Meet the Team

With Meet The HARMAN Luxury Team, our goal is for you to get to know us better. In each edition we feature a different member of the team, and this month it's Sean Barton, Senior Product Marketing Manager.

How would you describe what you do in your current role?

I help plan the marketing strategy and tactics for new product launches. Most of my job is to help solve problems so we can effectively bring our products to the market and maximize our business growth potential.

What did you study in school? Did you always imagine yourself doing something like what you’re doing now or did the fates just take you in that direction?

In college I studied sound engineering and marketing. This was a perfect blend for me because it's a blend of technical and creative skills. As a lifelong musician, I always knew that I wanted to work in the sound technology space—whether pro or consumer, and I'm happy to continue in this industry. There's a lot of great people here.

How did your career path lead you to HARMAN?

I started at HARMAN in 2003 as an intern working for Dr. Sean Olive, where I supported research for double-blind listening tests with our home audio products. Later, I came back to HARMAN Marketing - as a CEDIA-certified specialist, I would train big and small dealers on how to sell home theater systems, convey the benefits of high-end audio, and drive sell-through programs.

After a break working at a few other CEDIA and Infocomm-channel companies I came back to HARMAN 10 years ago as a Global Product Manager for Home Audio. I was responsible for developing some innovative and technical products including JBL soundbars, high-end stereo amplifiers, JBL in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, and more.

In 2016 I moved to China to be closer to HARMAN’s product development team - this was an amazing experience working with a different culture and a new way of living. I learned a lot.

This Summer, I came back to North America and joined the Luxury Audio Product Marketing team, and I am very happy to be working in a category in which I have experience, passion and friends.

What is the most important thing you have learned over your career?

Be kind to others (and yourself) because everybody has got a lot on their plate. Pick up the phone occasionally and check in with others.

Any other advice you would share with people just starting out in this industry?

Be yourself, and never stop learning.

What are you most proud of in your life?

Finding my wife in China. She’s an amazing person.

When did you realize you had a passion for music or audio? Was there any one band, song, or movie that did it for you?

I've been a musician all my life: I play trumpet, guitar and I sing. In China, I led a pop music cover band where we would play Top 40 stuff for drunk expats. It was a blast!

What current technology impresses you the most?

Spatial audio is the future for our industry, and it's only going to get better.

Favorite music genre?

I listen to a lot of different music, but my heart is with my 14-year old self: 90s rock.

The desert island question, of course. If you were marooned for eternity and could listen to only three albums, what would they be?

Soundgarden’s “Superunknown”, Tame Impala’s “Currents”, and the Jimi Hendrix “best of” collection.

You have the floor. In closing, tell us anything else you want us to know about yourself.

Fun Fact: In China I went on a six-day through-trek through the mountains of Sichuan where we would camp at about 15,000 feet. It was incredibly challenging and a lasting memory.