AFL announced today that Fujikura Ltd, its parent company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, has appointed AFL's current chief operating officer, Jaxon Lang, as president and CEO, effective immediately.
The new appointment follows Jody Gallagher’s resignation from his position as president and CEO of AFL.
As stated in a press release, Lang, an industry leader with a diverse career portfolio, has served as AFL's COO since he joined the company in January 2023, most recently serving as AFL’s acting CEO.
Previously, Lang served as president and CEO of FiberRise, leading the company through an acquisition with ENTRUST Solutions Group.
“With over two decades in the telecommunications industry, Jaxon brings unparalleled leadership and a proven track record of success,” remarked Mr. Naoki Okada, CEO of Fujikura Ltd., who added, “I have a strong belief that AFL will continue to provide industry leading solutions, achieve profitable growth and attain long-term success."
Previously, Lang has also held key positions within CommScope, TE Connectivity and ADC Telecommunications across global service provider, enterprise, and hyperscale market and product groups.
“As I transition into this new role, my focus remains on exceeding customer expectations, strengthening our core business operations and driving product innovation,” said Lang. “I look forward to leading the company toward continued growth in the years ahead."
Jody Gallagher resigned following suspension from AFL
On June 6, 2023, WYFF 4, a U.S. television station licensed to Greenville, South Carolina serving Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina as an affiliate of NBC, reported that AFL told WYFF News 4 in an email that Gallagher, president and CEO of Spartanburg S.C.-based AFL since 2003, and a member of the board of directors for AFL’s Tokyo-based parent company, Fujikura, had been suspended pending an internal investigation. The email stated that Jaxon Lang had been named as acting CEO.
As further noted by the TV station, a news release from Fujikura posted on May 26, 2023 revealed an investigation by the company related to "an improper real estate acquisition at a U.S. Subsidiary," after a whistleblowing complaint on May 3, 2023. As recounted by WYFF News 4, the Fujikura news release said in part:
"Based on a whistleblowing complaint made on March 3, 2023, we were made aware of suspicious activities regarding the personal misappropriation of real property owned by one of our US subsidiaries by a director of the Company, who is the CEO of such subsidiary, and launched an internal investigation immediately thereafter. Our investigation is still continuing at this moment, however, to date, it has uncovered that an improper acquisition was made with respect to land purchased in 2020 and a building built in 2022 by such subsidiary (the total value of such land and building at the time of acquisition amounts to approximately 6.5 million US dollars (equivalent to 847 million Japanese yen)). Further, our investigation to date has uncovered that the said officer disguised the purpose for acquiring the land and building to make such subsidiary acquire such property and that said officer used such property for a certain period for its personal purpose. The said officer has been suspended from the US subsidiary and the Company."
The television station said that AFL did not state whether this investigation led to Gallagher's suspension.
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