Zayo Appoints Bill Long as Chief Product Officer

Zayo Group Holdings, Inc., a global communications infrastructure platform, has announced experienced telecommunications and technology leader Bill Long as its new chief product officer.

Long will lead the company’s overall product strategy, financials, and roadmap as Zayo continues to make significant investments in its network and products and services to meet customer needs.

“Bill possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience overseeing product growth and profitability in the digital infrastructure space,” said Andrés Irlando, president of Zayo Group. “We are thrilled to welcome him to the team. His experience, expertise and forward-thinking leadership will be an invaluable asset to Zayo as we continue to laser focus on delivering best-in-class infrastructure and managed services to our customers.”

Long has nearly two decades of experience in the telecommunications industry with expertise in interconnection and infrastructure services, enterprise and wholesale voice, and business and product development. Long joins Zayo from Equinix, Inc., where he served as senior vice president of product management and was responsible for the overall growth and profitability of Equinix Interconnection and Data Center Products globally. Prior to Equinix, he held several roles at Level 3 Communications, including VP of Voice Services, Senior Director of Voice Product Development and Director of Emerging Opportunities.

“As more of global GDP becomes digitally enabled, the criticality of fiber and communications infrastructure connecting the edge to core to clouds is becoming increasingly important,” said Long. “Zayo’s broad and deep geographic reach, along with its long-term commitment to network modernization and incredible team, have put the company in the ideal position to capitalize on this market opportunity. I look forward to working with the Zayo team to bring execution excellence and innovation to connect what’s next for our customers.”

Zayo offers high-quality networks in every major North American market and many major markets in western Europe. With a diverse suite of products that includes dark and lit fiber, private data networks, data center connectivity, and managed edge services, Zayo is providing high-quality fiber connectivity that supports the world’s leading innovators in every industry.

This appointment of Long as chief product officer comes on the heels of a transformative year for Zayo. The company made its largest organic network expansion to date, which encompasses best-in-class long-haul dark fiber, 400 Gbps (400G) upgrades and subsea routes across the globe, including the launch of Zeus, a subsea route connecting the UK and continental Europe. Additionally, Zayo recently acquired Education Networks of America to provide education, library, community healthcare and public sector customers with high-quality managed services and exceptional customer care; and QOS Networks, which positions the company as the premier provider of secure edge networking services.