GET TO KNOW...
On the lighter side of things, we ask the
industry experts what makes them tick. . . .
Jamie Jefferies,
VP and GM of EMEA, Ciena
wWhat would you describe as your
most memorable achievement?
I moved to the US in 2010 in what was one
of the biggest personal and professional
decisions I have made. For the first five years,
I was working exclusively on the Verizon
account, and with a great team we delivered
great results by focusing on several key
milestones. I then ran strategic accounts in
North America where I worked with many
of Ciena’s largest customers. Looking back,
it was a big decision to move to the States,
but I have no regrets. I was fortunate to work
with the most talented and dedicated team
in the industry. I’m proud of the work we’ve
accomplished together.
What first made you think of a
career in technology?
I like electronics and at the age of 16 I
decided to leave school and joined British
Telecom as an apprentice. It gave me the
opportunity to work across a range of
different fields and opened my eyes to a
lot of different opportunities. I ended up
going into transmissions and now optics. I
guess you could say it was by chance I found
myself in this space.
What style of management
philosophy do you employ with
your current position?
As anyone that knows me will testify, I
am all about the team. At Ciena, we have
the best people in the industry in terms
of professionalism, culture, spirit and
qualifications. I firmly believe it is this diversity
that builds a great team in any company.
My team in EMEA is 70% female leadership,
which for many companies in our sector
is rare. I am very committed to diversity
across all areas and I think spending time
on developing and supporting the team is
important. It’s something I have perhaps
become more tuned into as I have got older.
I have two kids that are grown up and I
understand how important it is to give them
the opportunity to test themselves.
What would you say is one of the
key trends that has emerged in
2020 and why?
The rollout of 5G is here and we are going to
start to see more things moving to the Edge
“
I LOVE RUNNING
AND CYCLING –
BUT I’M ALSO
A HUGE
LIVERPOOL FAN!
and become latency orientated. Think of
driverless cars and Smart Cities – this type of
technology demands real-time connectivity.
These new use cases and applications will
also start to see the rise in software-centric
technology, it will become more important
for networks to adapt and adjust ‘on the fly’
to support enormous growth in traffic and
changing user needs.
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