Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Digital seeking new chief executive

By JEFF HARRINGTON
Published February 17, 2005

Long-suffering Digital Lightwave Inc. is in search of a new chief executive following the abrupt resignation of James Green after a 21/2-year stint running the Clearwater tech company.

Robert Hussey, a longtime board member for the maker of fiber-optic testing equipment, was named interim president and CEO and was put in charge of the search for a permanent leader.

Hussey declined to elaborate much on the circumstances behind Green's resignation, which was effective Tuesday, nor would he discuss Digital's current financial prospects.

"The board and Jim felt it was time. It was mutual," Hussey said. He said that the board worked out an "amicable" severance agreement with Green and that the terms will be released later.

The board has not set a timetable or a scope for the search for a new chief executive.

Hussey, 55, joined Digital's board in August 2000 and acted as a "strategic restructuring adviser" from late 2002 to late 2003 as the company tried to expand its product offerings. Most recently, Hussey has served as chief operating officer of H.C. Wainwright and Co. Inc.

Digital is controlled by founder and former CEO Bryan Zwan, who had picked Green as his successor.

In a statement, Zwan welcomed Hussey to the management team, saying his knowledge of Digital made him "uniquely" positioned to lead the company. Digital was a Wall Street darling during the tech boom, turning in one of the most astounding performances of the era. Its stock briefly hit $150 a share before the tech market bust and demand for its chief product plummeted. It has remained below $5 a share ever since.

Under Green it had been trying to expand its repertoire beyond its core testing product. Sales, however, have remained relatively low compared to those of its heyday, prompting Zwan to repeatedly invest more in the company to keep it afloat. In its third quarter, Digital reported a net loss of $2.1-million on $2.5-million in revenue, compared with a net loss of $4.7-million on $2.6-million in revenue in the year-ago period.

[Last modified February 17, 2005, 01:20:09]