The Wilmac Wire

Wilmac Technologies
  • 5.0 (1)
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  • Biweekly

Where the drivers behind customer interaction technology, AI, and community innovation share how they’re shaping what’s next.

  1. 2d ago

    Tipi Brookins | Leading Under a Spotlight, 911 Culture Reform, & Becoming an Industry Voice

    Tipi Brookins knew as a child that she wanted a life in public safety, and that decision has taken her from Amtrak Police to chief of staff at DC’s Office of Unified Communications, all in service of her community. She now leads public safety engagement at GovWorx. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Tipi to talk about what a healthy 911 culture looks like, and what working in so many different PSAPs taught her about the challenges centers face. Here’s what you’ll hear about: What drew her to 911 as a kid, and her first calls at Amtrak’s national 911 centerWhat working in very different PSAPs taught her about the challenges centers faceA day in the life of a chief of staff at DC’s Office of Unified CommunicationsWhat a healthy 911 culture looks like, and what makes a great supervisorWhy moving from the center to the private sector felt like scaling her missionEpisode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome and introducing Tipi Brookins 3:07 Icebreaker: This or That 7:44 What drew her to public safety, and her early days at Amtrak Police 12:49 How very different PSAPs shaped her view of the work 17:07 A day in the life of a chief of staff at DC’s OUC 20:34 What a healthy 911 culture looks like 25:25 What makes a great 911 supervisor 30:06 Moving from the center to the private sector 44:01 The mindset behind her career 45:41 What’s new from GovWorx Connect with Tipi Brookins on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:   Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Tipi Brookins | Leading Under a Spotlight, 911 Culture Reform, & Becoming an Industry Voice

  2. Oct 22

    John Provenzano | A New Era for NENA & 911 Advocacy

    John Provenzano got his start in Washington by spending three days walking the halls of Congress, knocking on every office in the Florida delegation until one hired him to open mail. Today he’s CEO of NENA, the National Emergency Number Association, representing more than 26,000 members. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, host Emily McNulty sits down with John to talk about his path from Capitol Hill to NENA, and what’s ahead for the 911 industry, including how professionals at every stage of their careers can get involved. Here’s what you’ll hear about: How a handshake with a governor at age 13 sparked a lifelong pull toward politicsLanding a mailroom job on Capitol Hill, and the six years that followedStepping in as NENA’s CEO after 17 years under his predecessor, and what surprised him about the 911 communityNENA’s new strategic plan, and how 911 professionals can get involved, from volunteering to on-demand online educationWhere the 911 SAVES Act stands, and why John thinks NG911 funding needs a new approachEpisode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome and introducing John Provenzano 2:53 Icebreaker: This or That 6:47 What sparked his interest in politics 8:03 Landing his first job on Capitol Hill 17:53 Stepping in as NENA’s CEO 23:29 NENA’s new strategic plan and the Action Council 32:58 The 911 SAVES Act and the push to fund NG911 36:03 How NENA is thinking about AI 39:51 The mindset behind his career 41:27 How to get involved with NENA, including online education Connect with John Provenzano on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:   Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    John Provenzano | A New Era for NENA & 911 Advocacy

  3. Oct 15

    Kate Beale | 20 Years in Washington & Championing Greater Rochester

    Kate Beale spent more than 20 years in Washington, D.C., and says its best-kept secret is how much bipartisan work happens quietly behind the scenes. Now she’s back home in Pittsford leading advocacy at the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce.  In this local episode, recorded in person at Roc Vox Studios in Pittsford, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Kate to talk about how federal advocacy translates to a regional level, and and what it will take to keep Rochester competitive.  Here’s what you’ll hear about:  Three years as a Peace Corps agriculture volunteer in Paraguay, and the lessons she carried into public policy How her time in Washington shaped her approach to bipartisan work What brought her back to Rochester, and what her first four months at the Chamber have looked like What the Chamber is prioritizing for 2027, and why talent and workforce are near the top Why Kate sees Rochester at an inflection point, and what the community needs more of right now Episode Breakdown:  0:00 Welcome and introducing Kate Beale  2:51 Icebreaker: This or That  5:58 Why she left Rochester, and what pulled her into policy  11:21 Three years in the Peace Corps in Paraguay  19:17 Coming home and heading to Washington  28:49 What brought her back to Rochester  31:53 Her first four months at the Chamber  38:48 The Chamber’s priorities for 2027, from workforce to the tech hub  50:53 What excites her most about what’s ahead for the region  Connect with Kate Beale on LinkedIn  Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:   Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Kate Beale | 20 Years in Washington & Championing Greater Rochester

  4. Oct 8

    Adam Hassan | From Wilmac to Axon and the Art of the Deal

    Adam Hassan started his career as a field service engineer at Wilmac, working directly with customers on the ground before making the jump into sales. Nearly seven years and one pivotal career move later, he's Principal Sales Engineer at Axon, behind some of the biggest police service deployments in Canada. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell welcome back Adam to talk about what pushed him from field service into sales, how AI-powered translation is already changing roadside stops, and his honest timeline for when AI might actually answer a 911 call. Here's what you'll hear about: Life as a Wilmac field service engineer, and the moment that pushed him toward salesJoining Axon back when it was still Taser International, before the rebrandHow AI-powered translation on Axon body cameras is already changing roadside stopsHis honest timeline for when AI could plausibly take a 911 call, and why he doesn't think it's coming that soonWhat got him into angel investing, and the simple thesis behind itEpisode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome back Adam Hassan 2:04 Icebreaker: This or That 5:58 How political science led him into technology, almost by accident 11:08 Life as a Wilmac field service engineer 14:57 Crossing from field service into sales 15:40 Joining Axon back when it was still Taser International 33:07 How AI-powered translation on Axon body cameras is changing roadside stops 36:05 His honest timeline for AI answering emergency calls 37:45 What got him into angel investing Connect with Adam Hassan on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:  Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Adam Hassan | From Wilmac to Axon and the Art of the Deal

  5. Oct 1

    Duncan Swan | British APCO and the Global Future of Emergency Communications

    In 1987, a fire at a London Underground station exposed a serious gap: police and fire crews had no reliable radio communication once they went underground. Duncan Swan, a young engineer at Philips at the time, spent the next two years helping fix it, building radio communications into all 123 stations. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell welcome their first UK-based guest of Season 3, Duncan, now Chief Operations Officer of British APCO, for a conversation on his four-decade career, what a global network of public safety associations can accomplish together, and where AI is (and isn't yet) earning trust in emergency response. Here's what you'll hear about: How a fire at a London Underground station led to his first major public safety comms projectLeading technical assurance on the UK's billion-pound Emergency Services NetworkHow a global network of public safety associations helped catch a worldwide false-call surgeWhere AI is already helping in UK public safety, and where the industry still draws the lineHis take on how close AI is to earning the same trust people put in a human dispatcherEpisode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome to our first UK-based guest of the season 2:16 Full introduction and background 3:00 Icebreaker: This or That 18:17 How a fire at a London Underground station led to his first major public safety project 25:57 Leading technical assurance on the UK's billion-pound Emergency Services Network 31:46 Taking the helm at British APCO 40:15 How a global network of public safety associations caught a worldwide false-call surge 43:14 Where AI is helping in public safety today, and where the industry draws the line 51:05 What AI means for training and supervision in the UK's emergency centers Connect with Duncan Swan on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:  Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Duncan Swan | British APCO and the Global Future of Emergency Communications

  6. Sep 24

    Joe Grube | A Career Built on Public Safety

    Ten days after 9/11, Joe Grube spent a week sifting through the wreckage in New York City, sorting debris for anything that could help identify what was lost. It's one chapter in a 24-year public safety career that took him from dispatcher to captain to 911 coordinator, and eventually into the private sector at Wilmac and now Motorola Solutions. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Joe in studio to talk about what sitting on every side of the table has taught him about the difference between a vendor and an industry partner, and where he sees 911 technology headed next. Here's what you'll hear about: Starting as a dispatcher almost by accident, and working his way up to captainHis time helping with recovery efforts in New York City after 9/11What moving from public sector leadership to private sector sales taught himThe real difference between a vendor and an industry partner, from someone who's sat on both sidesUsing AI to redact body camera footage in minutes instead of daysHis honest take on where 911 technology is headed next Episode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome and introducing Joe Grube 2:46 Icebreaker: This or That 8:09 Starting as a dispatcher almost by accident, in 1987 25:34 Helping with recovery efforts in New York City after 9/11 29:04 Leaving 24 years in law enforcement for Wilmac 41:26 What moving from sales to customer success taught him 48:41 The real difference between a vendor and an industry partner 53:33 Using AI to redact body camera footage in minutes instead of days 56:41 Where 911 technology is headed next Connect with Joe Grube on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:  Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Joe Grube | A Career Built on Public Safety

  7. Sep 17

    Alex Laporte | Why Implementation Makes or Breaks an Industry Partner

    After graduating from Kenyon College with a political science degree, Alex LaPorte spent his time coaching tennis and chasing down startups, determined to learn a business from the ground up. That search eventually led him to Wilmac, where he's now VP of Implementation and Customer Success.  In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Alex less than a month into his tenure, covering his path from customer support rep to VP, what actually separates an industry partner from a vendor, and what he's already rebuilding in his first few weeks on the job.  Here's what you'll hear about:  Chasing down startups after college, and how tennis shaped his approach to leading a team The acquisition at Vonage that taught him trust is won or lost during implementation Why he calls himself a "servant leader," and how that shows up in how he runs a team What actually separates an industry partner from a vendor, in his own words What he's already rebuilding in his first month at Wilmac  Episode Breakdown:  0:00 Welcome and introducing Alex Laporte  2:36 Icebreaker: This or That  8:04 How political science at Kenyon led him into telecom  11:18 What tennis taught him about leadership  14:26 What Vonage taught him about implementation and trust  19:33 What drew him to Wilmac  23:24 What surprised him about Wilmac's speed and culture  30:22 What actually separates a partner from a vendor  34:49 What he's building in his first weeks at Wilmac  Connect with Alex LaPorte on LinkedIn  Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire:  Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Alex Laporte | Why Implementation Makes or Breaks an Industry Partner

  8. Sep 10

    Labor Day Break | Revisiting Our Conversation with Thomas Laird of Expivia & OttoQA

    We're taking a short Labor Day break, so we're re-airing one of our favorite conversations from earlier this season: Thomas Laird from back in February. Tom Laird was fired over the phone while driving to scout a high school basketball game — let go by the private equity firm that had just bought his family's call center and promised nothing would change. He had a pregnant wife, no plan B, and a handful of former employees willing to try again. That's how Expivia was born. In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Tom, now CEO of Expivia Interaction Marketing Group and OttoQA, for one of Season 3's most unfiltered conversations about the real cost of AI in a contact center, and what it actually takes to build something back up from nothing. Here's what you'll hear about: Getting fired over the phone by private equity, and rebuilding with four employeesWhy AI integrations often take decades to pay for themselvesThe mistake he made pushing AI projects before customers' data was readyHis candid take on what's happened to industry conferencesWhere the CX platform wars (NICE, Five9, private equity) are headed nextWhy he still believes in bringing people into the office Episode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome and introducing Tom Laird 1:58 Full introduction and background 3:09 Icebreaker: This or That 8:19 An unfiltered take on industry conferences 13:39 Growing up inside his family's call center business 17:34 Getting sidelined and fired by private equity 19:21 Rebuilding from four employees: the start of Expivia and OttoQA 44:51 Where the CX platform wars are headed next 45:56 The LiveVox integration everyone's watching 47:28 The AI mistake he made pushing too fast 48:59 The real cost of AI, and why the ROI takes decades 50:28 Where to find Tom, Expivia, and OttoQA Connect with Thomas Laird on LinkedIn Listen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside

    Labor Day Break | Revisiting Our Conversation with Thomas Laird of Expivia & OttoQA
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About

Where the drivers behind customer interaction technology, AI, and community innovation share how they’re shaping what’s next.

Information

  • Creator
    Wilmac Technologies
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    90
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Wilmac Technologies
  • Show Website
    The Wilmac Wire