Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Latest News
    • Networking

    Nortel Names New CTO

    Written by

    Joe McGarvey
    Published December 17, 2001
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Nortel today announced the appointment of Greg Mumford, previously the president of the companys optical long-haul business, as chief technical officer. Mumford, 55, said that he looks forward to leading Nortel into a new era of technological breakthroughs.

      “In a company that has a long and proud history as a technology leader and innovator, Im looking forward to contributing to our ongoing success in delivering high-performance communications network and architectures that represent leading-edge value to our customers,” said Mumford, in a prepared statement.

      While Mumford praised past holders of the CTO position at Nortel, his tenure is likely to be one of the more challenging in the history of the company. Mumford takes over responsibilities for Nortels technology strategy at one of the low points in both the industrys and companys existence. Like other large networking firms, Nortel descent since the bubble burst in the telecommunication market 18 months ago has been extremely steep.

      The decline in valuation and market leadership significantly increases the obstacles in Mumfords path. Foremost, Nortel is only about half the size it was a year ago. While many of the tens of thousands of jobs that were cut were connected with the outsourcing of manufacturing, Nortels technical talent, which was already being poached by startups and competitors, such as Cisco, has been significantly thinned.

      Mumford will also be handicapped in relation to most of his predecessors in that opportunities to acquire innovative technology through acquisitions of smaller companies will be few. Although Nortel, with the possible exception of its $8 billion purchase of Bay Networks, has been less free-spending than competitors Cisco and Lucent, it has acquired key optical technology over the past few years.

      Most of its metro gear is based on a strategic investment, as is its all-optical switching technology and ultra-long-haul DWD equipment.

      Mumford moves over from Nortels optical long-haul division. Brian McFadden, another long-time Nortel employee, will fill his position there. Mumfords appointment could also be an indication of Nortels desire to move the high-profile Mumford out of a sector of the industry that appears to be in decline, at least in terms of shipments of DWDM gear.

      While optical switching and metro equipment is expected to receive a good deal of attention in the coming year, service providers, having built out long-distance optical spans in the past few years, are not expected to spend huge amounts of their budgets on long-haul transport gear. Although its mostly circumstantial, evidence of further cutbacks in long-distance gear was delivered last week when Qwest Communications announced it was trimming another $1.2 billion from its capital-expenditure budget.

      While Qwest was not specific about the equipment that would be affected by the budget cuts, speculation falls on long-haul gear. On the same day as the cutback announcement, Ciena announced that it could see falloffs of DWDM sales of as much as 50 percent in the first quarter of next year. Ciena is one of Qwests biggest suppliers of DWDM long haul gear. The other is Nortel.

      Mumfords appointment is effective immediately.

      His appointment fills the position vacated by Bill Hawe, who left the company earlier this year. Nortel officials could not be reached this morning to ask why it took several months to fill the vacancy and why Mumford was not named to the post immediately after Hawes departure.

      In another company appointment, Nortel named Marco Pagani as president of its metro optical division.

      Joe McGarvey
      Joe McGarvey
      Joe McGarvey has been the executive editor of The Net Economy since the publication's launch. Before that he served as communications editor at Interactive Week and was on the launch team of that publication in 1994. McGarvey has been covering next-generation technology trends for the past three years, following the development of softswitch technology and optical switching since their inception. His work has appeared in numerous technical trade publications, NASDAQ Magazine, The Daily Californian and the Los Angeles Times. He is a graduate of the school of journalism at San Diego State University.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×