ITSD's Mike Bennett Named One of 50 Most Powerful People in Networking
Michael Bennett, a senior network engineer in ITSD's Networking and Telecommunications Department, has been named as one of the "50 most powerful people in networking" by NetworkWorldFusion, a Web-based magazine. Mike's selection puts him in some pretty prestigious company — the list also includes the heads of such companies as Cisco, Juniper, IBM, Microsoft, SBC, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Verizon, Symantec and others. Mike is also one of just a handful of people from the public sector.
"It was a total surprise," said Mike, who learned about the recognition when a colleague sent a message congratulating him. "I didn't have a clue this was coming — it's somewhat overwhelming, but it feels good to be listed in a group that includes Bill Gates and John Chambers."
The annual listing, which placed Mike at number 40, "represents the role models of the network industry across the vendor, user and regulatory communities, as well as among standards setters and big thinkers. But this year, the list is ranked, too," according to the introduction. "For the ranking, we looked at numerous criteria, including the person's title and responsibility within the company, the person's visibility (determined by media and speaking appearances in the last year), the ways in which the person functions as a role model for the network industry and a characteristic we call 'clout.' Clout is how far a person's overall influence reaches, be that throughout a company, a subset of the network community, the industry, the entire business world or even with national governments."
Mike said he wasn't contacted by the authors in advance, but suspects he came to their attention through his work with IEEE (the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers). He is involved with efforts to use 10 gigabit Ethernet technology over copper and develop related industry standards. In this role, he is frequently sought out by journalists looking for an end-user perspective to balance claims made by technology vendors.
"I think this validates that people in the industry are listening to what I say, and by extension, what the needs and interests are of Berkeley Lab as well as the other national laboratories," Mike said. "In meetings with the ESnet Coordinating Committee, I often serve as an informal liaison for bringing new ideas forward to the community."
Read the article and the complete list at http://www.nwfusion.com/power/2003/122250most.html.
