Company News
New Sales Director: Joe Kushi
Joe Kushi has joined Listen as Sales Director. Joe is an experienced international sales manager with over 25 years’ experience in both domestic and international sales and sales management. He also holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in business, languages and international business. In prior positions, he has sold a variety of hi-tech products including data acquisition and imaging systems, audio and video QA equipment, telecoms and security infrastructure equipment. He speaks 5 languages (with varying degrees of fluency), has lived in Paris and Brussels, and has opened offices and managed reps around the world. Outside of work, Joe enjoys traveling, listening to music, and playing drums.
New Order Processing Specialist: Rocky Ludger
Rock-Andral Ludger (Rocky) has joined Listen in the role of Order Processing Specialist. In this role, Rocky is responsible for every order from the moment it is placed, through fulfilment, to ensuring safe delivery of the product. He is also the smiling face at our front desk and keeps the office running smoothly. Rocky joins Listen with a degree in business from Kentucky University and several years’ supply chain management experience, both in the Boston area and in his native Haiti where he also used to play soccer professionally. He also speaks multiple languages fluently, including Spanish, French and Creole. Outside of work, Rocky is a keen athlete who enjoys playing and watching many different sports and, like most at Listen, also enjoys music. Rocky also founded and runs a non-profit organization in Haiti, New Vision for Youth, that coaches young professional leaders.
Listen Expands Operations Team
Listen welcomes Renee Jolie Bartel to the Operations team, where she will be working as Sales and Marketing Administrator. With previous experience at Thomson Reuters and The Marketing Arm, she looks forward to supporting Listen’s efficiency and creating infrastructure, working as a liaison between teams. She has a degree in Social Sciences from University of Washington and completed post graduate work in pre-medical sciences at Columbia University, where her interest in marketing was stoked through student organization leadership and recruitment. She has worked on campaigns for Frito Lay, Bacardi, and helped create guidelines for greater accessibility and compliance with ADA legislation. She is passionate about music, especially in the ways it impacts human physiology. Outside of work, she enjoys yoga, sailing, hiking, and traveling.
New Sales Engineer: Matthew Miller
Listen has expanded its Sales team with the addition of Matthew Miller as a sales engineer on the West Coast. Based in the San Francisco area, Matthew will be the main point of contact for our customers in California, Oregon, Washington and Nevada. Matthew brings a combination of engineering and sales experience to the Listen team with a degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and almost ten years’ experience in technical sales. In addition to listening to music, Matthew enjoys creating beats and recording songs, particularly in hip-hop and R&B genres. He also loves spending time with his wife and daughters, collecting cards, and gaming. Matthew can be reached at mmiller@listeninc.com.
New DSP Engineer: Rahul Shakya
Listen welcomes on board our new DSP Engineer, Rahul Shakya. Rahul holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and Mathematics from Trinity College, Hartford, and an MSc and a PhD in Electrical Sciences and Computer Engineering from Brown University. Rahul brings strong Audio DSP skills to his role at Listen, with several years’ experience as a graduate and post-doctoral researcher at Brown University where he worked on a diverse range of and DSP, Speech and audio processing research topics.
New Support Engineer: Cam Ruffle-Deignan
Listen has expanded its support team with the addition of Cam Ruffle-Deignan. Cam has recently graduated with a BSME from the University of Vermont where he spent his time doing applied polymer research, playing intramural sports, and working in a student-run prototyping lab. He has a keen interest in audio products, having interned for Listen last summer, and looks forward to continue developing his audio test skills. Cam will assist Steve, Mark and Mark in providing front line support to our customers, as well as developing training materials, test sequences and support documentation. When he is not in the office, Cam enjoys going for canoe trips, hiking north-eastern mountain ranges, and tinkering with his 3D printer.
New Operations Director: Eric Johnson
Listen has strengthened its infrastructure with the appointment of Eric Johnson to the role of Operations Director. In addition to internal administrative functions such as HR and facilities management, Eric manages the entire operations team including product supply and finance to ensure that all customer requirements are met efficiently and effectively. Eric has spent his career optimizing business operations for growing technology companies, most recently at Sophelle where he held the position of VP and COO. Eric holds a Bachelor’s in Chemistry from Lawrence University and a Master’s in Information Resources Management from Syracuse University. Outside of work, Eric enjoys photography, listening to music, homebrewing, and cooking for his wife, Jo Anne.
New Software Manager: Rick Spada
Listen is excited to announce the appointment of Rick Spada to the position of Senior Software Manager. Rick holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees, and has over 30 years’ experience in software development. Prior to joining Listen, Inc. he has worked in control systems and robotics, programmed software, and managed software development teams, most recently at Yesware and MathWorks, Inc. Rick is a lifelong resident of Massachusetts and in his spare time enjoys cooking for his family (wife Peg, son Dominic, and dog Olive) and fishing with his son on Cape Cod.
