Coriant announces leadership changes to drive next phase of growth

NAPERVILLE, Illinois, 2 May 2018 – Coriant, a global supplier of open, disruptive, and hyperscale networking solutions for service providers and web-scale internet operators, today announced the appointment of Pat DiPietro as Chief Executive Officer effective immediately. Mr. DiPietro will continue to serve as Vice Chairman of the Board, a role he has held since the founding of Coriant in 2013. He replaces CEO and Chairman Shaygan Kheradpir, who has stepped down from his role to pursue other opportunities.

“On behalf of the Board and the management team, we wish to thank Shaygan for his commitment and many contributions to Coriant over the past three years,” said DiPietro. “I’m thrilled to take the helm of Coriant as it transforms to drive new value for its global customers with cost-disruptive innovations in open, software-driven, and revenue-enhancing products and technologies.”

“Oaktree remains fully committed to providing both financial and operational support to help take Coriant to the next level of growth,” said Cass Traub, a managing director at Oaktree, and newly appointed Chairman of the Board, Coriant. “Having successfully overseen the company’s founding operations and end-to-end portfolio strategy, Pat brings to his expanded role a deep and comprehensive understanding of Coriant’s business and customers. He is the ideal choice to lead Coriant going forward and execute the company’s strategic plans for growth and success.”

The company also announced that Reza Ghaffari has been promoted to the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO), a new position within Coriant. Mr. Ghaffari will continue to lead Coriant’s global service and support organization, while assuming responsibility for the company’s global IT, human resources, and facilities functions. With a proven track record of driving operational excellence and outcome-based results, Mr. Ghaffari is uniquely qualified to drive further improvements in the support we provide our customers by strengthening functional alignment and in-region resources.

Mr. DiPietro brings over 30 years of industry experience and expertise to his role. In addition to launching several highly successful networking products and start-up ventures, Mr. DiPietro has held executive management and R&D roles in leading telecommunications and technology companies, including senior leadership roles at Nortel and Bell Northern Research. Mr. DiPietro previously served as Managing Partner at Canada’s VG Partners, overseeing the company’s Technology Fund. As a venture capitalist, he managed large portfolios and teams and sat on numerous Boards, including Sandvine, SiGe, Continuous Computing, BTI Systems and BelAir Networks.

Mr. Ghaffari has a long track record of success and global exposure as a serial entrepreneur building companies from the ground up with over 25 years of telecom-related experience ranging from enterprise network solutions, regional distribution, and provider of cloud communication services. Between 2000 and 2005, Mr. Ghaffari also worked at Verizon where he was responsible for innovation, product development, and strategic partnership programs. During his tenure at Verizon, a number of products were designed, developed, and launched under his leadership.