Bill is President and CEO of the SETI Institute, which he joined in 2015.  He has worked predominantly in applied technologies with over 20 years’ experience in photonics and optical communications, and more than a decade in X-ray and semiconductor processing technologies.   His corporate background spans the spectrum from venture-backed start-ups to Fortune 100 multinationals, with responsibilities ranging from R&D, engineering and operations, to sales, marketing, product management, and CEO positions.  

Most recently, Bill was Vice President of Sales for Oclaro, Inc. where he led the company’s penetration in optical networking of the rapidly evolving Web 2.0 Data Center market.  Prior to that, he was Vice President of Product Management for optical amplifiers, ROADM, high bit-rate modules, and micro-optics.

Bill held CEO positions at WaveSplitter Technologies, DenseLight Semiconductor, and Xradia, Inc., now part of Zeiss.  His photonics background also includes six years with AT&T Bell Laboratory’s Optoelectronics business unit and he served as President of US operations for the Swiss technology company, Comet A.G.  

Bill holds a B.A. in Physics from Holy Cross College and a Master’s in Business Administration from Georgetown University. He is a past member of the Advisory Board for the McDonough School of Business Administration at Georgetown and is a current member of the Optical Society of America and the International Astronomical Congress.

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