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BSG From the Boardroom

A curated selection of executive opportunities, industry highlights, and unique insights in executive search.

    [Closed Search] Global VP Engineering for $500M PE-backed Technology Leader

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    The Company

    Global leader in broadcasting technology

    Harris Broadcast Communications, Inc. is a pioneer in the broadcast technology industry.  Anywhere broadcasters are making media moments — from the family room to the road, over the air or over the web, on a television or a tablet — Harris Broadcast is there.  Harris Broadcast is delivering innovative, end-to-end solutions to customers in more than 150 countries, including the top broadcast facilities and the most technologically advanced sports and live-event venues. Harris is also investing deeply in the next generation of technologies to expand their leadership into even more markets, geographies and applications.

    At its core, Harris Broadcast Communications offers solutions that support the digital delivery, automation, and management of audio, video, and data. It offers radio and television products, systems, and services for broadcasters. Harris has an integrated, high-performance technology solution that makes video production, transmission and distribution providers do it more easily, reliably and profitably.  The company was founded in 1922 and is based in Englewood, Colorado.

    In February 2013, Harris Broadcast was purchased from Harris Corporation (NYSE: HRS) by Gores Group, a leading global private equity firm headquartered in Los Angeles.  Gores Group, LLC specializes in acquiring and partnering with businesses that can benefit from their operating experience and flexible capital base.  Gores Group has become a leading investor, having demonstrated a reliable track record of creating value in its portfolio companies alongside management.

     Products, Platform & Technology

    Media delivery isn’t a one-size-fits-all kind of business.  Neither is Harris Broadcast.  Flexible and future-ready, Harris solutions allow customers the ability to quickly add revenue-generating services today, and affordably move to wherever those customers are headed in the future.  To achieve this, Harris Broadcast has a rich intellectual property portfolio of 241 patents held, with more than 150 patents pending.

    Harris is divided into three divisions.

    Media Management Solutions

    MMS products and services manage digital media workflow, including sales, traffic, billing, scheduling, video asset management, and play-out automation.

    Transmission Systems

    This division develops hardware, firmware, and software for over-the-air TV and radio station broadcasting 

    Workflow, Infrastructure & Networking

    The WIN division develops products and services that include routing, master control, networking, test and measurement, multi-image processing, graphics, news editing and servers.

     The Position

    Detail of Responsibilities

    The VP Engineering will carry primary responsibilities for the following:

    • Manage multiple complex projects with an emphasis on providing quality products on schedule, at or below budget, and achieving stated financial objectives.
    • Oversee the design, development, testing, and documentation of all products and solutions to meet product line requirements and product development roadmap strategy.
      • Serve as primary visionary for the development and deployment of hardware and software solutions that are secure, scalable, extensible and maintainable.
      • Lead research efforts for new architectural innovations, frameworks, and techniques with close collaboration with Product Management to optimally support and align with Harris Broadcast’s sales & marketing efforts.
      • Identify, evaluate and select new and emerging technologies that can be assimilated within the company and significantly improve competitiveness.
      • Author white papers, analysis of recent technology; contribute articles and presentations which position the company as a technology leader in the space. Present papers and support company speaking opportunities at tradeshows, customer events and other external facing events.
      • Drive technology for global execution of product, platform and customer solution initiatives.
      • Develop and manage a multi-year technology roadmap, working with the business leader to link market opportunities and industry trends to specific development efforts.
    • Manage multiple complex projects with an emphasis on providing quality products on schedule, at or below budget, and achieving stated financial objectives.
    • Manage, evaluate, assist in developing, and implementing technical processes, disciplines, policies, and procedures in support of established product and business strategies.
    • Responsible for identifying and interpreting trends in technology. Participate in business planning and communicate technical knowledge and vision of both current and future technology related to company’s competitive position.
    • Responsible for the development and implementation of engineering activities to create new and improved products and solutions.
    • Mentor technical management and staff to ensure continual professional growth and improvement and ensure that technical development resources support the technology vision of the company.
    • Monitor industry market trends and competitors and providing intelligence on the competitive landscape and key trends occurring in the industry.
    • Know and identify all internal and external technology and resources to leverage and maximize product development capabilities.
    • Collaborate with Product Management/Marketing, sales and other functional areas to ensure alignment.
    • Develop, track, report, and manage R&D Metrics. Develop R&D Productivity measurement strategy to optimize cost per employee and determine best locale for R&D projects, e.g. North America or lower cost geography.
    • Lead Quality efforts, including Companywide QA/Test strategy.  Lead Interoperability initiatives.
    • Drive productivity improvements via:
      • IP sharing and reutilization
      • Eliminating redundancies and developing Centers of Excellence
      • Moving to lower cost geographies
    • Support sales pursuits via customer engagement, proof-of-concept solution demonstrations.
    • Align organization to support Service via escalation methodologies.
     Ideal Candidate Profile

    The diagram below illustrates the intersection of competencies critical in the position:

     

    click the more button below to see rest of blog post, including the full position description

    Team

    The Harris Broadcast engineering team totals more than 800 engineering resources across 19 sites worldwide.   An India-based strategic engineering outsourcing relationship accounts for approximately 40% of engineering headcount.  Some 80%+ of the engineering team is software-focused.    Engineering is organized by a combination of the following:

    • Geographic location
    • Division (MMS, Transmission, and WIN)
    • Application software, firmware/embedded software, and hardware
    • Research engineering, development engineering, existing product support engineering
    • Architecture, programming, quality assurance

     Financial Backing

    The Company was purchased from Harris Corporation by Gores Group in February, 2013.  For more on the purchase, see Gores’ press release

     Compensation

    Compensation is competitive with the position’s requirements.  In a performance-based environment, this will include base salary, bonus structure based on corporate qualitative and quantitative MBOs, and a stakeholder position in the company.

     More Information

     Request Information

    -by Clark Waterfall on May 2, 2013 10:53:28 PM

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