46 l May 2013
www.psneurope.com
livereport UNITED STATES
Build the best, bolster the beta-tests
Frank Wells talks to Bryan Bradley, the new head of JBL, whom aims to bring a fresh way of thinking to the Harman Pro business unit from his time in music publishing and retail: start at the top, not the bottom, he says
“WHEN THE opportunity came to run such a ‘storied brand’ as JBL, I jumped at the chance,” says Bryan Bradley of his appointment as vice president, general manager of Harman Professional’s Loudspeaker Business Unit. Less than two months into the job when he spoke to sister title Pro Sound
News, Bradley says he and his team have renewed JBL’s “emphasis on the customer”. About half of the management
team at JBL Professional is new to Harman. Prior to being sought out by Harman Pro for his new position, Bradley was COO of publisher Alfred Music for the past four years, which added
international business experience to his CV. Previous to Alfred, he held several corporate management and marketing roles at retail giant Guitar Center over a span of eight years. “There were two months between when I accepted the job and when I started, and so I had a lot of time to talk to a lot of people in the
Bradley: “My flabbers are gasted”
industry,” says Bradley. “As I used to work for one of JBL’s largest customers I was able to identify some places I thought I could add value and I think really driving towards the customer focus is the right thing to do.” That emphasis includes
“making sure the support for the products is there and the support for our partners and distributors is there and focusing on those relationships”. For the customer, which includes the end-user as well as the distribution channel partners, that plays out in increased dialogue starting earlier in product development cycles. “We’re actually getting our customers’ feedback and involvement in everything from product development and design to launch strategy and tactics,” Bradley elaborates. “At the end of the day, JBL has phenomenal technology and engineering talent. One of the areas I think we can strengthen is working with our partners to say, ‘Let’s talk about what we should make. What does the market really need? Where should we focus our resources?’ We can’t be everything to all people so we really want to involve our partners to help us focus our resources.” JBL Professional is fortifying its beta-testing programs,
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