Sonos reiterates its commitment to software quality and customer experience after disastrous app release

Sonos said Tuesday that it is “refocusing on quality and customer experience” and refocusing on software quality and customer experience. The announcement was accompanied by a video from Sonos CEO Patrick Spence in which the company attempts to recover from its recent app release fiasco. (Why do they always wear a dark t-shirt in videos like this?)



Sonos says it will fix its app issues while creating a better Sonos experience. Sonos has made seven commitments:

• Unwavering focus on customer experience: In order to offer the highest level of customer experience, we always set ambitious quality standards at the beginning of product development. We will not release any products until they meet these criteria. We will also improve the tools needed to measure and maintain the standards our customers expect.
• Increasing the rigor of pre-launch testing: Our beta testing program will include a broader range of customers and more diverse setups, helping us diagnose and resolve issues more quickly before we bring them to market.
• Approach change with humility: Unlike the automatic app release we released in May, major changes to the Sonos app will be released gradually, allowing customers to make adjustments and provide feedback before they become the default. We also offer our customers the opportunity to sign up to test new features.
• Appointment of a quality ombudsperson: We are creating a new role: Quality Ombudsman. This person ensures that employees have a clear path to raise concerns about quality and customer experience. The ombudsperson reports directly to management, publishes reports twice a year and presents them regularly to the Sonos board.
• Extending our home speaker warranties: To reflect our strong belief in the quality of our products, we are extending the manufacturer's warranty for an additional year on all home theater and plug-in speaker products that are currently covered by a warranty.
• Relentless App Improvement: We will continue to roll out updated mobile software releases every two to four weeks to optimize and improve the app experience, even after current issues are fully resolved.
• Establishment of a customer advisory board: We will form a customer advisory board to ensure we never lose sight of our customers' voices. This panel will provide feedback and insights from the customer perspective to help shape and improve our software and products before they are released to market.

Sonos says its executive leadership team will not accept bonuses for the October 2024 to September 2025 fiscal year unless Sonos manages to fix the app's problems and restore customer trust.

Sonos says more than 80% of the app's missing features have been reintroduced and the company expects to increase that percentage to 100% in the coming weeks. (Bonuses are a strong incentive, aren't they?)

In September, we reported that Sonos took some cost-cutting measures when developing the app, including laying off some employees, which also led to internal restructuring that, according to the report, “caused chaos” as they broke up teams that had worked together for years. As the app's release deadline approached, employees reportedly “strongly” urged company executives to delay the app's release, saying it was far from ready for prime time.

Former Sonos employees claimed that the company did not focus on ensuring that long-time Sonos customers' devices continued to function properly, but instead focused on pleasing investors and attracting new customers. Many employees were afraid to take tougher action because they feared they would be fired.

The app, which launched in May, was riddled with bugs and lacked many key features of the previous app, leading to widespread outcry from Sonos customers. Since then, Sonos has focused most of its corporate efforts on fixing the app and restoring customer goodwill.

Sonos expects to miss its annual revenue target by a whopping $200 million.