Synergy’s Employee Spotlight series profiles some of the best and brightest of Syniverse who make mobile work for our customers around the world.
What’s your title and role at Syniverse?
I’m a Senior Product Manager in our Connected LTE line of business and work at our headquarters in Tampa.
How long have you been at Syniverse?
I joined Syniverse as a Product Manager nearly three years ago, and have spent all my time in the Connected LTE line of business. During my tenure, I’ve worked on multiple products and projects, including Voice over LTE (VoLTE) interconnect and roaming service initiatives, as well as IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) services. Our VoLTE services offer mobile operators a new level of efficiency and innovation for voice calls by enabling once-dedicated voice networks to be shared for both data and high-quality IP-based voice calls. And our IMS services address a critical need for operators by helping them more quickly and cost-efficiently implement and interconnect IMS-based services, like VoLTE, with an extremely versatile, open-standards-based architectural framework.
What are you working on this month?
I’m currently involved in working with a team to develop a new secure network and related services. This involves reaching out to various Syniverse teams to ensure we accurately describe end-to-end process flows, develop proper service requirements (operations and business support systems), and capture information for teams to draft proper methods and procedures. I’m also creating and posting materials to assist with the positioning and sale of the service.
What’s one of the most valuable lessons you’ve gained during your career in mobile?
Mobile is pervasive, and it’s a growing necessity in our personal and corporate lives. At the same time, there’s an increasing desire to connect and automate the world we live in (think IoT and autonomous services). Following from this, I joined Syniverse with a goal of expanding my product knowledge beyond wired networks, enterprise applications, and managed services, and I’ve been fortunate to achieve this goal while contributing to the development of some of our more advanced services, like VoLTE and RCS.
What’s been one of your best moments at Syniverse?
I’ve had a chance to work on multiple Syniverse products in less than three years – each one more complex than the one before! Being able to have this flexibility to move from one product to another, be faced with new challenges, and gain different expertise creates a refreshed and renewed interest in the job and fuels my passion to succeed.
What’s one of the best things about working at Syniverse?
Two things really. First, for work to be fun, you must enjoy relationships with those around you. Second, you must be energized by the work you do. I’ve always felt very welcome at Syniverse. I enjoy the friendliness and cooperative nature, and the people and the relationships. I think the company does a great job in trying to foster a friendly atmosphere through our Employee Association activities and similar employee-appreciation events. Beyond people and our working environment, I appreciate our current corporate vision and my assignment to new and exciting services that will drive Syniverse forward as a leader in mobile.
Tell us about your mobile lifestyle. What kind of mobile phone do you use?
Unlike my Apple-oriented children, I’m an Android fan. I use a Galaxy S6, but it may be time for an upgrade. I’ve been impressed with the improvements made with the Galaxy S8 and am waiting to see how the S9 stacks up.
What’s your favorite app or tool on your phone?
I have several favorite apps that help me to keep in touch with friends and family. My favorite non-communication app is Vera Mobile. Wanting to learn firsthand about the internet of things, I installed a Vera home automation system to control my home door locks, thermostats, lights and more. It’s not only convenient, but helps us to better secure our home. The app makes it easy to check and change the status of door locks and other controlled devices, and it confirms everything is OK while I’m away!
In the last year, what’s the longest you’ve gone without using your phone?
As a parent, I always want to have my phone nearby. However, I’ve gone a full day without my phone during vacations when we travel together as a family. Unplugging for a short time is not a bad thing!
What do you like to do outside of work?
I love spending time with friends and family, which include my wife, Karen; my daughter, Sarah; and my son, Brandon. Beyond my family time, I enjoy participating in programs focused on assisting those with disabilities. As part of this, I coach a Buddy Ball team that enables children with disabilities to play baseball with their peers. I also had the privilege of being appointed by Florida’s governor, Rick Scott, to serve as a board member of The Able Trust organization. The Able Trust’s mission is to work with state agencies and private resources to help Floridians with disabilities secure meaningful employment. This is accomplished through youth leadership events, high school technical programs, grants that support training and internships, as well as other programs supporting the disability community. These are amazing programs, and I’m so fortunate to be able to contribute to these organizations.
My family.
My son and daughter assist me at a Buddy Ball game.
My wife and me in Naples, Florida.
LES GOLDMAN has held positions ranging from customer service to product management, to marketing and sales. Over his career, he has developed and marketed both tangible software products as well as intangible service and professional solutions. A free-thinking technology innovator, he enjoys turning problem-solving into targeted solutions to meet customer needs.
As Senior Product Manager at Syniverse, Les is focused on driving innovation for customers around the world while helping to simplify business and technical complexities. His current focus on IoT-related services includes transformative secure communications across fixed and mobile devices leveraging private and public wireless networks, cloud applications and integrated services.
Previously, Les served as a Global Product Manager with Verizon, where he leveraged his customer, market and MBA experience to successfully launch award-winning global communications solutions. His contribution was recognized when he received a patent for his work with integrated telephony services years before the advent of the term “unified communications.”
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