Cisco names new CTO, shifts execs

In an effort to better communicate its technology strategy and directions, Cisco last week named veteran executive Charlie Giancarlo as the third CTO in the company’s history.

In an effort to better communicate its technology strategy and directions, Cisco  last week named veteran executive Charlie Giancarlo as the third CTO in the company’s history.

At the same time, Cisco shuffled some of the executives under the direction of Chief Development Officer Mario Mazzola to better address key markets and customer requirements. Analysts say Cisco customers might gain more input and clarity into the company’s directions, but beyond that the reorganization means business as usual.

“You still have the same people running the show,” says Dave Passmore, research director at Burton Group. “It’s also interesting that they decided to reconstitute the CTO position after four years of vacancy. They [might have] thought it was necessary to better coordinate all of the development activities at Cisco.”

Giancarlo had been co-leader of network switching, one of Cisco’s core technologies, as well as several advanced technologies, including voice, storage networking and network security. He also is president of Cisco-Linksys, Cisco’s home network subsidiary.

As CTO, Giancarlo will be responsible for contributing to and communicating Cisco’s technology strategy, and managing Cisco’s Global Government Solutions Group. He will continue to be president of Cisco-Linksys and lead the company’s voice endeavors.

Serial entrepreneur Judy Estrin was Cisco’s CTO from 1998 to 2000, and Ed Kozel was the company’s first CTO, serving from 1990 to 1998.

Cisco decided to reactivate the CTO position in an effort to better communicate its business and technology strategies internally and externally, a company spokesman says.

The reshuffling of Mazzola’s technology organization includes:

• Jayshree Ullal , senior vice president, will lead the newly formed Security Technology Group. Previously, Ullal ran Cisco’s Optical and Broadband Transport group.

• Luca Cafiero , senior vice president, will lead the newly formed Data Center, Storage, Switching and Wireless Technology Group.

• Replacing Ullal in Optical and Broadband Transport is Vice President and General Manager Kambiz Hooshmand . He had shared responsibility for Cisco’s Carrier Core Multiservice business unit with Vice President and General Manager Tony Bates.

• Bates now will have sole responsibility for the Carrier Core Multiservice business unit, continuing to report to Prem Jain and Mike Volpi, both senior vice presidents of Cisco’s Routing Technology Group.

• Kathy Hill, vice president and general manager, will oversee Cisco’s newly formed Mid-range and Stackable Switching Technology Group. Hill had reported to Larry Birenbaum, senior vice president and general manager of Cisco’s Ethernet Access group, who has taken a “long planned, well-deserved” sabbatical, the spokesman says. Hill had been vice president and general manager of Cisco’s Desktop Switching business unit.