- News
12 January 2018
Finisar co-founder Jerry Rawls retires, replaced as CEO by Michael Hurlston and as chairman by Robert Stephens
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Fiber-optic communications component and subsystem maker Finisar Corp of Sunnyvale, CA, USA has announced the retirement of chairman & CEO Jerry Rawls and the appointment of Michael Hurlston as CEO and director, who will work together to ensure a smooth transition. Rawls will continue to serve as a director. Lead director Robert Stephens has been appointed chairman of the board.
“Michael has broad experience as a highly successful technology industry executive,” comments Stephens. “I want to thank Jerry for his tireless and inspired leadership of Finisar over the past nearly 30 years. Finisar has grown from its founding in Quonset hut in Menlo Park, California to a world-leading optics company with cutting-edge products and approximately $1.4bn in revenues in its most recently completed fiscal year… He has positioned the company solidly for the great opportunities in our industry today,” he adds.
“Michael’s experience, proven technical skills, and leadership abilities will serve Finisar, our customers, employees, and stockholders very well,” believes Rawls.
Hurlston was most recently senior VP & general manager of the Mobile Connectivity Products/Wireless Communications and Connectivity Division at Broadcom Ltd. Previously, he held senior leadership positions in sales, marketing and general management. Prior to joining Broadcom in 2001, Hurlston held senior marketing and engineering positions at Oren Semiconductor Inc, Avasem, Integrated Circuit Systems, Micro Power Systems, Exar and IC Works. He is also a director of Ubiquiti Networks Inc and a member of the board of advisors of Vilynx Inc. Hurlston received a B.S.E.E., an M.S.E.E. and an M.B.A. from the University of California, Davis.
“The optical communications and components industry is rapidly advancing and there are many new exciting customer opportunities,” comments Hurlston.
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