Optaros Appoints Robert M. "r0ml" Lefkowitz to Run Open Source Software Research and Education Programs
Experienced IT Executive at Financial Services and Telecommunications Companies Has Led Open Source Strategy and Major Systems Initiatives
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — March 16, 2005 — Optaros Inc., the open source software consulting and integration firm, announced today that Robert M. Lefkowitz has become vice president in charge of research and executive education programs. Lefkowitz is regarded as a thought leader and a dynamic speaker on the business value of open source software, and prior to Optaros was a senior executive at AT&T Wireless, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley heading up key systems initiatives, including open source strategy.
Lefkowitz´ role is to design and lead Optaros´ research and executive education offerings – services that will help management of large enterprises learn how to derive value from open source software. In leading the firm´s research service, he will help Optaros advance its expertise in determining whether and where to use open source software in organizations, how to overcome adoption hurdles, and identifying best practices.
“My mission is to help senior executives understand the strategic possibilities that open source software presents, explain the challenges and cut through the hype and confusion,” said Lefkowitz. “We are just now defining Optaros´ research and education programs, so it´s an exciting time to join the firm, especially one in the forefront of a major technology shift.”
“Open source represents more choices and alternatives for large enterprises. We believe it will have an important impact on the way enterprises deploy business applications in the future,” said Bob Gett, Optaros chief executive officer and president. “Lefkowitz has seen the opportunities and challenges first hand, and will lead the development and communications of our ideas and guidance for our clients.”
Prior to Optaros, Lefkowitz was AT&T Wireless´ chief technical architect and vice president of data services for information technology. He led that company´s implementation of several open source systems, both at the infrastructure and application level. Before joining AT&T Wireless in 2000, he spent 20 years on Wall Street (including Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley) in a variety of top IT roles including open source strategist, developer of technology infrastructure, software architect, and director of decision support systems.
In recent years, Lefkowitz has been a speaker at leading open source conferences including the Open Source Business Conference and O´Reilly Media´s Open Source Convention. He has a B.S. in computer science from MIT.
About Optaros
Optaros is a consulting and systems integration firm that helps enterprises solve IT business problems by providing services and solutions that maximize the benefits of open source software. Bringing together experts in creating enterprise IT solutions and experts in the power of open source, Optaros plans and builds business systems that give you better value today and increased control in the future. For more about Optaros, go to www.optaros.com