you tried to help shape others’ careers?
Berry posing with a portrait of his grandparents and uncle. Image courtesy of Verrex.
Tom Berry: Of course, my dad and my Uncle Glenn were my first mentors. I learned a lot watching them run the business, the Yin and Yang of their relationship that served them well. My dad taught me to be a great leader. I learned from him how to get people to love you and follow you. He taught me to surround myself with great people, especially those who know how to do things you don’t know how to do, then there’s nothing you can’t do.
Then I started working in sales. I worked for Mario Porto, our VP of sales at the time. He was my first workplace mentor. I had a test to pass, coming in as Thomas Berry, IV. Under Mario’s mentorship, I learned to leverage my strengths, like being an extrovert, a quick learner, and the confidence to become a great salesperson. I spent nine years on the sales track and started running sales in 1994 until 2000 when I became CEO. Ken Abel was another mentor of mine at Verrex. He was an engineer, our first programmer and developer of Procomm (the predecessor to our current ERP VTools).
I try to learn from my co-workers and colleagues continually. There is always something new to learn, whether technology or business processes.
Mentorship Opportunities
Being a mentor is the most important and notable component of my journey. I feel like NSCA and InfoComm associations are the perfect platforms for people like myself and are chock full of opportunities to be a mentor. Whenever I’m put on a roundtable, I automatically seem to become the group’s spokesperson, sharing the successes of Verrex with smaller companies. I try to share good ideas and build a network of allies. Furthermore, I love to draw out introverts and quiet engineers and I’m always “recruiting” for partners. I am always open to learning from other owners and industry leaders. I always find some nuggets to take back and share with Verrex when I share with others.
CI: What’s the most memorable story/anecdote of your career in commercial AV?
Tom Berry: Oh, I could write a book! Maybe I should have… There are some crazy stories over the years. AV is an incredible industry and I feel blessed to be a part of it. I’m the luckiest person alive! I see something new every day and try to learn something new every day.
The thrill of the hunt, then the reward, that’s what keeps you going. In 1993, I landed my first big sale to Allied Signal. It was a sitewide paging system. They wanted it because a year earlier, they had an explosion on campus and didn’t have a way to let everyone know. Then there were the jobs I won that weren’t in the tri-state area. That was exciting! Some of the first were the South Carolina Statehouse and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife project in West Virginia. But our partnership with State Street in 2003 began Verrex’s widespread national and international growth!
In 2003, we opened the Boston office. Eventually, this 20-year partnership led to our UK and APAC offices opening. The rest is history that is still being written.
But what’s most memorable to me in my career with Verrex? It’s the “Bring Your Child to Work” days. Many of our employees start working at Verrex when they are young and single. Then we watch them get married, start a family, bring those kids to work on those special days, and then some come to Verrex to work. Talk about a full circle! That’s pretty cool!
CI: What has been your greatest professional accomplishment to date? What has been your biggest professional regret to date?
Tom Berry: I’m most proud of the accomplishments of all Verrex employees, past and present, even those who worked for us for a bit and used Verrex as a stepping stone to accomplish great things somewhere else. I am also proud of the domestic and international growth of the company. It has all been organic. It was time-consuming and costly, but the success was sweeter.
Additionally, I’m incredibly proud to have helped the company celebrate milestones like our 50th and 75th anniversaries. Shepherding the company through these anniversaries is very special. It allows me to think about my grandfather, grandmother, dad, and uncle’s legacy and the sacrifices they made to start the company. As I said before, I still work hard to make them proud.
I’d say the pinnacle of my career was when I was nominated for the Board of InfoComm by Jay Rogina. Jay was another of my early mentors, and it meant so much to me to be appointed by him. I knew I had proven myself and had the respect of my peers when I served on the board in 2011 and 2012.
My regrets? As a young salesman, I didn’t always look at things as holistically as I do now. I learned the critical lesson of never burning bridges. When that happened, I vowed to keep those burned bridges to a minimum. And, of course, when times are hard, for our employees’ sake, I wish I had done better so that we could have been more prosperous. Tough times force hard, painful decisions that affect lives. If you have 100 employees, you must remember that your choices can affect 100 families. I don’t take that lightly. I know the buck stops with me.
Running a successful business in good times is easy; when times are tough, it’s hard. I deal with those tough times by being as transparent as I can.
CI: What’s the best advice or pearl of wisdom you either received during your career or came to realize on your own?
Tom Berry: My dad taught me to surround myself with great people (the best), and there is nothing you can’t do. I’ve succeeded at doing this at Verrex, which is why we have enjoyed success. Verrex employees are the best of the best!
Be a hands-on leader, but not a micromanager. This ties in nicely with surrounding yourself with great people. These two pieces of advice have allowed us to prevail and differentiate ourselves from the competition.
Nice people to death, but be genuine about it. This is one I came to realize on my own. When I started at Verrex in sales, my dad and Mario had solid relationships and rivalries with business people. I used my neutrality to get people who might say no to my dad or Mario to say yes. Additionally, I became the “clean slate” and future of the company. As the future leadership of the AV industry developed, I ensured I was thought of as good for my word. I worked hard to establish relationships and build a reputation as a professional businessman who was a straight shooter, honest, funny and all-around good guy.
Have fun! If you are in it for the long haul, you need to have the mindset to have fun while doing it!
Would you like to nominate a peer or colleague — or perhaps yourself! — to be featured in this #AVLivingLegends series, just like Tom Berry was? If so, just email Dan Ferrisi, editor-in-chief of Commercial Integrator, at [email protected].
