Meet Our
Leadership Teams
Guiding SubOptic’s mission with expertise, collaboration, and a shared vision for the future of the submarine communications industry
Meet the Team
Driving Progress and Innovation
The Executive Committee plays a pivotal role in shaping the vision and direction of SubOptic. Comprised of industry leaders from diverse backgrounds, the committee ensures the organisation’s mission is realised through strategic oversight and collaborative action.
Key Responsibilities
- Setting Strategic Priorities: Defining and guiding SubOptic’s long-term goals to address the evolving needs of the submarine cable industry.
- Overseeing Governance: Ensuring transparency, accountability, and alignment with organisational objectives to uphold SubOptic’s values and mission.
- Driving Industry Initiatives: Leading impactful projects, working groups, and programmes that foster innovation, sustainability, and inclusivity in the global submarine cable community.
SubOptic Association: Executive Committee
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Paul Gabla
Paul Gabla is currently Chief Sales & Marketing Officer for Alcatel Submarine Networks and serves as the President of the SubOptic Executive Committee. Paul is a highly respected executive with over 30 years’ experience in the Telecommunications, Aerospace and Defence industries, including more than 20 years directly involved in the submarine networks industry. He is a passionate advocate of the prominent role of submarine networks in the telecommunications infrastructure fabric. Paul is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique and Telecom ParisTech.
Alice Shelton
Alice is a senior executive in the Global Submarine sales team at Ciena and serves as the Vice President for the SubOptic Executive Committee.
Alice started her career in submarine systems as a design engineer at STC Submarine Systems on the historic Greenwich site in the UK. For five years Alice worked in Paris as Technical Project Manager for the development of the ASN 1620LM SLTE.
Returning to Greenwich in 2010, Alice joined the ASN Sales and Marketing team. Alice is a Physics graduate from Durham University, a chartered engineer and was elected a Fellow of the UK Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) in 2000.
Alice first attended a SubOptic conference in 1997 in San Francisco. She has attended every SubOptic event since then and has memorabilia to prove it. She was Papers Chair in 2013 and Programme Chair in 2016, helping to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the SubOptic conference.
Magda Abdelkader
Magda has over 24 years of profound experience in Subsea Cables domain.
She is currently Senior Director of Global Projects and International Network Management at Telecom Egypt, managing a team that runs a massive infrastructure of intercontinental subsea cables in service and under-construction.
Ever since her graduation, she has kicked off her career in the subsea cables industry at Telecom Egypt. During the course of her tenure, she had the opportunity to chair few committees in multiple subsea systems and brining many subsea cables to service.
In addition to her bachelors in Electronics and Communications Engineering, Magda also holds an MBA degree.
Ian Clarke
Ian Clarke joined Google in February 2023 to lead the outbound sales engagements for its global submarine network team. The remit being to monetise the excess inventory from the company’s investments in its global network that are founded on in reach, reliability and resilience.
He and his team are currently focused on enabling partners to benefit from one of three significant products:
- Fiberconnect – purchasing either Full Fibre Pairs or Partial Fibre Pairs (Spectrum)
- Co-Location and associated remote hands at Google’s Cable station Facilities
- Pacific Connect – the ability to leverage a new cable (passing closely by) and purchase a dedicated branch to an island connectivity to an historically under-served region
Prior to joining Google, Ian served for twenty four years at Ciena, with the latter 14 years within the Global Submarine Networking Division - 7 years of which were as Vice Principal and General Manger. Ian’s remit included responsibility for global sales, customer relationships, business development and market positioning. During his tenure Ciena grew its SLTE market share from 0% to 70% with sales in excess of $400m per annum.
Prior to joining the Global Submarine Networking Team, Ian held senior positions within Ciena’s Global Field Organisation in the EMEA region, with responsibility for network solutions, Ciena’s BizConnect partners and regional sales offices in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, South Africa and Russia.
Prior to joining Ciena, he held operational positions with Alcatel UK.
Eduardo Mateo
Eduardo is the Head of Technology Strategy and Network Architecture at the NEC Submarine Network Division.
Before that, he worked at NEC Labs America in Princeton, NJ, where he conducted pioneering research in the field of optical communications. In 2012, Eduardo joined the NEC headquarters in Tokyo and has since led major technological advancements in the submarine cable industry, such as the world's first open cable, the first 0.5 Petabit system, and the first multi-core fiber system. Within the subsea telecommunications industry, he has collaborated closely with hyperscalers and carriers worldwide, including the development of open cable standards that led to ITU-T Recommendations.
Eduardo holds a PhD degree in Physics and has authored or co-authored over 120 papers and patents in the field of optical communications, including a book chapter on subsea fibre networks. He is the Papers Chair for SubOptic 2025 and a member of the ITU-T International Advisory Board on Submarine Cable Resilience.
Cynthia Perrot
Cynthia is a Senior Infrastructure Program Manager for Submarine Cables at Meta.
She leads several submarine cable deployment programs in the EMEA region to support Meta’s backbone network growth and continued demand and to enhance connectivity for tens of millions of people - giving them access to a faster and more reliable internet.
Cynthia was previously the Head of the Submarine System Deployment team of Orange, where she led large scale submarine programs to support Orange and its affiliate’s needs.
Cynthia holds a Master of Science degree in Optical Communications from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Télécommunications de Bretagne, now known as IMT (Institut Mines Telecom).
Elaine Stafford
Elaine is a Managing Partner for DRG Consulting and currently advises to clients across the globe who invest in and build submarine cable networks, providing them technical, commercial, project management support, plus market insight/analysis.
Before DRG, Elaine was an engineer, manager and executive at AT&T, where she held various roles in R&D, engineering, implementation and sales of submarine networks - leading the design, planning and construction of projects dating back to the world’s first undersea fibre optic networks. Elaine holds degrees from Union College and Stanford University. She joined the SubOptic EC in 2019 (where she focuses on Spotlight and support of other SubOptic-sponsored events, such as PTC) and has contributed to each SubOptic conference.
Maja Summers
Maja is Senior Submarine Commercial Manager at Vodafone Carrier Services with a focus on investment in the submarine cable systems.
Her previous roles included Sales & Marketing Director at Apollo SCS and Head of Submarine Engineering at Cable & Wireless. She has 25 years of experience in subsea industry at both commercial and technical level working on the design, implementation and operation of a number of submarine cable systems.
Maja has a PhD from South Bank University, London and BEng in Electronic Engineering from University of Belgrade, Serbia, and was elected a Fellow of the IET.
Maja was also Visiting Professor in in the Principles of Engineering Design, University of Surrey. Maja was a Programme Chair for SubOptic 2023.
Ma Yanfeng
Ma Yanfeng is the Executive Vice President of HMN Technologies, with 25 years of working experience in the field of optical transmission, communication, engineering, and has a strategic vision for the evolution of technology and demands in the global submarine cable industry. In the past 13 years, he has led HMN Tech to achieve cutting-edge technological breakthroughs and business layouts at many key nodes, making HMN Tech a globally recognised leading supplier in the submarine cable industry.
Before HMN Technologies, he worked for 11 years at Huawei as the Vice President of the fixed network product business unit (optical transmission, data communications and broadband access network). He also has 6 years management experience in the Middle East and Europe and helped Huawei get significant achievement in those areas.
René d'Avezac de Moran
René oversees the global business development of services provided by Fugro to the subsea cable industry such as desktop studies and route surveys.
René has been an employee of Fugro for over 20 years. In 2009 he became responsible for managing Fugro Hydrographic Services in Asia Pacific.
In this position René has been involved in all aspects of submarine cable development from concept to installation. René is an active member of the SubOptic community and is also committed to the protection of submarine cables through his long-term engagement with the ICPC.
Stuart Blythe
Stuart Blythe acts as legal advisor to the SubOptic Association.
He is a partner with the international law firm, Baker Botts, and is dual US/UK qualified. He has significant experience in the technology and communications industries having spent nearly ten years in general counsel roles for multinational communications providers including as international general counsel for MCI WorldCom (now Verizon).
Stuart has specific expertise, gained over 20 years, with respect to the construction, financing and operation of subsea systems having advised on some the largest systems deployed including the US$1bn Southern Cross project.
Marketing and Operations
Andrea Forder
Andrea is the Operations and Marketing Director at the SubOptic Association, with extensive experience in operations, delivery, and strategic consulting within subsea telecommunications and technology.
With a strong background in managed services, data centres, and B2B marketing communications, Andrea has a proven track record of shaping impactful marketing strategies and operational frameworks.
Passionate about the subsea industry, she is dedicated to supporting initiatives that bring the next generation of subsea experts into the field through SubOptic, while also raising awareness of the industry's critical role in global connectivity and innovation.
Andrea also serves as Director of Marketing Communications at Aqua Comms, a global subsea network operator.
Heather Wells
Heather is the Marketing Manager at the SubOptic Association.
With a background in logistics and a degree in Tourism Management, she brings a unique approach to the subsea cable industry.
Heather is focused on developing marketing strategies that help raise awareness and support growth.
She’s passionate about innovation and works closely with the team to build SubOptic’s reputation and contribute to its ongoing success.
Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees consists of professionals from various fields, including subsea telecommunications, finance, law, and non-profit management.
They are elected annually by the SubOptic Association Executive Committee for one-year terms, with no limit on the number of terms. Their responsibilities include setting the strategic direction, overseeing finances, ensuring legal compliance, and evaluating the Foundation's performance.
The Trustees also oversee committees focused on Finance and Audit, Education, Research, and Marketing & Operations for more detailed oversight.
Board of Trustees (US Foundation)
Erick Contag
Erick Contag is a seasoned strategist driven by his passion for building and managing sustainable digital infrastructures.
With over 25 years of executive management, entrepreneurship, marketing & sales, and business development experience, he specialises in building high-performance teams, fostering growth, and scalability.
Mr. Contag has been responsible for managing C-level relationships and telecommunications / high-technology projects for start-up enterprises through large multi-national and Global 100 companies.
He has proven success in starting, building, and operating telecommunications / subsea networks, and colocation / data centres, infrastructure and high-tech businesses. Mr. Contag was awarded three times the Global Telecoms Business Power 100 Award, an honour bestowed upon the most powerful 100 executives in the telecom industry.
Erick has held executive positions in the U.S. and Latin America and serves on the Board of Directors of several companies and industry associations.
Erick believes in giving back to society through education and research programs.
Mr. Contag holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tulsa, U.S. and an Executive Engineering Management certification from Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración (IESA).
More recently, he attended the Executive Program at Singularity University.
Elaine Stafford
Elaine is a Managing Partner for DRG Consulting and currently advises to clients across the globe who invest in and build submarine cable networks, providing them technical, commercial, project management support, plus market insight/analysis.
Before DRG, Elaine was an engineer, manager and executive at AT&T, where she held various roles in R&D, engineering, implementation and sales of submarine networks - leading the design, planning and construction of projects dating back to the world’s first undersea fibre optic networks. Elaine holds degrees from Union College and Stanford University. She joined the SubOptic EC in 2019 (where she focuses on Spotlight and support of other SubOptic-sponsored events, such as PTC) and has contributed to each SubOptic conference.
Jayne Stowell
Jayne Stowell is the Managing Director of Jayne Stowell Advisory Limited. Her company provides non-executive director and consulting services to the digital and subsea cable industries. Environmental sustainability is at the core of all of Jayne’s advisory activities. She is an advisor and non-executive member of the board of directors of: Start Campus - Sustainable Data Center Services. Start Campus, one of the largest in Europe, is a 1.2GW environmentally sustainable new data centre in Portugal.
Oceanic Environmental Cables GmbH. OEC recovers and recycles out of service subsea communications cables. Nearly 100% of the recycled materials are then sold back to industry, thereby significantly reducing the carbon footprint associated with original extraction and manufacture.
Jayne spent fifteen years as the Senior Strategic Negotiator in Google’s Global Subsea Network Acquisition Group. Her focus was development, deployment and management of new subsea cable systems. She led submarine cable new build initiatives in most parts of the world and has served as the chairman of the executive committees of multiple subsea cable consortia in LATAM, trans-Pacific, intra-Asia, trans-Atlantic, Europe/Middle East/India. Her submarine cable origins began with MFS Communications (later MCI WorldCom) and Level 3 Communications where she was Senior Vice President responsible for its global submarine cable businesses.
Jayne is a director and member of the Board of Trustees of SubOptic Foundation, which she helped to co-found five years ago. She was a long-term member of the boards of both International Cable Protection Committee and SubOptic Ltd. Jayne holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
Board of Trustees (UK Foundation)
Jayne Stowell
Jayne Stowell is the Managing Director of Jayne Stowell Advisory Limited. Her company provides non-executive director and consulting services to the digital and subsea cable industries. Environmental sustainability is at the core of all of Jayne’s advisory activities. She is an advisor and non-executive member of the board of directors of: Start Campus - Sustainable Data Center Services. Start Campus, one of the largest in Europe, is a 1.2GW environmentally sustainable new data centre in Portugal.
Oceanic Environmental Cables GmbH. OEC recovers and recycles out of service subsea communications cables. Nearly 100% of the recycled materials are then sold back to industry, thereby significantly reducing the carbon footprint associated with original extraction and manufacture.
Jayne spent fifteen years as the Senior Strategic Negotiator in Google’s Global Subsea Network Acquisition Group. Her focus was development, deployment and management of new subsea cable systems. She led submarine cable new build initiatives in most parts of the world and has served as the chairman of the executive committees of multiple subsea cable consortia in LATAM, trans-Pacific, intra-Asia, trans-Atlantic, Europe/Middle East/India. Her submarine cable origins began with MFS Communications (later MCI WorldCom) and Level 3 Communications where she was Senior Vice President responsible for its global submarine cable businesses.
Jayne is a director and member of the Board of Trustees of SubOptic Foundation, which she helped to co-found five years ago. She was a long-term member of the boards of both International Cable Protection Committee and SubOptic Ltd. Jayne holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
Stuart Blythe
Stuart Blythe acts as legal advisor to the SubOptic Association.
He is a partner with the international law firm, Baker Botts, and is dual US/UK qualified. He has significant experience in the technology and communications industries having spent nearly ten years in general counsel roles for multinational communications providers including as international general counsel for MCI WorldCom (now Verizon).
Stuart has specific expertise, gained over 20 years, with respect to the construction, financing and operation of subsea systems having advised on some the largest systems deployed including the US$1bn Southern Cross project.
Board of Advisors
The Board of Advisors consists of distinguished leaders from telecommunications, academia, policy-making, and technology sectors, offering valuable expertise to guide the Foundation’s initiatives.
They provide non-binding strategic advice to the Trustees and Executive Leadership on industry trends, technological advancements, and policy developments. Independent from the Foundation’s governance decisions, they ensure the integrity of decision-making.
The Board meets quarterly and holds an annual joint session with the Trustees to align vision and strategy.
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Paul Gabla
Paul Gabla is currently Chief Sales & Marketing Officer for Alcatel Submarine Networks and serves as the President of the SubOptic Executive Committee.
Paul is a highly respected executive with over 30 years’ experience in the Telecommunications, Aerospace and Defence industries, including more than 20 years directly involved in the submarine networks industry.
He is a passionate advocate of the prominent role of submarine networks in the telecommunications infrastructure fabric. Paul is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique and Telecom ParisTech.
Andy Lipman
Andrew D. Lipman practices in most aspects of communications law and related fields, including regulatory, transactional, litigation, legislative, and land use.
Andy’s clients in the private and public sectors include those in the areas of local, long distance, and international telephone common carriage; internet services and technologies; conventional and emerging wireless services; satellite services; broadcasting; competitive video services; telecommunications equipment manufacturing; and other high-technology applications.
Additionally, he manages privatisations of telecommunications carriers in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
Management and Operations
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John Tibbles
John has been in the subsea industry for many years and managed the extensive global networks of Cable and Wireless and WorldCom/Verizon during his career, including both new network developments, network acquisition and overall strategy.
He has worked on worldwide networks throughout his career having also dealt with regional subsea issues for Telstra and PCCW. He has chaired consortium management committees as well as being a board member and chairman of major innovative private systems like Gemini and Southern Cross. Since retiring he has consulted on many global and regional subssea and related network issues including system requirements and upgrades as wells as new developments, and has been an expert witness and moderator for industry-related disputes.
He has written extensively on the issues facing the subsea cable industry, especially the risks to the industry and its internet clients from geopolitical issues. In addition to his consulting activities, John also acts as Executive Director of Operations for the SubOptic Foundation.
Education and Research
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Dr Nicole Starosielski
Nicole Starosielski, Professor of Film and Media at the University of California-Berkeley, conducts research on global internet infrastructure, with a focus on the subsea cables that carry almost 100% of transoceanic internet traffic.
Starosielski is author or co-editor of over thirty articles and five books on media, infrastructure, and environments, including: The Undersea Network (2015). Starosielski's most recent project, Sustainable Subsea Networks, is working to enhance the sustainability of subsea cable infrastructures.
Starosielski is also a co-convenor of the SubOptic Association’s Global Citizen Working Group and a Principal Investigator on a SubOptic project to enhance the strategic resilience of subsea cables in the Caribbean.
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Doyle Barlow
Doyle has been in the submarine cable industry since 1996.
He has led and managed submarine systems, terrestrial systems and data centre design and deployments for MFS, MCI Worldcom, Level 3 Communications and Google.
Doyle has over 50 years of construction management experience in multiple industries including over 28 years in developing and deploying global submarine systems.
Doyle is currently the Education Chair with the SubOptic Foundation.
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