-
Doug Smith
President & Chief Executive Officer
Doug Smith
President & Chief Executive Officer
Doug Smith is President and Chief Executive Officer for Ligado Networks and is responsible for directing the vision of the company and managing every aspect of its day-to-day operations. He leads efforts to utilize its state-of-the-art communications assets in operating a network solutions firm designed to extend coverage, increase capacity, and accelerate the delivery of next-generation technology for America’s wireless and critical infrastructure industries.
With more than 25 years of domestic and international telecom and wireless industry experience, Doug has engineered, built, and launched nationwide networks for GTE, Nextel, Sprint Nextel, and Clearwire.
From the outset of the commercial cellular industry, Doug has been involved with the development and technical support of several nationwide cellular networks spanning every generation of technology from the first analog networks through today’s state-of-the-art systems. Joining Nextel when it was a start-up company, Doug helped build the business from the ground up. He was responsible for the design and operation of Nextel’s nationwide network consisting of more than 20,000 cells and serving more than 20 million subscribers. Following that network deployment, he served as Sprint’s Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Operations Officer and embarked on the deployment of the company’s 4G network.
Doug received a Master of Science in Management of Technology from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Merrimack College.
Close -
Eric Harrington
Chief Financial Officer
Eric Harrington
Chief Financial Officer
Eric Harrington is the Chief Financial Officer for Ligado Networks and is responsible for overseeing the company’s financial functions, including accounting, financial planning and analysis, treasury, tax, corporate finance, and investor relations. Eric has more than 18 years of unique experience in transactional and operational finance, strategic planning, and principal investing.
Prior to joining Ligado, Eric was an investment professional at The Blackstone Group within the firm’s Mezzanine Group, a $1.1 billion fund focused on providing growth capital and supporting leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations. While at Blackstone, he analyzed, evaluated, and executed mezzanine investments across a range of industries. He began his career at Nomura Securities in the firm’s Leveraged Capital Group.
Eric received a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Close -
Scott Wiener
Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer
Scott Wiener
Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer
Scott Wiener is the Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer for Ligado Networks and is responsible for strategy and planning, business development, marketing, product development, and commercial partnerships.
Prior to joining Ligado, Scott co-founded and served as a partner at Alta Nova Group, a Virginia-based consulting firm advising technology and telecommunications clients on market analysis and strategy, business planning, and pricing management. Scott has more than 26 years of industry experience in strategy, business planning, pricing management, marketing, and business development. He previously held executive marketing and strategy roles at Nextel Communications, Sprint, and LightSquared. He began his career as a market development manager at MCI.
Scott received a Bachelor of Arts in American History from Brandeis University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing and Finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business.
Close -
Ashley Durmer
Head of Government Affairs & Public Policy
Ashley Durmer
Head of Government Affairs & Public Policy
Ashley Durmer is the Head of Government Affairs & Public Policy for Ligado Networks. She is responsible for the company’s relationship with government agencies as well as press and media outlets in advocacy of the company’s vision to provide next-generation connectivity using its mid-band spectrum. Ashley is a former Capitol Hill staffer, with experience in political organization, government relations, and corporate communications.
Prior to joining Ligado Networks in 2016, Ashley founded and served as President of the public affairs firm, Durmer Solutions.
Ashley’s political experience includes her work for U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, as well as roles in the 2004 re-elect effort for U.S. Senator Tom Daschle and in the 2008 election of President Barack Obama. Her business experience includes a variety of roles for Citizens Energy Corporation, leading the wind development business as well as media and government relations, and for Citigroup, where she managed state and local government outreach.
Ashley holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Sacred Heart University.
Close -
Sachin Chhibber
Chief Technology Officer
Sachin Chhibber
Chief Technology Officer
Close -
Vicky McPherson
General Counsel
Vicky McPherson
General Counsel
Close -
Santanu Dutta
Chief Engineer & Senior Vice President, Technology Research
Santanu Dutta
Chief Engineer & Senior Vice President, Technology Research
Santanu Dutta is Chief Engineer and Senior Vice President, Technology Research for Ligado Networks. In this role he leads the Technology Research team and oversees efforts identifying and analyzing technologies enabling the provision of reliable and secure satellite-terrestrial communications for mission-critical IoT applications.
Santanu has more than 35 years of experience in wireless technologies spanning satellite, cellular and HF, and holds over 35 patents. At Ligado, he has overseen the development of ground-based beamforming technology and an EVDO-based interface enabling mainstream cellular devices to support satellite connectivity.
Santanu’s engineering experience includes positions with Ericsson Mobile Platforms and Rockwell Collins. At Ericsson, he led the standardization of the GMR-2 satellite air interface, represented the company’s cellular chipsets to North American operators, and led the standardization of mobile payment systems involving secure transactions from cellular handsets. At Rockwell, he worked on the development of one of the earliest satellite-terrestrial data networks and null-steering military HF communication systems.
Santanu received a Bachelor of Technology degree in Electronics from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, a Master of Science in Communication Engineering from Bradford University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering from Manchester University.
Close -
Beth Creary
Senior Vice President, Legal & Compliance
Beth Creary
Senior Vice President, Legal & Compliance
Close -
Chris Lobecker
Senior Vice President, Strategy & Planning
Chris Lobecker
Senior Vice President, Strategy & Planning
Close -
Brendan Boughton
Senior Vice President, Finance & Treasurer
Brendan Boughton
Senior Vice President, Finance & Treasurer
Close -
Brian Deobald
Senior Vice President, Strategic Product & Corporate Development
Brian Deobald
Senior Vice President, Strategic Product & Corporate Development
Close