Management Team
Bryan Scott Ganz
Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
Bryan Scott Ganz became the Company’s President effective July 13, 2018, Chief Executive Officer effective April 1, 2019, and has been a director since June 2016. and a member of the Product Safety Committee since June 2022. Mr. Ganz served as Board Chair between April 2019 and June 2022. Prior to becoming the Company’s President, he was engaged by the Company, beginning in May 2016, in a consulting capacity to assist in a restructuring of operations, evaluation of management, identify sources of capital, and provide strategic advice. Mr. Ganz brings more than 30 years of global business experience in sales management, manufacturing, new product design and development, and supply chain management, and mergers and acquisitions as well as experience as a director of other publicly held companies. Previously, Mr. Ganz founded Maine Industrial Tire LLC, an industrial tire company sold to a unit of Trelleborg AB in 2012. From 1991 to 2009 Mr. Ganz held several roles culminating with CEO of GPX International, Inc. and its predecessor Galaxy Tire Inc. Mr. Ganz started his career at Paramount Capital Group where he was a partner from 1985 to 1991. Mr. Ganz is the founder and majority shareholder of Northeast Industrial Partners LLC, a holding company that owns and operates privately held businesses. In addition, he is a principal in Scudder Bay Capital LLC, a captive private REIT. Mr. Ganz received a J.D. from Columbia Law School and a B.S. in Business Administration from Georgetown University. During Mr. Ganz’s tenure, the Company has transitioned from the research and development stage to produce and sell multiple unique products including less lethal launchers, projectiles, and other personal security tools. Key achievements during this period included listing on Nasdaq, eliminating all long term debt, development of a robust DTC ecommerce program, including Amazon, establishment of a nationwide network of dealers including such large chain sporting goods stores as Cabela’s, Bass Pro, and Sportsman’s Warehouse, establishment of new enlarged manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and South Africa, entry into the Canadian and Latin American markets including ongoing development of a manufacturing facility in Argentina, successfully completing a share repurchase program, establishing a talented and diverse Board of Directors, and establishing a first class operational infrastructure with a dynamic, experienced quality leadership team. He also has emphasized management accountability, initiating programs to align management and shareholder interests, control operating costs, and improve profit margins. Through his personal work ethic, Mr. Ganz leads the management team by example.
John Brasseur
Chief Operating Officer
John Brasseur, who joined Byrna in July of last year as Vice President of New Product Development, has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer where he will oversee Supply Chain, Global Production, Engineering, and New Product Development. With a 12-year tenure at Sig Sauer where he led the launch of globally renowned handguns, Mr. Brasseur’s extensive experience positions him uniquely to drive operational excellence and strategic growth at Byrna. Under his leadership, Byrna has successfully increased manufacturing capacity by 44%, from 10,000 to 14,400 launchers per month from January through March 2024. His efforts in SKU rationalization and cost reduction on SD and LE launchers are expected to yield financial benefits throughout the remainder of the year. He has also overseen the design completion of the Byrna CL (Compact Launcher), setting the stage for this innovative product’s launch in 2025.
Sandra Driscoll
Chief People Officer
Sandra Driscoll, Byrna's new Head of Human Resources, also brings with her a wealth of experience in her field. She previously worked at Eze Castle Integration (ECI), a managed services and technology company, catering to the investment management industry. At ECI, Ms. Driscoll was a Manager, Director and Vice President of Human Resources and Operations, before being promoted to the role of Vice President of Global Human Resources, a position she held for the past nine years. Ms. Driscoll attended the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Lauri Kearnes
Chief Financial Officer
Kearnes brings over 20 years of experience in financial and operating leadership, most recently serving as CFO for Harte Hanks (Nasdaq: HHS), a Massachusetts-based global customer experience (CX) strategy company. At Harte Hanks, she oversaw all finance, accounting, and human resources for a business with over $200 million in annual revenues.
Prior to her role as CFO at Harte Hanks, Kearnes held various key positions, including Corporate Controller, Group VP of Finance, and VP of Finance. Her background also includes roles at Brooks Automation, where she managed financial operations in a high-tech manufacturing environment, and at Nutraceutical Corporation, where she gained insights into market dynamics in consumer-focused industries.
Kearnes graduated from Utah State University, receiving both her undergraduate degree and master’s degree in accounting.
Luan Pham
Chief Marketing Revenue Officer
Luan is a multifaceted marketing executive with more than 25 years of experience collaborating with some of the world's largest brands. Most recently, from 2017 to 2020 he was the Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer of Laird Superfood, Inc., a creator of plant-based food products, where he developed brand go-to-market strategies across a broad range of sales channels. Over the course of his tenure with Laird, Luan was a major contributor to the company's explosive revenue growth over the period, and its $400 million equity valuation upon its successful IPO in September 2020.
Prior to Laird, Luan was Head of Marketing for Condé Nast's Golf Digest from 2012 to 2017. In this capacity, he led 360 marketing efforts across Golf Digest brands in print, digital, mobile, social media, and high-profile events. Before he became Head of Marketing, Luan was Golf Digest's Director of Integrated Marketing from 2007 to 2011 where he managed the national golf equipment category, working intimately with brands such as Nike, TaylorMade, Toyota and Apple. During his ten years with Condé Nast, Luan's contributions earned him multiple awards including the 2016 National Addy Award, the 2015 Golf Digest Brands "Marketer of the Year" Award, 2009 Golf World "Marketer of the Year" Award and 2008 Golf Digest "Marketer of the Year" Award, among others. Between his two roles at Condé Nast, Luan was Senior Director of Marketing for Golf and Tennis at Ralph Lauren from 2011 to 2012. There he contributed to double-digit sales growth in the category and was responsible for consumer brand experiences at high profile golf and tennis championship tournaments. Luan began his career at Kiplinger's Personal Finance where, from 1996 to 2007, he served in sales and marketing roles of increasing responsibility, most recently as Sales Development Director. Over the course of his tenure with the publication, he received Kiplinger's "Marketing Excellence" Award for his accomplishments, which included the launch of Kiplinger's Podcasting initiative and online media kit platform.
Luan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from California State University, Fullerton.
Etienne Roux
Executive Vice President of International Sales & Marketing
Etienne has over 10 years of successful sales and marketing management, business development and brand positioning. Most recently, Etienne was responsible for developing markets for lasers, optical sights and mil-spec communication gear for international customers in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Lisa Klein Wager
Chief Governance Officer and Corporate Secretary
Lisa Wager is Chief Governance Officer of Byrna Technologies Inc. She advises the Board, the Lead Independent Director, and Senior Management on governance matters and best practices, oversees the Company’s 33 and 34 Act compliance, and facilitates stockholder requests and communications. She also serves as Corporate Secretary. From October 2018 through November 2021, Ms. Wager was the Company’s Chief Legal Officer with responsibility for the Company’s day to day legal requirements and oversight of outside counsel.
Ms. Wager previously was with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, where she worked from 1988 and became a partner in 1990. She has co-chaired the membership committee and securities litigation subcommittee of the Business Section of the American Bar Association and has spoken and published extensively on issues related to securities law and risk management. Earlier in her career Ms. Wager worked at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, and was a law clerk to the Honorable John F. Keenan in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Ms. Wager holds a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science degree from Union College.