Lumen Technologies has appointed a seasoned technology executive with deep familiarity with the company to lead its next chapter of innovation. The telecommunications provider announced that Jim Fowler, a current member of its Board of Directors and former CTO of Nationwide Insurance, will assume the role of Executive Vice President and Chief Technology & Product Officer in January 2026, succeeding Dave Ward who is departing for Salesforce.
Lumen appoints Jim Fowler as Executive Vice President and Chief Technology & Product Officer.
Fowler, a current Lumen board member, will succeed Dave Ward, who is leaving for Salesforce.
He joins from Nationwide Insurance, where he served as Chief Technology Officer.
Fowler has previously held senior tech roles at General Electric and began his career at AT&T.
He will be responsible for Lumen's global technology, network evolution, and product portfolio.
The leadership transition is not expected to alter Lumen's communicated technology roadmap.
This leadership change involves a smooth handover, with outgoing CTO Dave Ward remaining through January 2026. Fowler's existing role on Lumen's board since 2023 provides him with unique insight into the company's transformation strategy and technology roadmap, ensuring continuity. “Dave’s visionary leadership has laid a foundation that will influence Lumen’s trajectory for years ahead,” said CEO Kate Johnson.
Fowler brings extensive experience modernizing core technology at large enterprises. His recent role as CTO of Nationwide involved driving digital transformation and scaling intelligent automation. Prior to that, he spent nearly two decades at General Electric in senior technology leadership, including as Global CIO, and began his career at AT&T. This background positions him to execute on Lumen's strategic vision.
Fowler's mandate will center on realizing the value of Lumen's foundational work and accelerating execution. “I’ve seen firsthand as a board member and a customer the work this team has done to design a next-generation roadmap,” said Fowler. He emphasized the opportunity to solidify Lumen's position as “the trusted network for AI” by partnering with engineering and product teams to innovate with urgency.
The appointment reinforces Lumen's commitment to its strategic growth priorities as it aims to leverage its network scale to help customers realize the full potential of artificial intelligence and return to revenue growth.
About Lumen Technologies
Lumen is unleashing the world's digital potential. We ignite business growth by connecting people, data, and applications – quickly, securely, and effortlessly. As the trusted network for AI, Lumen uses the scale of our network to help companies realize AI's full potential. From metro connectivity to long-haul data transport to our edge cloud, security, managed service, and digital platform capabilities, we meet our customers’ needs today and as they build for tomorrow.
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