Siemens Enterprise Communications: New CEO Amid Channel Progress

Siemens Enterprise Communications (SEN) Group has tapped Deutsche Telekom COO Hamid Akhavan to lead as its CEO. He takes the reins from Mark Stone, who served as interim CEO while a search was under way. Here are some quick details.

Following the transition, which the company expects to be completed by the end of Feburary 2010, Stone will go back to his previous position as executive chairman. He remains a member of the Executive Board.

Akhavan previously served as CEO of T-Mobile International AG. Prior to joining T-Mobile International he was both CIO and CTO at Teligent and held various positions at other technology companies.

SEN Group was formed in 2008 under a joint venture between Siemens AG and The Gores Group, a private equity firm. Its first CEO, Mike Fabiaschi, passed away suddenly in September 2008, and James O’Neill, former CEO of CompuDyne, was named his replacement. O’Neill made his retreat from SEN Group in June.

Despite the CEO turnover, SEN Group has fared well in its first year. It capped off its fourth quarter, which ended Oct. 31, with a 12 percent increase in sales, including a 12 percent increase in network infrastructure and security and an 8 percent increase in large enterprise. Its OpenScape Voice and UC platforms continue to be contenders in the ready-to-explode unified communications market. And Channel Chief Denzil Samuels is pushing for more growth.

Since the CEO seat is barely warm, Akhavan will have his work cut out for him. Stone has done a good job minding the store – as well he should, being chairman of Enterasys (which is owned by The Gores Group) and senior managing director of The Gores Group – but SEN Group is in need of some stability, especially as signs continue pointing to unified communications becoming a technology to watch in 2010. Let’s hope the musical chairs will end and SEN Group can focus its sole concentration on making a great product set even better.

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