Cisco Shuffles More Top Execs, Forms Cloud Systems Business Unit

New to Cisco is the Cloud & Systems Management Technology Group (CSMTG), which will be led by Cisco Chief Information Officer Rebecca Jacoby. A Cisco spokesman confirmed to CRN both the launch of the CSMTG and that Jacoby will retain the title of CIO in addition to her new responsibilities.

The CSMTG, whose creation was first reported Tuesday by Network World, consolidates several groups from Cisco's engineering and services organizations. Those include the Network Management Technology Group, now led by Jamie Lerner, vice president and general manager, the Intelligent Automation Services Business Unit, led by Flint Brenton, vice president, and the Service Delivery Platform business.

Jacoby, who reports to Randy Pond, Cisco's executive vice president for operations, processes and systems, will have oversight over all those groups as head of CSMTG. She will also report in to Cisco's engineering organization, co-led by Senior Vice Presidents Padmasree Warrior and Pankaj Patel.

According to Cisco, the change will better position the company to make gains in various cloud infrastructure, software and services markets.

"Specifically, Rebecca will be challenged to create IaaS, PaaS, SaaS solutions, leverage Cisco's considerable Services and Engineering partnerships and our strong portfolio of technology and go-to-market partners, and of course to implement world-class cloud services internally at Cisco," said a Cisco spokesman in an e-mail to CRN.

In another change, Jesper Andersen, formerly senior vice president of the Network Management Technology Group -- the job that went to Lerner -- is now Cisco's senior vice president and general manager, Service Provider Video Technology Group.

The SPVTG houses Cisco's Videoscape platform and other products Cisco offers to service providers for delivering content over IP networks. In the new role, Andersen now reports to Marthin De Beer, senior vice president and general manager for Cisco's Emerging Business Group. De Beer this summer was made head of all of Cisco's video businesses.

Andersen succeeds former SPVTG chief Enrique Rodriguez, who left Cisco in August after a year at the company. Cisco has made several acquisitions in 2011 specific to the SPVTG, including of Inlet Technologies in February and BNI Video in October.

Cisco has seen a number of significant executive moves this year, including more than 25 major executive departures, as it looks to pare down corporate bureaucracy and become easier for partners and customers to do business with. The company has shed more than 12,500 employees in the past six months counting layoffs, early retirements and reduced headcount from asset sales.