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    David Heard
David Heard

David Heard

President of Network Infrastructure


b. 1968


David Heard is the President of Network Infrastructure.


Based in Dallas, David was the NI Chief Strategic Growth Officer and joined Nokia with the acquisition of Infinera in February 2025. He was previously CEO of Infinera and, prior to that held the role of Infinera’s Chief Operating Officer, responsible for leading the innovation of new solutions and the overall operational excellence of the company. Before joining Infinera, David held senior positions across various technology companies in the U.S. including JDSU, BigBand Networks, Somera Communications, Lucent and AT&T gaining comprehensive experience of the telecoms industry and demonstrating a strong growth mindset and a commitment to innovation leadership.
 

Education:

  • Masters, Management Science (Sloan), Stanford University Graduate School of Business
  • Master of Business Administration (MBA), University of Dayton
  • BA, Production & Operations Mgt, The Ohio State University
     

Career history:

  • 2025 (February-June) Chief Growth Officer at Network Infrastructure, Nokia 
  • 2020–2025 Chief Executive Officer, Infinera 
  • 2017–2020 Chief Operations Officer and various senior positions, Infinera
  • 2015–2016 Cloud Service Provider (Executive Consultant - External), Dell
  • 2010–2015 President - Network & Service (Software) Enablement, JDSU
  • 2007–2010 Chief Operating Officer, BigBand Networks
  • 2004–2006 President & CEO, Somera Communications (Jabil)
  • 2003–2004 President - Switching Systems, Tekelec (Oracle)
  • 2000–2003 President & CEO Santera Systems Inc (now Oracle)
  • 1996–2000 GM & VP Wireless - Various Positions, Alcatel-Lucent
  • 1990–1996 VP of Access, AT&T (Lucent Technologies)
     

Additional positions:

  • 2017–2022 Member of the Board of Directors, Motion Intelligence
  • 2012–2019 Chairman of the Board, Telecommunications Industry Association 
  • 2015–2018 Board Director, Milestone Sports
  • 2006–2017 Member of the Board of Directors - Co-founder, Zyvex Performance Materials
  • 2002–2004 Member of the Board of Directors, Spatial Wireless (Alcatel Lucent)