Akhavan the man for SEN top job

A year after its formation, networking supergroup appoints Deutsche Telekom alumnus Hamid Akhavan as permanent head

Akhavan: the opportunity to lead the ongoing success story of SEN Group is very exciting

Networking vendor Siemens Enterprise Communications (SEN) Group has ended its year-long search for a leader after unveiling Hamid Akhavan as its new chief executive.

Akhavan, 47, will replace the interim head Mark Stone and is expected to be in the hotseat by the end of February. Stone will return to a role as executive chairman. The new top dog joins from his post as chief operating officer of Deutsche Telekom. He has been at the firm three years, and previously worked for telecoms company Teligent.

The SEN Group was formed in October 2008 when private equity firm The Gores Group, which owns vendors Enterasys and SER Solutions, bought a controlling stake in Siemens' networking business.

Less than a week prior to this, former Enterasys chairman Stone had stepped up to the plate when chief executive Mike Fabiaschi passed away. When the new group was finalised, Stone was duly installed as interim chief executive. Joe Kaeser, chief financial officer for Siemens AG, claimed the lengthy hunt for a boss had yielded pleasing results.

"Hamid Akhavan is the ideal person," he said. "He is a respected expert in this field and has outstanding managerial and entrepreneurial qualities, which he has demonstrated on numerous occasions.”

Akhavan added: “From a personal perspective, the opportunity to lead the ongoing success story of SEN Group, with its proud history of industry firsts, outstanding talent and leading market positions in many of its solutions and services is very exciting.

"We operate in a highly competitive market that is continually advancing and I am committed to building significant value for the customers, shareholders and employees of SEN Group.”