Panasonic Avionics has a new Chief Technology Officer. The company announced that Joe Bentley will fill the role vacated by David Bartlett in January. Bentley’s career at PAC begins today.
Bringing together a world-class team with a rich legacy of engineering prowess is humbling. I am excited to deliver scalable, inflight entertainment platforms that will enable airlines to increase efficiency and promote passenger loyalty.
– New Panasonic Avionics CTO Joe Bentley
Bentley oversees all aspects of the company’s software and systems engineering teams, cloud, hardware, and IT/security. He also serves as a key member of Panasonic’s executive team and holds direct responsible for an organization of over 800 employees spread across Panasonic’s Lake Forest, California headquarters, as well as the Bay Area office and other global locations.
Bentley’s background covers a number of digital entertainment companies over the past decade. Most recently he served as SVP Engineering at Hulu, leading the engineering, research and program teams. Prior to that he served as VP Software Engineering for GoPro. And from 2012-2015 Bentley worked as Director of Digital Products for Amazon, overseeing the launch of the Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick. This also included overseeing development of Voice Search through Alexa.
I am delighted to welcome Joe Bentley to Panasonic Avionics. His proven track record in successfully delivering digital innovation makes him a natural fit as we continue to build remarkable IFEC solutions that enhance the airline passenger experience.
– Ken Sain, Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation
Under Bartlett’s tenure the focus as Panasonic Avionics changed significantly. Under his guidance the company transitioned to a more services-focused model. He also spearheaded the launch of of the company’s Innovation Centers to help drive product improvements. The first of those Innovation Centers opened in the Bay Area and remains as part of the company’s operations. How this will play out under Bentley’s leadership remains to be seen.
Bentley has what appears to be a more practical background than Bartlett brought to the role. He delivered consumer-facing products that generally are seen as good examples of UI/UX and compelling for the companies as well. With PAC’s focus on the user experience for IFE/C going forward this experience should prove beneficial to the company.
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Joe Barbola says
Hiring a reject from failing operations at GoPro and Hulu is probably not the leadership they needed after all the trouble they have been through. Don’t think this will end well.