Zayo Group appoints industry veteran Nikos Katinakis as CTO

Zayo Group is doubling down on its commitment to network excellence with the appointment of experienced telecommunications leader Nikos Katinakis as Chief Technology Officer. With a keen focus on harnessing the potential of AI and automation, his leadership will bring substantial enhancements in both Service Delivery and Network Operations, ensuring unparalleled reliability and best-in-class service excellence for Zayo customers.

“Next-generation technology is being deployed faster than ever before. To meet increasing capacity demands, it’s critical to take an enhanced approach to innovation in the network,” said Steve Smith, CEO of Zayo. “Our strategic appointment of Nikos underscores Zayos’ dedication to advancing network excellence. His network experience and expertise combined with Zayo’s capabilities and automated technology will ensure our customers can meet – and exceed – connectivity expectations, now and in the future.”

Since 2022, the demand for bandwidth across Zayo’s connectivity technologies has continued to increase exponentially, driven by the rapid and widespread adoption of AI, next gen cloud, satellites, quantum, etc. The demand for bandwidth underscores the urgent need for robust network infrastructure to meet escalating requirements. Zayo's network leadership and ongoing investment in key geographies were instrumental in attracting Katinakis to the organization.

As the largest independently owned fibre network, Zayo is uniquely positioned to deliver top-tier network infrastructure tailored to the evolving needs of its customers. Under Katinakis's leadership, Zayo will advance its network capabilities through extensive automation of its network infrastructure and operational processes to ensure it meets tomorrow’s capacity demands and is easier to consume, where and when customers need it most. Zayo will also deploy further automation in 2024, streamlining network quoting-to-delivery processes for customers.

“We are at an inflection point in technology, with accessible AI, 5G, and satellite connectivity reshaping how we work,” said Katinakis, CTO. “My mid-term vision for Zayo is for us to deliver network infrastructure that’s easy to turn up and manage across edge, core and cloud, enhancing both connectivity and service. Ultimately, we aim to enable our customers to concentrate on their core business and not worry about transport connectivity, because they’ll have Zayo facilitating the creation of resilient and secure networks.”

The appointment of Katinakis – who brings network leadership experience from Telstra, Australia’s largest mobile network, Indian pioneer Reliance Jio, Canadian telecommunications giant Rogers, and infrastructure provider Ericsson – underscores Zayo's dedication to delivering best-in-class service excellence. His leadership will drive the expansion of network automation to enhance overall service efficiency and improve Zayo’s customer journey through AI-driven solutions and comprehensive NOC enhancements. This strengthens Zayo’s commitment to investing in future-proofing its network and services to connect what’s next for its customers.