| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : DECEMBER 20, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
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| INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Sycamore's Enforcer DANIEL E. SMITH, President & CEO, Sycamore Networks BORN Sept. 11, 1949, in Nyack, N.Y. EDUCATION An undergraduate degree in engineering from Lehigh University and an MBA from Harvard University CAREER HIGHLIGHTS CEO of Cascade Communications, 1991-'97; exec vice-president, Ascend Communications, 1997-'98; CEO, Sycamore, 1998-present SYCAMORE STAKE 19.1%, worth $3.5 billion EARLY DRIVE Serving in the U.S. Navy from 1971-'73, Smith volunteered for duty on destroyers so he could get more responsibility quickly THE INTIMIDATOR On a water-polo team after college, his role was to stop opponents from getting too heavyhanded WILLPOWER Deciding he needed to slim down, the modestly overweight Smith dropped 30 pounds in three months CATALYST During brief retirement in '98, persuaded phone company to improve service by rewiring part of Watch Hill, R.I., where he has a summer home _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ |
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RELATED ITEMS The Savvy behind Sycamore TABLE: Sycamore's Visionary TABLE: Sycamore's Enforcer INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
