For a look at the rest of the 2020 40 Under 40 honorees, be sure to check out the 40 Under 40 homepage.
Name: Benjamin Larkin
Age: 39
Job Title: President
Company: ListenUp
Years in Industry: 21
Where You Grew Up, Live Now: I grew up in a farm town in the rural Midwest. I currently live in Castle Rock, CO, a small city just south of Denver
Education: I earned both a BS in Electrical Engineering and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Colorado
Accomplishments: There have been dozens of milestones and accomplishments throughout my career; however, I am the proudest of those that have made an impact on others and helped drive our company and the CE industry forward. Accomplishments related to the growth of others around me are the most important to me.
CE Industry Awards: CEA Mark of Excellence – Ultimate Home of the Year; CEA Mark of Excellence – Multiroom Audio/Video Project of the Year; Best Engineered System – Lutron; Ultimate Connected Home Integration System Over $750K – Crestron; Cornell Cup Silver Medal – Cornell University Systems Engineering Competition
What I Like Best About My Job: Helping others succeed in their careers and working with the latest in home and commercial technologies.
Pastime/Hobby: Mountaineering and most outdoor sportsmanship activities.
Last Book Read: Create the Future, by Jeremy Gutsche
Favorite Movie: The Big Lebowski
Major Industry Problem and How to Fix It: I believe that the largest hurdle the consumer electronics industry faces now, and even more so in the future, is the ability to deliver value to customers and end users in a meaningful way via retail and traditional face- to-face interaction. The proliferation of both product knowledge and shared user feedback available to consumers and the expectation of instantaneous delivery poses a real threat to traditional CE retailers and custom integrators alike. The retail monopoly on product knowledge and product availability is rapidly evaporating; therefore, retailers must adapt a new value proposition to their customers or face a certain demise. Quite the challenge, to say the least.
