During a period where networking giant Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO) restricted its business, cut jobs and sold divisions, chief executive John Chambers was given compensation totaling some $12.9 million. It was a 32 percent drop from the $18.9 million he earned in 2010.

Chambers, according to papers filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission received $12.5 million in stock from Cisco in 2011, as well as a $375,000 salary, down from $382,212 a year earlier, a 2 percent decrease. Not surprisingly, Chambers didn't receive a performance-based bonus in 2011; in 2010, his bonus was $4.6 million.

According to the papers filed with the SEC, Cisco's compensation committee decided not to award its highest executive officers with cash incentives or performance-based stock units for fiscal 2011, costing Chambers half his $12.5 million equity award.

Chambers, meanwhile, also topped a list of the most overpaid CEOs in the U.S. The list, from 24/7 Wall St., compared CEOs pay with the performance of their company's stock. In Chamber's case, Cisco's 31.4 percent drop during fiscal 2011 helped him earn is spot.

For more:
- see this TechWorld report
- see this ITWorld report

Related articles:
Cisco, Avaya hit different segments in PBX, IP PBX sales
HP, Cisco battle prompts drop in Ethernet switch revenues
Cisco increases lead in a flat global PBX market

Tadiran Telecom has signed a distribution agreement with Teledata Technologies in a collaboration aimed at targeting "vast" VoIP opportunities in the African telecom market.
The IP business telephony and communications supplier has also announced the appointment of Zeev Aviv as acting President and CEO. Until recently, he served as VP Sales and Marketing.

Jeff Carr has been appointed CEO of VoIP provider SinglePipe as part of a strategic restructuring to support a market and product expansion.
Matt Phillips, who had been CEO, shifts to vice chairman of corporate development for the Kentucky-based managed services provider, while Cynthia Carpenter has been named as president and COO.

JAJAH CEO Trevor Healy talks to voip.biz-news about the "sea change" currently taking place in the communications industry - and explains how that has resulted in JAJAH itself evolving from a consumer VoIP focus to become a global IP communications platform provider.

Telecomms veteran Andy Berman has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of i2Telecom International.
The move follows a "transitional period" for the Atlanta-based company which has seen it shift priorities towards mobile applications and services.

LAS VEGAS - The executive leadership at MetaSwitch shifted a bit Tuesday, as John Lazar, formerly COO, was announced as the company's new CEO, and Kevin DeNuccio joined MetaSwitch's board of directors.

Lazar was formerly President and COO of the company's Carrier division. As CEO, he takes over executive responsibility for the entire company from founder Ian Ferguson, who continues as Chairman.

Lazar, an employee of the company for 22 years and founder of the carrier division in 2000, will oversee the company's Network Protocols and Carrier Divisions while Phil McConnell and Graeme MacArthur will continue as GMs of the two divisions.

Over the coming months, the company plans to consolidate all of its products and business operations under the MetaSwitch brand. To date, MetaSwitch has been the network products division within the Data Connection company. However, MetaSwitch has long been the fastest growing part of the company and brought in 78 percent of the revenues in 2008, so the shift is natural and necessary for clarity with customers, the media and analysts.  

In addition, MetaSwitch announced the addition of Kevin DeNuccio to its board of directors. DeNuccio is currently Vice Chairman of Redback Networks and also serves as a director on the board of JDS Uniphase Corp. Formerly, he was President and CEO of Redback for eight years, and oversaw that company's transformation and acquisition by Ericsson.

Prior to leading Redback Networks, DeNuccio was the senior vice president of worldwide service provider operations at Cisco Systems, and was the founder, president and CEO of Bell Atlantic Network Integration Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bell Atlantic (now Verizon Communications).

Related articles
MetaSwitch reports hot FY08 results - FierceVoIP
Fierce talked to Lazar last fall - FierceVoIP Leaders: John Lazar, President & COO, MetaSwitch.

Vyke has appointed Kim Berknov as chief executive, effective from April 1.
The announcement came as the VoIP service provider forecast it will meet market expectations for 2009.