Bose names Lila Snyder, as its first female CEO

Bose has appointed former Pitney Bowes executive Lila Snyder as its first female CEO. Snyder will be taking charge of the company on September 1. She will be replacing Philip Hess, who stepped down as Bose CEO earlier this year. 

"We wanted the absolute best person, no matter how long the search took. Lila's background, experience, track record and values are right for Bose, for the exceptional people who work here, and for our amazing customers who count on us every day,” Bose Chairman Bob Maresca said.

While the tech world has boosted its efforts to bring more women into the industry, the gains have been marginal. Google’s overall workforce, for instance, is only 32 percent women. Of those, 52 percent are white and 42 percent are Asian. Only six percent are Latinx and 3.7 percent are Black. The disparities are even more apparent when we look at the number of men versus women in CEO and leadership positions.

Bose does not report its earnings, but Snyder is likely stepping in to the company at a difficult time. Even before the coronavirus pandemic, Bose announced plans to close all of its US and European stores, and earlier this summer it shut down its AR development. It consistently produces some of the best noise-cancelling audio gear, but we are still waiting on the company’s long-promised noise-cancelling wireless earbuds.