TECHNOLOGY
WHO'S WHO Profiles of key executives at some of the top photonics companies in Ottawa-Gatineau. See page 37 for a complete list of the sector’s largest firms in the region. Profiles by Jacob Serebrin
Sam Bucci
, senior vice-president and general manager of optical networking, Nokia When Sam Bucci stepped into his current role six years ago, his job was to transform the optical networking unit. “We took a business that, let’s say, was not operating as well as it could,” he says. “And we turned it around.” His team built a new technology portfolio from scratch that’s now used by more than 660 customers – something Mr. Bucci says is a career highlight. His previous roles span a wide range of positions, including research and development, product design, service delivery, supply chain operations, business development and sales as well as other
Doug Alteen
, vice-president of telecom product line management, Lumentum Lumentum might be a new name, but it has a long history in Ottawa. The company was formed in August 2015 from JDSU’s optical communications portfolio as well as its commercial laser and 3D sensing and gesture recognition products. Doug Alteen oversees the telecom business, the company’s largest segment, as well as 3D sensing. He’s been in his current role for more than four years, but has been with Lumentum and, before that, JDSU for 13 years.
management roles. He says one of his favourite parts of the job is helping customers solve business challenges. However, Mr. Bucci says he also enjoys working with the company’s technology. “We build a lot of cool stuff and I get to work with a lot of really smart people,” he says. Mr. Bucci’s educational background includes an engineering degree from McGill University. He’s also involved in the community and sits on the board of directors of CENGN, a nonprofit that links researchers with industry leaders to commercialize nextgeneration communication technology. As well, he supports children’s hospitals in Ottawa and Montreal.
Many of his previous positions were sales and marketing roles where he focused on helping customers, but he’s also worked in research and development. Mr. Alteen’s key responsibilities include working with clients to identify their technology requirements, in addition to working with the R&D department to prioritize projects as well as supporting the sales team. He says a career highlight was working through the tech boom of the late ’90s and, after the bust, rebuilding on a more solid foundation. Mr. Alteen and his team are involved in the community, supporting the United Way and the Ottawa Senators Foundation. The company also allows employees to take what it calls “voluntary time off,” which allows them to donate their time to a community organization during the workday. He says such programs both help the community and act as a team-building activity.
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Subir Chadha, Area vice-president of sales, Cisco’s Ottawa office Subir Chadha says a big part of his job is thinking about “what’s coming around the corner.” In an industry where technology changes quickly, he says he tries to think about what his customers will need three years from now. “Setting the game plan for the mediumterm and structuring the business to adapt is the most fun [and] exciting part,” he says. Mr. Chadha has been in his current role for slightly less than a year. His key responsibilities include representing Cisco’s brand and driving value for shareholders by generating revenue. His previous positions include 10 years working at Bell Canada. Mr. Chadha’s educational background
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is in science and he holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Calcutta in India. A notable project that Mr. Chadha worked on was Justice Ontario’s video network during his time with Bell. The system, developed in partnership with Cisco, enables videoconferencing between police stations, jails, courtrooms and lawyers’ offices. It allows individuals in custody to make court appearances and speak to their lawyers remotely and securely, protecting attorneyclient confidentiality.
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Ottawa Business Journal obj.ca BOOK OF LISTS 2016
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