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Bill Gartner

Vice President/GM
Optical Systems & Optics Group

Bill Gartner is Vice President/GM of of Cisco's Optical Systems and Optics Group. In this role, Bill has P&L responsibility for these businesses and is responsible for strategic direction, product development, product positioning and new product introduction.

Prior to joining Cisco, Bill was Chief Operating Officer of Meriton Networks (acquired by Xtera Networks). Prior to Meriton, Bill served as President and COO of Mahi Networks and COO of Photuris.

Before joining Photuris, he was Vice President and General Manager of Lucent's Optical Networking Systems business, responsible for Metro, Access, and Long Haul DWDM Products.

His earlier tenure in the industry included roles at AT&T Bell Labs and Paradyne.

Bill has served on the boards of OptronX (acquired by JDSU) and CyOptics.

Bill has a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech, a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University, and an Executive Master’s in Technology Management from University of Pennsylvania/Wharton. He is a University of Pennsylvania Moore Fellow, and holds three patents.

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