Campbell Hyers, 43, is the co-founder of Control Group, a technology innovation firm that provides responsive and immersive experiences using technology such as R.F.I.D., Wi-Fi, and sensors.
“Things like the Apple store and the iPad, as well as things like Zipcar, have changed the way we expect services to be provided to us and changed the way we expect technology to be incorporated,” Hyers says. “The change in the consumer has now created a change in large brands that are our clients who are responding to that changed customer. We are focusing our efforts in all of the touch points that the customer has with our clients’ products. That can be in store, in a hotel, in an event space.”
At the World Petroleum Conference in Qatar in December 2011, Control Group created a 12- by 80-foot interactive display wall for Chevron that used Xbox Kinect cameras to see and react to attendee behavior. “They didn’t have to wave their arms around or point and learn different menus. The camera just figured out what they were looking at and, as they moved in closer, it allowed them to see more information,” Hyers says. “We are very interested in leveraging technology to enable experiences that are built on top of known metaphors—the way people normally act and behave—rather than trying to change behavior, because changing behavior can be risky and expensive.”
Hyers’s company is working on a variety of events this year, from music festivals to product launches and fund-raisers. “At an event, you have potentially 15 minutes or an hour to demonstrate both the wow and the utility,” he says.
For OTG Management Group, which operates restaurants in airport terminals in New York City, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and Toronto, Control Group developed an iPad-based system in 2012 to create a relaxing and useful experience for travelers. “[The system] tells you gate information and it allows you to order food from anywhere in the terminal, and it’s all delivered to your chair in 10 minutes. These are things consumers are experiencing out in the world. Then they are coming to events, and if you can’t hold up to that level, you are already behind the curve,” Hyers says. “Your competition is not just other events and other booths. Your competition is hotels, cruise lines, retail stores, the home.”
Top 50 Innovative Event Pros 2013: Campbell Hyers
The C.E.O. of Control Group is leveraging new technology to create responsive and immersive experiences.
Photo: Courtesy of Control Group
Photo: Courtesy of Control Group
Photo: Courtesy of Control Group