Mike Emmendorfer is VP of Technology at Calix since joining in 2022. He is responsible for defining new Access, Premises, and Cloud platforms and standards. He is a technology evangelist discussing vision and requirements with communication service providers (CSPs). Prior to Calix, he was VP of Systems Engineering & Architecture at CommScope (2019 – 2022) and ARRIS (2006 – 2019). He managed half of the CTO group globally with responsibilities for PON, DOCSIS, and Cloud platforms. In 1999, he joined Charter Communications as a founding member (later engineering executive) of its Internet, Telephone & Business Services. He created the Data Network and Application Engineering and Architecture organizations. He ushered in new technologies to create a modern CSP using PON, DOCSIS, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, IP/MPLS, L2/L3 VPN, Email, VoIP, EMS, NMS, provisioning, and automation. He enabled residential, SMB, large business, MDU, hospitality & mobile Xhaul services until his departure in 2006.
Mike has received industry awards to include his induction into the Cable TV Pioneers, Class of 2023. Since 1966, the Cable TV Pioneers reflects leadership, values and entrepreneurial success that has changed and expanded the industry. The inductees include CEOs, presidents, engineers, trade execs and others, making this among the highest industry honor. In 2008, Multichannel News Magazine, which reaches 18,000+ industry professionals, selected Mike to their “40 under 40” list of key industry leaders. In 2005, the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers or SCTE, which has 23,000+ members, awarded Mike the “IP Innovator Award”, their highest honor in the field of data networking. Mike has received industry appointments to serve on the board and/or chair standards organizations to include the Broadband Forum (BBF), CableLabs, Fiber Broadband Association (FBA), and IEEE. These industry awards and appointments acknowledged his pioneering work transforming the communication services industry. He presented to a prime minster, domestic and international government agencies (FCC), financial analysts, press and at conferences. He has 40+ industry publications and 11 patents, some as the basis for industry standards.
Mike’s pioneering work began in 1999 at the beginning of the broadband internet era. He has held engineering executive positions at a tier 1 communication service provider (CSP), several tier 1 communication equipment suppliers, and has chaired standards groups. He has received industry awards and appointments and has 40+ industry publications and 11 patents. He ushered in new technologies to create a modern communication service provider (CSP). In 1999 through 2006, Mike led the first broadband internet service deployments in markets across 40 states, that included tier 1 cities to rural markets, where most markets had only dial-up internet options. In 2002, he led the first in the world deployment of an end-to-end VoIP network for primary line telephone service as well as the first use of MPLS VPN services over broadband. In 2002, he was among the first to deploy PON technology. In 2010, he led the first in the world implementation of a disaggregated OLT that virtualized the OLT management plane and ONU management and control functions, that today these concepts are being standardized and implemented. Mike has published patents and industry papers that later served as the basis for industry standards, these include CableLabs DOCSIS Provisioning of EPON (DPoE) and DOCSIS 3.1 standards, both deployed worldwide.
He holds a B.Sc. in Management Information Systems from Saint Louis University and held Cisco certification.
