The Metaswitch User Group elected four new board members and set its agenda for the year during our Forum event in May. For the first time, the group elected an international representative to the board, which reflects the company’s expansion into new markets.

The User Group is an independent body of Metaswitch customers that provides guidance on product development, networking with other customers and feedback to Metaswitch executives. Whether you’re a longtime, seasoned customer or a new customer, the User Group a valuable resource for sharing experiences and learning from your industry peers.

A recent example of the User Group’s influence is the vNOW NFV starter kit. As User Group Chairman John Cole explained in a video interview with Metaswitch Marketing Director Steve Gleave, the vNOW solution was a direct result of input from the group. Smaller operators expressed concerns about not having the staff or resources to move to network functions virtualization (NFV), and Metaswitch responded by developing the vNOW NFV starter kit to help them get started.  

The group plans to host quarterly calls or webinars to take the pulse of the user base and keep tabs on what enhancements users would like to see in future product releases.

The new members of the Metaswitch User Group board are:

• Lena Moore, City of LaGrange Georgia
• Chris Wallace, ENA
• Daniel Glass, SCRTC
• Nenad Mijailovic, IVSTEL (international representative)

They will join the following re-elected board members:

• John Cole, TEC (Chairman)
• Jesse Estevez, Chariton Valley (Vice Chairman)
• Casey Loudermilk, ETC (Secretary)
• Srikanth Gomattam, EarthLink
• Chris Taylor, GDS
• Paul Archambault, GWI
• Jeff Leas, RCN

Metaswitch congratulates all board members on their appointments. We would also like to thank the following outgoing board members for their support:

• John Monday, DMEA
• Derek Douglas, Fibernetics
• Bill Sandiford, Telnet Communications

To learn more about the Metaswitch User Group, customers may email the User Group Board at Userboard@metaswitch.com or visit the User Group section of the Metaswitch Communities website. 

After all the presentations and meetings at Metaswitch Forum, Steve Gleave spoke with User Group Chairman John Cole. Watch the video interview.