Aviat Networks Appoints New CEO

Wireless solutions provision, Aviat Networks, has announced the appointment of Chairman Chuck Kissner as chief executive officer of the company. Kissner succeeds Harald Braun, who has resigned as President and Chief Executive Officer of the company.
Aviat Networks was recently renamed from Harris Stratex Networks, said that the Board has also appointed Dr. James Stoffel as lead independent director of the company.
Kissner, a 40-year technology industry veteran, has previously served as Chief Executive Officer of Stratex Networks from July 1995 through May 2000 and again from October 2001 to May 2006. He was elected a Director of Stratex Networks in July 1995, and Chairman in August 1996, a position which he held through January 2007.
Earlier, Kissner served as Vice President and General Manager of M/A-COM, Inc. from July 1993 to July 1995, as President and CEO of Aristacom International, and Executive Vice President and a Director of Fujitsu Network Switching, Inc. He also held a number of executive positions at AT&T. now Alcatel-Lucent.
In a statement, Kissner said: "The Board and I sincerely thank Harald Braun for his contributions and leadership over the last two-plus years. Harald was a strong force in guiding the company through its post-merger transition, expanding its customer focus and leading its emergence under the new identity of Aviat Networks."
In a related development, the management of the Nigerian office of Aviat Networks also recorded some changes in its leadership, with the confirmation of Mr. Olawale Osimosu as the substantive Sales Director and Country Head. Making this clarification during a recent visit to Nigeria, the Vice President African Region for Aviat Networks, Mr. Trevor Burchell explained that the move was a ‘strategic one meant to fortify the management of the Nigerian office’.
According to him, “Change in management is something that always happens in any company and obviously if you looked at Nigeria specifically, our previous management probably did a lot for the company. What we have tried to do is to make sure we grow our people internally and allow them to take over from our expatriates and drive the company forward. Even though the leadership of the previous management brought us to where we are today in Nigeria, we still feel its time for our own people, in our local office to take over and run the business. Mr. Olawale Osimosu is the new helmsman for the Nigerian office now. We believe in our people and the change is meant to empower them and show our commitment to having Nigerians running our offices in Nigeria”, he concluded.
From his previous responsibility as the company’s Account Director, Mr. Osimosu will bring in his wealth of experience to bear in his new responsibilities in sales and operations for Aviat Networks in Nigeria. With over 25 years experience in the telecommunications industry, the new Sales Director was appointed to consolidate the enviable hold of the microwave leaders in Nigeria.
While commenting on his immediate action plan for the company in Nigeria, Mr. Osimosu explained that though the market is competitive, Aviat Networks obviously has an edge over alternatives in more ways than one. His words: “we hope to build on our value proposition in this market which is enhanced by our over-whelming local experience and presence with several certified sub contractors, to truly be seen as the service providers of choice for the communication industry in general and the telecom sector in particular”. Mr. Osimosu has since resumed duties in his new capacity.