Expo•nential

CableLabs Member Forum

CAROL ANSLEY is Lead Architect at Cox Communications. Carol holds BEE (1989) and MEE (1995) degrees in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology as well as a J.D. from Georgia State University (2014). She is a member of the Georgia Bar and is a registered patent attorney.  She has served in a variety of technical leadership positions, including Principal Engineer, Hardware Development Senior Manager and Platform Quality Control Manager. She currently supports Cox regulatory and policy activities in a variety of areas. She also supports wireless standards activities. She has received 37 US patents in various areas of communications and CATV-related technology. She regularly contributes telecommunication industry technical papers on a variety of topics related to wireless home networking. She is a voting member of IEEE SA 802.11 and chairs a technical working group working on privacy improvements for Wi-Fi. 

Mark is currently the Vice President of the Future Infrastructure Group as part of the Office of the CTO at CableLabs. He is focused on CableLabs research into the future of access network technologies and communications software platforms. Previously, Mark served as Vice President of Software at CableLabs focusing on Cablelabs virtualization platforms and open source projects. He has nearly 30 years of communications and software expertise and has been part of the CableLabs team since 2010. 

Todd Bryan has 25+ years experience as a strategy consultant and executive, focusing on Software and SaaS, Digital Media, Networking Hardware, Consumer Electronics and Durables, and Telecommunications.   

Previously, Todd was Managing Partner of Velotech Strategy, a boutique consultancy based in Hong Kong, and has held global leadership positions on corporate strategy teams at Philips, Adobe Systems, and Cisco Systems.  Todd has also worked as a Project Leader with Boston Consulting Group in San Francisco and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as an Equity Research Analyst at Morgan Stanley in Singapore, and as a telecommunications strategy consultant in Beijing, China.  

Todd holds a BS from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a MS from the University of California at Berkeley, where he was a National Science Foundation scholar, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.  

Christopher Burke currently serves as Principal Engineer III, Wireless Core Engineering at Charter Communications. In his current role, Burke leads the 5G network architecture and engineering of mobile core initiatives at Charter.  Burke is responsible for next gen initiatives including 5G Hybrid Mobile Network Operator, private wireless, and Fixed Mobile Convergence. 

Burke has 22 years of experience in wireless and mobile data, serving in a variety of engineering, management, and consulting roles.  Burke holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems from Texas Tech University.

Pablo Castillo has been involved in the industry over 13 years, most of which have been around new technology selection, testing and introduction to productive operations. Having taken part in the cable industry consolidation in Mexico, Pablo has firsthand experience in network and operations development.

Currently living in Monterrey, Mexico. Very happily married. Likes to travel, read, and hosting barbecues.”

Katie Chavez is a strategist in the User Behavior & Economics team at CableLabs. She specializes in empirical research on subscriber behavior and demands. Katie received her bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Statistics from Carleton College in Northfield, MN. Once she graduated, she joined CableLabs and has been working there for 2 years.

Jason Combs is a Principal Engineer for Comcast Communications. Jason has been helped to define the architecture and implementation of many access network projects including DOCSIS 1.1/2.0/3.0, IP voice, IP video, Business Services over DOCSIS, and traditional Passive Optical Networks (PON). Currently, he is the lead architect for the integration of PON into the virtualized CMTS architecture and the Distributed Access Architecture. In his free time, Jason enjoys spending time with his wife and young daughter.

David Debrecht  is Vice president of Wireless Research and Development at CableLabs. In this role, he directs the execution and adoption of new wireless technologies and specifications for the secure delivery of high-speed data, video, voice and next generation services for CableLabs members and the industry. David is also a member of the executive board of directors for the National Spectrum Consortium which is responsible for steering the planning and coordination of incubation projects with the consortium membership of both traditional federal and commercial R&D organizations. 

David has over 30 years of experience with wireless technology solutions in both government and commercial applications. He has served in a broad range of technology and product development roles, including various positions in R&D, product management, and technology development. David started his career at General Dynamics developing radar, radar warning, and electronic countermeasures platforms on the F-16 fighter aircraft. His focus was on systems integration, radio performance and compatibility of on-board systems. He moved to telecommunications in the mid-90s and started the commercial side of his career with Nokia on radio base station R&D. He successfully filled many different roles within Nokia for 25 years, the latest of which, before moving to CableLabs, was CTO for the U.S. and Federal business in the customer operations organization.  

David holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University. He enjoys the outdoors and participates regularly in both organized and unorganized outdoor sports and recreation. 

Debbie Fitzgerald is a Principal Architect and Director in the Advanced Technology Group at CableLabs. In this role, she leads the CableLabs program on immersive media experiences and light field research, developing interoperable media formats and media-aware network processing for volumetric content. Debbie also leads the award-winning energy efficiency voluntary agreements for set-top boxes and small network equipment in the United States and Canada. Debbie has a BS degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Kansas and a Master’s in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University.

Harj Ghuman is a principal architect at Cox Communications primarily focused on optical access solutions and technology strategy. He holds a M.S. degree in Modern Optics and Microwaves from University College London, UK. Harj holds several patents and has published extensively in the optical access domain. He was the lead inventor of the OCML access platform at COX communications which has been widely deployed for residential and business services. He is now focused on next generation access solutions, primarily on extended range PON and 25G DWDM technologies.

Dr. Belal Hamzeh is the Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at CableLabs, the non-profit research & development and innovation lab funded by the global cable industry. He leads CableLabs’ long-term vision by driving the development of technologies critical to the cable industry’s evolution including wired, wireless, network convergence and security.  

 Belal previously led CableLabs’ vision, industry alignment and strategy for wireless and wireline technologies. In addition, he led the technology development for DOCSIS® specifications that advance the network performance required for supporting emerging experiences well into the future and deployed today to deliver multi-gigabit connectivity to the masses. 

Before joining CableLabs, Belal was the chief product architect for one of Intel’s flagship 3G/4G chipsets, and he led R&D efforts for 3G/4G technologies including technology and product development, certification and network deployments at Intel. 

 Belal holds a Master of Science and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Penn State University, along with 30+ issued and pending patents. 

Dr. Howald has over 35 years of technology and executive experience in communications systems and is a Comcast Fellow in the Next Gen Access Network Organization. He has taught graduate courses in communications and wireless engineering and published hundreds of papers related to cable technology across. Rob has a BSEE and MSEE from Villanova, a Ph.D. from Drexel, and an MBA from DeSales University.

Dr. Steve Jia is a Distinguished Technologist and Director of Advanced Optical Technologies at CableLabs. He has built a strong track record of research innovations over the last two decades and has made numerous significant technical contributions in both academia and industry in the field of optical fiber communication systems and networking. Dr. Jia has published extensive peer-reviewed journals and conferences papers and holds more than 120 patents. Most recently, he has been the Technical Lead for Point-to-Point Coherent Optics specifications development and coherent transceiver interop testing. He is now the Working Group Chair of the coherent passive optical network (CPON) project for next generation 100G access networks. Dr. Jia is a Fellow of Optica (formerly Optical Society of America).

Randy Levensalor is a principal architect at CableLabs, a non-profit research & development lab funded by the global cable industry. As a principal member of the Future Infrastrcutre Group (FIG) team, he is responsible for creating the edge and Network Function Virtualization (NFV) infrastructure reference platform and progressing orchestration capabilities based on service providers’ needs. Randy also leads the Software Defined Networking NFV Application development Platform and Stack project, or SNAPS®, a CableLabs initiative to accelerate and ease the adoption of network virtualization.  Randy was recognized in Fierce Telecom’s “The top 25 movers and shakers in the telecom industry.” 

 Prior to joining CableLabs, Randy gained extensive experience leading R&D, DevOps, and product management across several Hewlett-Packard divisions focusing on successfully delivering its public cloud, Linux and converged management solutions.   

 Randy is actively involved in CNCF, OPNFV, OpenStack and OpenDaylight and contributes to key industry standardization efforts including ETSI NFV. A subject matter expert, he has spoken on a broad range of topics at several conferences including the Open Networking Summit, OpenStack Summit, OPNFV Summit, Big Communications, SCTE Cable Tech Expo, NFV World Congress, SDN World Congress, Linux Conference Australia, Automation Everywhere and many more. Randy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from Virginia Tech. 

Dr. Lo leads the Network Engineering Team at Midco. He is responsible for the network architecture, implementation, and standardization of the access networks (CMTS, PON, Fixed Wireless); and business and residential IP networks. Dr. Lo joined the Midco team in 2020. Prior to 2020, Dr. Lo held similar roles in Engineering and Operations at Armstrong Cable, Comcast, Sky Cable (Philippines), and Charter.

Along with his 20+ year telecommunications career, Dr. Lo has a degree in Electrical Engineering from North Carolina State University, a Master’s in Business Administration from Wake Forest University, and an Educational Doctorate in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine University. He holds advance certifications in Project Management (PMP), Six Sigma (SSBB), and Cisco (CCNP).

In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his children, reading, outdoor activities, and volunteering and supporting Breast Cancer research organizations.

Israel Madiedo is Director, Innovation & Technology at izzi (Televisa Group). With 30 years in the Telecommunications Industry, Mr. Madiedo has participated in a wide number of international projects, both in fixed and wireless networks, covering an array of positions in Engineering, Operations, and Technical Support organizations, to mention some.

He currently leads the efforts for evaluating and introducing new Technologies in izzi, pursuing the delivery of best of class services to the customers as well as opening new market opportunities.

Architecture design, homologation, local development, adaptation & transformation, are among the tasks covered by his team.

Prior to joining the Televisa Group, Israel was part of AT&T Network Services and Lucent Technologies, working in the CALA Region and being a part of the extended EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Asia) Transmission group, which took him to spend time in the whole LATAM Region as well as in Europe. He later became part of Cablevision México and was part of the team in charge of moving the Cable Industry in the Country towards a new phase of consolidation and higher competitive levels in the Telecom arena.

Among his tasks, he leads the team that represents izzi in several International Standards Organizations and keeps close contact with other colleagues and Operators worldwide. He is also a speaker and panel moderator in several Telecommunication events.

He combines his current position in izzi with Academic endeavors as Professor in several programs (including master’s degree and Executive level “hacks”) in fields such as Telecom, Digital Transformation, ML & AI and others.

In 2021, Israel was included in “The Broadband 50 to Watch” list from LightReading.

https://www.lightreading.com/opticalip/fttx/the-broadband-50-to-watch-/d/d-id/771615

Israel holds a Bachelor of Sciences degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering, and a Masters in Telecommunications and Business Administration from the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey.

Jacob Malone is a Principal Strategist and Director of the User Behavior & Economics team at CableLabs. With over 10 years of experience studying the consumer demand of broadband, he specializes in empirical research of subscriber behavior, demand forecasting, the value of broadband, network evolution, and industry business strategies related to technology, product, and marketing. Jacob received his PhD in Economics from the University of Georgia with an emphasis in applied microeconomics and industrial organization. He has been published in academic journals such as Telecommunications Policy.

Phil McKinney is President and CEO of CableLabs, the non-profit research & development and innovation lab funded by the global cable industry. McKinney leads the development of technologies and specifications for the delivery of high-speed data, video, voice and next-generation services. He oversees testing, certification facilities and guides the technical leadership for the industry, charting the course for future technology and innovation.

During his career, McKinney has held leadership positions in major companies including serving as CTO for Hewlett-Packard. While at HP, McKinney created the Innovation Program Office (IPO) which identified, incubated, and launched adjacent and fundamentally new technologies, products and services that became the growth engines for HP. The success of the IPO is now shared in widely used case studies at Stanford University and Harvard Business School.

Author, speaker and innovation guru, McKinney shares his rule-breaking approach to innovation and creativity in his book “Beyond the Obvious.” He has been recognized by Fast Company, BusinessWeek, MSNBC, Vanity Fair and other media outlets for his industry contributions. His podcast, Killer Innovations™, is one of the longest continually produced podcasts in history. In 2017, The Cable Center named McKinney an Innovation Laureate in recognition of his role as a key influencer in mentoring, teaching and motivating the next generation of cable industry leaders. Most recently, McKinney was named one of the top influencers transforming media production and distribution in MultiChannel News’ “2020 Industry Watch List,” and he received the 2021 Broadcasting and Cable Technology Leadership Award.

McKinney serves on the advisory board for Hacking Autism and is chairman of the board for the Techtrend Group, which invests in entrepreneurs in developing countries to create jobs that fuel economic growth.

Craig Moffett has been elected to Institutional Investor Magazine’s All-American Research Team in the U.S. Telecom and/or Cable & Satellite sectors on fifteen separate occasions, including nine separate appearance as the #1 analyst in America in either U.S. Telecom and/or Cable & Satellite. He has also been rated the #1 analyst in the U.S. Telecommunications sector by Bloomberg Markets, and he has consistently ranked #1 in Research Quality in Greenwich Research’s annual survey in both Telecommunications and U.S. Cable and Satellite sectors.

Prior to founding MoffettNathanson, Mr. Moffett spent more than ten years at Sanford Bernstein & Co., LLC as a senior research analyst. In 2011 he became the first analyst in the firm’s history to be ranked #1 in two sectors simultaneously by Institutional Investor.

He was previously the President and founder of the e-commerce business at Sotheby’s Holdings, the venerable auction house. In 1999, he led Sothebys.com to what was then the highest first year sales of any consumer website ever launched.

Mr. Moffett spent more than eleven years at The Boston Consulting Group, where he was a Partner and Vice President specializing in telecommunications. He was the leader of BCG’s global Telecommunications practice from 1996 to 1999. While at BCG, he led client initiatives in the U.S. local, long distance, and wireless sectors, in both consumer and commercial services, and advised companies outside the U.S. in Europe, Latin America, and Asia. His relationship with a U.S. RBOC spanned more than a decade, and he was the author of more than 20 articles about the telecommunications industry during the 1990s. He published analyses and forecasts of the overcapacity and pending collapse of the U.S. long distance business as early as 1998. Mr. Moffett graduated from Harvard Business School with Honors in 1989. He received a BA from Brown University phi beta kappa in 1984.

Venk Mutalik is Executive Director of HFC Architecture at Comcast in the NGAN group. Venk has pioneered research into FTTH networks, Multi Wavelength Networks, Optical non-linearities and introduced several key innovations into Cable Networks over the last 2 decades. Venk holds 22 patents and has published more than 20 papers at various industry forums and peer-reviewed journals.  

Previously, Venk worked as Engineering Fellow and VP of Technology and Strategy at ARRIS. Venk has worked as Chief Technologist at C-COR and Technical Director at Philips Broadband. Venk has a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Connecticut and an MBA from Syracuse University. 

Sanjay is a Distinguished Strategist at CableLabs, a non-profit research and development lab funded by the global cable industry. As a senior member of the Technology Strategy team, he partners with the organization’s innovation and R&D groups on technical, competitive and economic analyses. His areas of focus include Wireless (5G, Fixed Wireless Access) and Wired-Wireless Convergence where he leads CableLabs Convergence Program working closely with members, vendors and CableLabs subject matter experts. 

 Before joining CableLabs in 2014, Sanjay led product and strategy for Comcast’s wholesale services business unit. Prior to that, he held several roles in finance, product, strategy and corporate development for Level 3 Communications. In addition, Sanjay has worked as a Certified Public Accountant. Sanjay holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance and a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University.

Dr. Ana Lucia Pinheiro is a computer engineer recognized as a technical subject matter expert in her field. She is currently a Senior Director and the Head of the Advanced Wireless Technologies and Standards team at Comcast. Her team is responsible for forward looking aspects of the Comcast network, working on topics such as network convergence, extended reality, and new transport protocols.  

Ana enjoys challenges and she has practiced a growth mindset throughout her entire life, accepting her shortcomings with a self-accountable eagerness to learn. She is an avid advocate for diversity and inclusion in the workplace, with a passion for mentoring minorities in STEM. Ana is an out-of-the-box thinker with over 100 patents in the US Patent Office. She received her PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Rutgers University in NJ and her MBA from Hofstra University in NY.  

As the Senior Vice President of Wireline Technology & Strategy, Damian Poltz is responsible for the development, deployment and operation of Shaw’s video, voice, and broadband technology, wireline network and multi-year technology & convergence strategy.

Throughout his 24-year career at Shaw, Damian has served in strategic leadership roles including: VP Technology Strategy & Networks, Director of Network Technology, Sr. Director Communication Systems, Director IP Application Services, and Sr. Manager Video Application Development. Damian is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the SCTE.

Damian holds an MBA with distinction from Cornell University and Queen’s University, and a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the University of Calgary.

Josh Redmore is Principal Architect, Wireless Access Technologies at CableLabs (Louisville, CO), where he focuses on inventing the future of the Wi-Fi customer’s experience.

He holds task-group leadership positions in the Wireless Broadband Alliance and Wi-Fi Alliance – most recently launching the Wi-Fi Data Elements and Wi-Fi Home Design certification programs.

Prior to CableLabs, Josh spent eight years leading a global support organization for Voice over Wi-Fi products, and a further decade in wired networking.

He holds an Engineering Master’s degree from the University of Colorado, has several patents in wireless signal identification and distribution, serves as the Vice President of the board of directors for the Colorado Science and Engineering Fair, and is CWNE #376.

Ron Reuss is the vice president of Technology Strategy at CableLabs where he is responsible for a team of strategists, data analysts, and innovation process professionals. His team provides strategic assessment of developments in technology, customer demand, and competitive dynamics for senior cable executives. Combining CableLabs’ technology expertise with financial analysis and empirical analysis of demand, Ron’s team helps cable operators more effectively plan for the future. Ron also oversees CableLabs’ innovation processes, helping ensure its ability to consistently bring game-changing innovations to cable operators.

With over 30 years of experience in the communications industry, Ron has held roles in product strategy, product development and venture investment at companies including Level 3 Communications, BellSouth, and Gray Ventures.

Ron holds a Master of Science degree in management from Georgia Tech, a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from University of Pennsylvania and Bachelor of Science degrees in Computer Science and Humanities from MIT. He is also certified as competitive intelligence professional.

Matt Schmitt is a Principal Architect at CableLabs.  Matt has worked in the cable industry on DOCSIS® and other technologies for over 20 years with CableLabs and several manufacturers.  On the DOCSIS technology side he led the development of the DOCSIS 3.1 specifications at CableLabs, and has also led or played a significant role in the development of the DSG, Modular CMTS, DOCSIS 3.0, CCAP, and C-DOCSIS specifications.  After leading the Lab Services team at CableLabs for several years, Matt is now back to leading a variety of CableLabs R&D projects ranging from Point-to-Point Coherent Optics, to Low Latency, to fixed-mobile convergence, while maintaining responsibility for the various CableLabs Certification programs. 

Ed Shrum is Vice President of Engineering, Infrastructure and Services at Cox Communications.  His primary responsibilities include leading an organization focused on the Strategic Planning, Design, Development, and Operational support for DOCSIS and Fiber based networks. 

 Since joining Cox in 2007, Ed has lead organizations across Engineering and Product Development. Prior to joining Cox, Ed worked at AT&T/BellSouth in the Science & Technology organization leading the development of emerging broadband and video technologies. 

Ed holds a MS in Computer Science from Georgia Institute of Technology and undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University. 

Chris Stengrim is the Vice President of technology strategy at CableLabs. In this role he leads a team of innovators and business strategists who create strategic assessments of emerging technologies; generate impactful ideas and manage a robust innovation pipeline; conduct business case analyses supporting innovation projects; and support service providers with economic analysis of wireless, optical and HFC technologies. Chris is intensely curious about emerging network technologies and identifying use cases to enhance the profitability of service providers.

Prior to joining CableLabs, Chris spent a decade at Time Warner Cable in technology strategy, corporate strategy, and product management with a primary focus on long-term technology planning related to broadband technology and networks. Chris also spent seven years as director of product development and new ventures at PanAmSat, pioneering the development of Internet services over satellite for global ISP’s. Chris served five years as a satellite operations officer in the U.S. Air Force, finishing with the rank of Captain and earning two Air Force commendation medals.

Chris has a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics and economics from the University of Notre Dame; a Master of Science degree in management from Troy University; and a Master of Business Administration degree in marketing from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Chris lives with his wife and two children in Connecticut and enjoys travel, running, swimming, skiing, and platform tennis.

Carmela Stuart is a Director in the Future Infrastructure Group at CableLabs. She has over 19 years of experience in the cable industry, encompassing network security, software engineering, testing, and most recently, edge computing and cloud-native technologies. Carmela holds an ME degree in Computer Science with a focus on Data Science and Engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a MS degree in Computer Science from Johns Hopkins University. 

Colleen Szymanik is a Distinguished Engineer at Comcast in Philadelphia.  She received her MSE in Telecommunications and Network Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania where she installed their first ever WiFi Access Point.  Her research interest is broadly in home networking and WLAN systems, focusing on the reliability and mobility aspects of wireless systems.  She holds several patents in the field and is always interested in innovation to make connectivity easier.   

Dr. Jing Wang is a principal architect of optical and wireless technologies at CableLabs. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Electronic Engineering from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, and his doctoral degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta. He joined CableLabs in 2017 as a lead architect of optical and wireless technologies. His research interests include quantum key distribution networks, quantum internet, optical and wireless access networks, radio fiber convergence, etc.