Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
This week is quickly becoming a sea change moment for Sonos as the company looks to undo the damage done to its reputation since last May. It all began on Monday with the departure of CEO Patrick Spence, who was replaced by board member Tom Conrad. Then came news that chief product officer Maxime Bouvat-Merlin would also be leaving the company — another indication that Sonos is serious about correcting course and taking accountability for its new app woes.
In a third shakeup within the company’s leadership ranks, I can report that chief commercial officer Deirdre Findlay is also stepping down. Sonos’ not-yet-updated corporate governance page says Findlay “oversees all marketing, revenue, and customer experience organizations at Sonos. She is responsible for integrated brand strategy, geographic expansion strategies, and all go to market execution.”
By now, there’s no arguing that Sonos’ go-to-market strategy for its rebuilt mobile app was deeply flawed and rushed. Before he lost his job, Spence eventually conceded that the company should’ve taken a far more cautious approach and offered the new software as a beta release while keeping the previous, more stable version in place. Instead, Sonos pushed a buggy experience on all customers and has spent the months since dealing with the resulting fallout.
As it relates to marketing, some Sonos employees have expressed their dismay to me over just how much money the company dumped into advertising last year even amid the app controversy. Those big spends included an expansive New York City subway campaign for the Sonos Ace headphones and a holiday elves campaign that cost a staggering amount. The Ace headphones, which I maintain are a very good product, were quickly forgotten when the gravity of Sonos’ app problems came into focus, so the marketing had little effect. None of that sat well internally — especially after layoffs in the summer.
But that was then. In the span of 48 hours, interim CEO Tom Conrad has demonstrated a clear objective to get Sonos back on the right path. I’m told that the moves have immediately boosted morale inside the company, with employees sensing that the new regime is serious about getting back to doing what Sonos does best.