Senior Leaders From Ericsson and Nokia Join TM Forum Board to Accelerate Industry Growth Missions

London – TM Forum, the leading global alliance of telco and tech companies, today announced the appointment of two industry leaders to its Board of Trustees, Erik Ekudden, CTO, Ericsson and Raghav Sahgal, President of Cloud and Network Services, Nokia. They will also join newly formed Missions boards, established to lead execution of TM Forum’s three strategic Missions: Composable IT & Ecosystems, Autonomous Network Operations and Data & AI.

As Ericsson’s CTO, Erik Ekudden is responsible for setting the overall group strategy and technology direction for Ericsson. His focus for the group is on strategic decisions and investments in 5G and 6G mobile systems, cloud, artificial intelligence, security and Internet of things. This builds on his decades-long career in technology strategies and industry activities with leading customers and partners. Ekudden first joined Ericsson in 1993 working on mobile systems.

Raghav Sahgal is a global leader and entrepreneur in the cloud, software and communications space. In his current role as President of Cloud and Network Services at Nokia, Raghav leads the transition for communication service providers (CSPs) and enterprises across the world to 5G, secure autonomous networks and industrial digitalization. He is passionate about helping customers embrace new business models and value creation opportunities with digital ecosystems.

As the global telco industry looks to reimagine its role for the AI era, and re-ignite growth in purpose and shareholder returns, TM Forum is evolving its own structure around its three Missions to support Members on their transformation journeys. Created by the industry for the industry, the Missions are essential no-regret actions that will lead the industry back to growth and today’s announcement marks another important step in realizing that vision.

“I’m honored to join the TM Forum Board of Trustees and collaborate with my fellow members to drive transformation and growth in our industry,” said Raghav Sahgal, President of Cloud and Network Services, Nokia . “I am invested in the potential of AI and driving responsible AI across our solutions. With a keen eye on digitalization, I look forward to leading a focus on the mission of Autonomous Network Operations to deliver operational excellence and enable new revenue streams.”

“Joining the TM Forum Board of Trustees at this time of major industry change is an exciting opportunity to work with other industry leaders on a meaningful transformation in the telecom industry,” said Erik Ekudden, CTO of Ericsson . “Through the creation of high-performing, differentiated networks, we unlock new services and possibilities. By leveraging technologies like AI and cloud, we build autonomous networks that are cloud-native, programmable and easily manageable. I look forward to contributing to this important work with TM Forum.”

Commenting on the appointment, Nik Willetts, CEO, TM Forum , said: “We’re at an inflection point for our industry, with the technologies underpinning our Missions providing a unique opportunity for the industry to change its trajectory and build a path back to growth. To achieve this, we believe it’s essential the industry continues to collaborate and innovate together. This requires strong, bold leadership and I’m delighted to welcome Erik and Raghav to our board to help drive our Missions strategy and execution.”

TM Forum’s Board guides the organization’s strategy and success on behalf of its Members. The Board determines how the Forum serves its Members and the broader industry by setting direction, priorities, key themes, and initiatives. The Board aims to have a representative balance of Member industry sectors and geographies with several types of service providers, technology companies, equipment suppliers, and systems integrators.

“I’m delighted to welcome Erik and Raghav to the Board of Trustees,” said Steffen Roehn, Chairman, TM Forum. “Their combined knowledge and experience will be invaluable in further bringing our Members and the wider industry together to realize the enormous potential of our Missions.”

About TM Forum

TM Forum is a global alliance of telco and tech companies, leading the industry in defining the building blocks for new operating models, impactful new partnerships, and advanced software platforms.

TM Forum helps its members unlock the value of data to create nearly endless opportunities for players across the communications ecosystem. At DTW Ignite, Accelerate and Collaboration events, TM Forum provides a platform for industry change-makers to share groundbreaking innovation, market developments, product launches and business transformation journeys.

We are the only industry body to count the world’s top 10 CSPs and all the key hyperscalers as active, strategic members. With over 800 members, we are on a mission to reinvent the telco industry as a vibrant part of the digital landscape – and a driving force in shaping its future. To find out more, visit: tmforum.org