John E. Cody: Executive Vice President & COO

John E. Cody is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of BMI. Based in the performing right organization’s Nashville office, he reports directly to the President and CEO. He was named COO in 2002 after serving as Senior Vice President, Finance & Human Resources and Chief Financial Officer, and added Executive Vice President to his title in June 2006. He joined BMI in 1999.

As EVP & COO, Cody is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of several key departments, including Licensing, New Media, Finance, Operations & Information Technology, Human Resources, and Facilities Management & Support Services. A seasoned executive who has successfully increased BMI’s visibility as a technological leader in the industry, he plays a vital role in many aspects of the company’s business development and is an important decision-maker in major negotiations and on public policy issues.

Cody spearheaded the recent launch of Landmark Digital Services℠, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of BMI, and the acquisition of cutting-edge digital audio recognition technology, BlueArrow℠, which will greatly expand BMI’s ability to measure the performance of music on radio, television and the Internet.

Under his leadership, BMI has also acquired a wide range of state-of-the-art software that has helped cut costs and boost employee productivity, including a fully-integrated Ceridian H/R system and an advanced electronic document management system. He oversaw the implementation of a new distribution system for radio airplay revenue, which has resulted in more efficient royalty payments to BMI’s more than 375,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. In addition, Cody oversaw the implementation of company-wide, award-winning optical imaging technology.

Among his many other initiatives was the establishment of a business continuity plan to ensure that BMI’s critical functions would remain operational in the event of a crisis. He developed a strategic partnership with SunGard, the leader in disaster recovery, to protect BMI’s most valuable assets and provide an uninterrupted payment stream to writers and publishers.

Cody founded and co-chairs the Corporate Security and Operations Committee, which oversees the safety and security of BMI’s personnel, facilities and information, and handles crisis management and corporate operations. Since its inception in 2000, the committee has completed more than 200 projects, improving facility access, setting new password standards and increasing web security for all employees.

During his tenure as CFO, Cody represented BMI as a member of the Finance Committee for CISAC, the umbrella organization of the international copyright community. Working closely with BMI’s sister societies in foreign countries, Cody provides insight and expertise on initiatives developed by FastTrack, the international technical alliance of performing right organizations of which BMI is a founding member.

Prior to joining BMI in 1999, Cody served as Vice President/Controller of the Hearst Book Group in New York, where he was responsible for the finance, human resources and data processing areas of William Morrow, Inc. and Avon Books. He played a leading role in all operations of the company and was instrumental in modernizing the company’s primary systems to be state of the art and Y2K compliant. On the creative side, Cody played a significant role in structuring deals on acquisitions of major titles.

Before being hired at Hearst in 1983, Cody was Vice President, Finance and CFO at the U.S. headquarters of L.M. Ericsson Telecommunications in New York, with responsibility for the financial, human resources, treasury, administration, facilities and warehousing, information technology, and sales support departments. Among other marketing-based initiatives, he implemented a dynamic leasing program during his tenure at Ericsson, resulting in a significant increase in sales of various telecommunications products.

He began his career on Wall Street working for Charter NY in a variety of financial positions.

Cody is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of CPAs, a voting member of the Country Music Association, and an elected member of Delta Mu Delta, the national honor society for business administration professionals.

He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Pace University and an MBA from Long Island University. A veteran of the United States Air Force, Cody served as a Communications Specialist (with top security clearance) after graduation from Sheppard Air Force Base Technical School.