Human First: Tom Conrad’s Sonos Letter That Hit Hard and Gave Us Goosebumps

A masterclass in earning trust on day one

As a Sonos house, we know what it means to trust a brand that fills your life with sound. So when Sonos hit a rough patch, we felt it. But Tom Conrad stepped in as CEO (interim) like a leader should—head-on, human, no excuses.

Tom Conrad’s letter gets right to the core of this moment. It’s raw, honest, and explicitly pledges to guide Sonos through the storm with humanity at the helm. It had me in goosebumps.

He’s pulling the company back to its roots, where innovation and accountability matter most. It’s not just strategy; it’s guts. This is what leadership looks like when you care enough to rebuild what matters, not just for the brand but for the people who believe in it.

Monday, Sonos CEO Patrick Spence stepped down after eight years. It wasn’t exactly a shock—after all, the disastrous app launch hit Sonos’s business and brand like a freight train. Tom Conrad, a longtime board member, took the reins.

The app debacle had significant repercussions. Chief Product Officer Maxime Bouvat-Merlin’s departure highlighted accountability at the executive level.