September 2024
In every organization, the CEO sets the stage for success, not just by overseeing operations but by shaping the culture and driving the company’s vision forward. It’s a role that requires both insight and inspiration, balancing strategic oversight with the ability to motivate teams and create lasting impact across the entire organization.
At Lumine, across the portfolio, our CEOs are not only ambitious but also visionary leaders who have already achieved impressive milestones. Recognizing the importance of continuous growth, we are committed to supporting their journey with tailored professional development programs and initiatives. Our annual summit, Impact, is a testament to this commitment—an event where CEOs from across our portfolio connect, share insights, and collaborate on shaping the future of their companies.
We are proud of the exceptional leaders within our portfolio, and through this series, we invite you to meet some of the CEOs who are exemplifying leadership.
Below, we introduce you to Marie Weston Smith, CEO at SpatialNetworX, an automated end-to-end network management software solution. Prior to becoming CEO at SpatialNetworx, Marie held positions as VP of Customer Support and VP of Service Delivery at Synchronoss. In only a few short months, Marie has led the company through a go-to-market launch.
We sat down with Marie to learn about her journey to becoming CEO.
Can you share the key milestones in your career that led to your appointment as CEO of SpatialNetworX?
I have always been passionate about customer success. With a background in business processes, I find the magic in connecting technology with how people can use it to do more, better, and faster. I discovered frameworks like ITIL early in my career, which really helped shape my approach. Through various leadership roles in Customer Success and Service Delivery, I also learned that I have the biggest impact by making connections—fitting people to a role, solutions to problems, software to a manual process, and even bringing a product into a market that needs it. Today, as the CEO of SpatialNetworX, I use all these skills daily.
What core values and principles guide your leadership style?
I believe everyone has a valuable skill to bring to the table, and only by working together do we succeed. We all rely on each other to do our part, and that trust is important. As a leader, my most important role is to do everything in my power to make every person successful in their role by inspiring, empowering, and enabling.
How do you envision the future of SpatialNetworX under your leadership, and what are your primary goals for the company?
SpatialNetworX is a group of super talented people who are passionate about the products we build and the impact we can have on the industry. Bridging the digital divide is so important, and all areas of the telecommunications industry have the unique opportunity to come together and take advantage of the funding available and to get the world connected. My primary goal is to get our value proposition to the market and become integral to that ecosystem.
What strategies do you plan to implement to drive innovation and growth in the telecommunications industry?
I think innovation comes out of conversation and connection. When we listen, we learn. So, my approach is to drive that, internally in our R&D innovation sessions, and in the market via industry events. We have already made some big changes in our roadmap planning process, incorporating a 'sales-led’ approach to drive more of what we build through customers’ and partners’ feedback on what they perceive as market demand. We plan to speak at conferences, host webinars, and contribute to the conversations in our industry through white papers.
Could you share more about how being part of a Lumine Group company has provided talent development/progression opportunities?
The absolute best part about being a Lumine Group company is being part of the "ecosystem.” Although each company operates absolutely independently, the ecosystem is a network where we are truly connected to the things we need, when we need them. We have had opportunities to learn from the Lumine methodologies, participate in leadership summits, and most importantly, network with peers for innovation, industry conversations, and partner opportunities.
What excites you the most about leading SpatialNetworX into this new chapter, and what are you looking forward to achieving in the near future?
We are excited to re-energize our products to reach more customers with our solutions. We have already released 2 products that will enable our superior fiber design and management capability to reach more customers faster. Now is an exciting time in the fiber industry, globally, with so many opportunities to connect more people to digital services and thus to the world. I am humbled to be part of that, and proud to lead SpatialNetworX to become a bigger part of that success.
