Content delivery network operator Limelight Networks has named Robert Lento chief executive officer.
Content delivery network operator Limelight Networks announced on Friday it has named Robert Lento chief executive officer, following the resignation of former CEO Jeff Lunsford in November.
At the time of the November announcement, Limelight said that Lunsford was leaving the day-to-day CEO role to “pursue private business interests” in mid-January, 2013, but that he would remain active and involved as a member of Limelight’s board of directors.
However, Limelight states in Friday’s press release that Lunsford will now be stepping down as board member and chairman.
Web hosting companies can partner with CDN operators to differentiate their services by providing faster loading times that lead to increased revenue and conversion rates.
Lento has been serving as the company’s interim CEO since November 26, 2012. In addition to his CEO duties, Lento will also be joining Limelight’s board of directors.
“Over the past two months I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with our board and many of our employees,” said Mr. Lento. “I’m extremely impressed with the people, products, and services we offer in the market. I’m excited about our future and proud to be part of Limelight Networks.”
Lento has over 30 years of industry knowledge and leadership experience. Prior to joining Limelight, he spent 14 years at Convergys, serving a decade as the senior sales executive.
During the last four years, Lento has served as president of Convergys’ information management division where he led a turnaround creating a highly profitable and growing business, which NEC acquired in May 2012.
Earlier, Lento served as president of LAN systems for Donnelly Enterprise Solutions, where he grew both top line revenue and profitability.
Previously he served in executive roles at Entex Information Services, Decision Resources, and Future Information Systems.
Limelight Networks provides a range of services including web content management, website personalization, content targeting, online video publishing, mobile enablement and monetization, content delivery, transcoding, and cloud storage.
This is the third major appointment Limelight Networks has announced in seven months.
In October, Limelight Networks named Indu Kodukula in the newly created role of chief operating officer, and in June, Limelight Networks named Kirby Wadsworth chief marketing officer.
Talk Back: How do you think Robert Lento will do as the new CEO of Limelight Networks? Are you currently offering CDN services as part of your web hosting plans? Do you see a value in these providing services to your customers? Let us know in the comments.
About Justin Lee
Justin Lee has been a staff analyst with theWHIR since 2004. He writes about a range of web hosting and IT-related issues facing the industry on the WHIR website, as well the print version of the WHIR magazine. Follow him on Twitter @Justin_theWHIR.
