John Florenca named WA State Industry Professional of the Year

John Florenca, the former CEO of Omnitronics, has been presented with the prestigious WA State Professional of the Year Award for his significant contribution to the wireless communications industry. The award was presented by the Australian Radio Communications Industry Association (ARCIA), the national body representing the interests of Australia’s radio communications industry, at its WA State Networking Dinner on 22 March.

The award honours individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the radio communications industry in Australia over many years. Florenca is one of five state winners who will now be nominated for the national Peter Wallace Industry Advancement Award, to be presented in October at the ARCIA Industry Gala Dinner in conjunction with Comms Connect Melbourne.

Florenca was recognised for his innovative leadership throughout his 18-year tenure as CEO of Omnitronics and his commitment to driving growth in Australia and beyond. During his 28 years with the organisation, Florenca steered Omnitronics from a national electronics engineering company to an internationally recognised manufacturer and software developer in the Radio over IP, radio interoperability and console dispatch space.

“It is an incredible honour to be awarded this prestigious award,” Florenca said. “I am humbled by this recognition and grateful for all those who have been part of my journey with Omnitronics over the years. I count myself fortunate and proud to be part of an industry that plays a vital role in our communities and our business sector.”

ARCIA CEO Paul Davis congratulated Florenca on receiving such a highly esteemed award, saying, “We congratulate John on being honoured with this well-deserved recognition of his outstanding achievements in the field of radio communications.”

The networking dinner was held immediately following ARCIA’s one-day critical communications conference — the first to take place in Western Australia in several years. Davis said ARCIA “couldn’t have been more pleased” with the support for the March event.

“With almost 80 attendees for the conference and workshops and just under 120 for the dinner, it was a great turnout, and far better than we had expected,” Davis said. “Perhaps it was the fact that we hadn’t been able to run anything since 2020, but whatever the reason, we’re committed to returning next March with the aim of delivering another solid day for the sector, and can now look forward to our conferences in Sydney on 31 May and Brisbane on 27 July.”

Image caption: ARCIA President Hamish Duff, State Professional of the Year Award winner John Florenca and ARCIA CEO Paul Davis.