Sidney Harman dead

[JeffW]

Died 4-12-11 in DC at 92.

[HCSGuy]

surprising what an insular segment of the world we hang out in, huh - hardly a mention of this anywhere unless you look for it - I didn't see any releases, just the entry in Wikipedia after I saw your post - nothing outside the trade mags. Here's a few links:

http://www.residentialsystems.com/article/56712.aspx

http://www.cepro.com/article/sidney_harman_dies_at_92/

[JeffW]

Sorry, should have dropped some links. It was just one of the minor headlines on the Google News page.

LA Times

msnbc

WSJ

[hjames]

Died 4-12-11 in DC at 92.

Sheesh! Writeup in the WaPo -
and a picture of him next to a distinctive looking speaker ... (captured for posterity)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifest...QWD_story.html

[SEAWOLF97]

Ahh, thats where JBL Bolivars got their name ?

"The moment of clarity came soon after the day a buzzer signaling a regular coffee break to the line workers at the Bolivar plant failed. Managers decided to reschedule the break for later, once the buzzer got fixed. But, he recounted, a worker named Nobi Cross announced, "I don't work for no buzzer. The buzzer works for me." The workers took their regularly scheduled break -- after all, they wore watches -- and "all hell broke loose," Harman wrote.

Harman quickly intervened and wound up establishing a groundbreaking program aimed at improving conditions for employees. Workers could earn idle time by producing their quotas faster and go home earlier. For the mostly African American work force, Harman established an on-site school, daycare and a worker-run newspaper, uncensored by management. The "Bolivar Experiment" proved so successful at what was dubbed "participatory management" that the company had to restrict visitors."

[speakerdave]

Sidney Harman has died, at 92, still working.

[macaroonie]

The man certainly created an empire. Just a shame that the kind of enlightened management described above does not extend to the activities of the Sales and Marketing dept.

[Chas]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/...690586bb27d8b8

I had no idea he was originally a Canadian.

[4313B]

He was just on NPR the other day talking about his new venture with Newsweek/Daily Beast.

[Wornears]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-a...=hp:mainpromo1

[hjames]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-a...=hp:mainpromo1

Umm, the man's name is HarMAN - the brand is HarMAN KarDON ...
no flames, just - we ought to get it right this time ...

[edgewound]

Much of the spirit of Harman Int'l has died with him.

The news of his passing so suddenly is rather surprising considering how spry he was for a man of 92 years old.

[Titanium Dome]

It's a shame, to be sure. His vision was clear, though the execution wasn't always there. For the many things that flourished under his leadership, many also were destroyed.

I do believe he was a humanitarian at heart.

[edgewound]

It's a shame, to be sure. His vision was clear, though the execution wasn't always there. For the many things that flourished under his leadership, many also were destroyed.

I do believe he was a humanitarian at heart.

I think maybe the company didn't really know what to do in the consumer division when he wasn't in charge. He came rushing back in 1992 to improve things and it worked, but it started to slide again in the mid 1990's when when he "retired" from operations.

I met him at a CES Show back in the early 90's. I introduced myself and complimented him when he was on the show floor. He was pretty aloof...and I think maybe surprised that he was recognized.

[Titanium Dome]

I think maybe the company didn't really know what to do in the consumer division when he wasn't in charge. He came rushing back in 1992 to improve things and it worked, but it started to slide again in the mid 1990's when when he "retired" from operations.

I met him at a CES Show back in the early 90's. I introduced myself and complimented him when he was on the show floor. He was pretty aloof...and I think maybe surprised that he was recognized.

"Where there is no vision, the people perish." I know he had a hard time finding a suitable replacement, and I think time finally just ran out and he hoped that his successor would be able to keep the vision alive. Unfortunately, guys with good "business sense" serve the shareholders with an eye to increasing profits and bonuses and don't get the "vision thing" at all. The current guy knows how to squeeze the stone for blood, but he has no clue that he's killing the vision at the same time.