Denis Anthony Handlin AO was born on 1951 and is an Australian former entrepreneur and business executive who served as chairman and chief executive officer of Sony Music Entertainment Australia and New Zealand and president of Sony Music Entertainment Asia Inc, commencing employment in the company in 1970 until 5 June 2021, making him the longest-serving global Sony Music employee.
24 Facts About Denis Handlin
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Additionally, Handlin has served on the committees of several industry associations and has held various positions including Chairman of the Phonographic Performance Company of Australia, Vice Chairman of the Australian Recording Industry Association and Chairman of the ARIA Industry Chart Committee and has been a member of the ARIA Board from 1984 until 5 June 2021.
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Denis Handlin was born in Brisbane in 1951 and educated at St Joseph's College, Gregory Terrace.
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In May 1970, Denis Handlin started in the Distribution Division within the Australian Record Company.
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In 1976, Denis Handlin moved to Sydney and held numerous senior positions including National Promotions Manager, Director of Marketing and General Manager, Marketing and Sales.
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On 1 January 1985, Denis Handlin was appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Australian company.
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In February 1996, Denis Handlin was made Chairman of Sony Music Entertainment Australia Limited and appointed to the international committee responsible for the company's global strategy.
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In May 1996, Denis Handlin became the first Australian and the first Sony Music Entertainment executive to be honoured with the CEO Special Recognition Award presented by Sony Chairman and CEO Norio Ohga.
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In 2002, Denis Handlin was appointed to chair the Sony Music International Strategy committee.
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In 2005 at the Australia Day Honours List, Denis Handlin was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of "service to the music industry, particularly through the promotion of Australian musicians, to professional organisations, and to the community through fundraising for charitable organisations".
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In November 2012, Denis Handlin was elected to the position of Vice Chairman of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Asia Regional Board and in November 2014, Denis Handlin was elected as Chairman of the IFPI Asia Pacific Board.
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In June 2017 at the Queen's Birthday Honours List, Denis Handlin was elevated to and awarded the Officer of the Order of Australia, in recognition of "for distinguished service to the Australian recording industry, through leadership and mentoring roles, as a supporter of young artists, and to charitable organisations as a director, patron and contributor".
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In February 2018, Denis Handlin was announced as "the Number 1 most influential figure in the Australian music industry" by music industry publication, The Music.
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On 21 June 2021, it was announced that Denis Handlin was leaving the company.
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Denis Handlin's departure was effective immediately and was announced by Sony Music's global boss Rob Stringer in an internal email.
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Denis Handlin was alleged to have routinely singled out members of staff for humiliation and intimidation, which left many "traumatised" and resulted in rates of close to 50 per cent annual turnover of staff at the company by the late 1990s.
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Former head of human resources at Sony Music Australia Greg Lockhart likened working under Denis Handlin to being a "servant" who did not work for Sony Music but rather "Denis Handlin and the 'cult' of his personality".
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Lockhart alleged he was instructed by Denis Handlin to hire private investigators to follow staff.
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Denis Handlin said in a statement that while in charge of the company he "would never tolerate treating women in an inappropriate or discriminatory manner" and when informed of incidents, he "took action to ensure that it was stopped and didn't occur again".
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Denis Handlin was previously suspended by the Sony Music head office in 1998, with 10 executives flown out to Sony Music's global headquarters in New York City for one-on-one interviews regarding Denis Handlin's conduct.
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Denis Handlin was reinstated three months later, after which the alleged bullying, harassment and routine humiliation of Sony Music Australia staff continued; nine of the 10 interviewed executives left the company within four years.
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Denis Handlin married his wife Jan in 1977 and together they have six children.
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Denis Handlin has been a mentor of the Queensland State of Origin series rugby league team since 2006.
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Denis Handlin has been honored with several awards for his work in the Australian entertainment industry.