Cerent Corporation was founded in January 1997 in Petaluma, California, the heart of “Telecom Valley.” The founders, management team, and staff of Cerent came from the leading telecommunications and data communications equipment manufacturers in the world. Additionally, Cerent team members previously led successful new startup companies or possessed a track record of leadership success at established companies.
The following innovators were the key management personnel at Cerent at the start of 1999:
The following innovators were the key management personnel at Cerent at the start of 1999:
The Cerent team was unique in that it integrated Optical Telephony (SONET) and Data Networking expertise. Not only did the Cerent team excel at tactics to win optical transport business, but the management team also articulated a vision that ultimately led to Cisco System’s IP + Optical initiative in the early 2000s.
The slide below illustrates Cerent’s early five-step evolution plan for realizing an IP + Optical infrastructure, even as circuit-based switching solutions and ATM-based technologies dominated the late 1990s telecom marketplace.
The slide below illustrates Cerent’s early five-step evolution plan for realizing an IP + Optical infrastructure, even as circuit-based switching solutions and ATM-based technologies dominated the late 1990s telecom marketplace.