AT&T Broadband will restructure its high-speed-data, telephony and
new-product-development businesses by combining the units into a new Broadband
Services division.
Under the plan, which AT&T Broadband plans to announce this upcoming
week, Greg Braden -- the company's former top telephony and engineering
executive -- will be elevated to executive vice president of broadband services
and chief technology officer. The last CTO, Tony Werner, left in October.
The move also reduces the number of direct reports to CEO Dan Somers, as the
senior executives from the three units will now report directly to Braden.
'Traditionally we've had those businesses operating in discreet silos,'
Braden said. 'Now that we've got very strong footholds in those businesses, it's
time for us to take the next step, which is to start pulling together our
operations so that we can take advantage of operating all of those businesses
across the common infrastructure.'
In the past, AT&T's telephony, high-speed-data and
new-product-development units pursued separate projects based on Internet
protocol. It made more sense to combine the three teams to develop a range of
IP-based products.
Eight executives from the three units will comprise the Broadband Services
management team.
Senior vice president of data services Susan Marshall is now senior vice
president of advanced broadband services.
Cathy Kilstrom remains senior vice president of telephony-services planning
and development, and former vice president of AT&T Broadband Labs Jim Starr
is now vice president of engineering, technology and labs.
Oleh Sniezko will report to Starr as vice president of engineering, and vice
president of network implementation John Heslip will keep the same title.
Charlotte Field remains senior vice president of network and technical
operations, and Gary Lane continues as vice president of service delivery.
Xiaolin Lu, the former vice president of strategic engineering and IP networks,
will now add the title of vice president of IP networks planning and
implementation to her business cards.
And senior vice president of new products Jennifer Bater will remain senior
vice president responsible for the company's Headend in the Sky platform, its
digital-media center and its national authorization system.
