19 December 2016

IQE board gains Cisco UK/Ireland veteran as non-executive director

Epiwafer foundry and substrate maker IQE plc of Cardiff, Wales, UK has announced the appointment of Phil Smith BSc, Hon LLD, DUniv. FIET, as a non-executive director.

Smith became chairman of Cisco for the UK and Ireland in August, after eight years as chief executive. Cisco is a provider of networking for the Internet. Smith is also the chairman of UK Government agency Innovate UK (formerly the Technology Strategy Board) and chairman of the Tech Partnership. Additionally, he sits on the board of the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB).

Smith has a 35-year track record in the technology industry in companies including Philips Electronics and IBM. As chief executive and now chairman of Cisco, he leads about 5500 people in the UK and Ireland. He created Cisco's British Innovation Gateway (BIG) program, as a legacy of London 2012 to spark nationwide ingenuity, ambition and growth through technology entrepreneurship. He works closely with government ministers, industrial leaders and business leaders and is an advocate on the transformational nature of technology, sustainability, ambition, inclusion and diversity and the critical need for STEM skills in future generations.

In September 2014 Smith was awarded an honorary doctorate by Birmingham City University, cited for his outstanding contribution to the IT industry. In March 2015 he was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws by the University of Warwick and in 2016 an honorary degree of Doctor of Science by his alma mater Glasgow University.

"He has been hugely successful leading businesses with technologies that bring transformational benefits to many private and public sector organizations in the UK and the wider world," comments Sir David Grant, chairman of IQE's Nominations and Remuneration Committees. "His vision, his energy and his encouragement of leadership in a global high-technology environment are well matched to IQE's future aspirations."

Tags: IQE

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