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Telesat adds former Rogers executive to C-suite in bid to beef up network engineering expertise

January 22, 2025

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Ottawa-based Telesat has added a former high-ranking executive at Rogers Communications to its C-suite as it gears up production of a new satellite network that’s expected to start serving commercial customers in 2027. Telesat announced earlier this month that Asit Tandon has joined the firm as its chief network and information officer. Tandon, who will report directly to Telesat CEO Dan Goldberg, most recently served as vice-president of network engineering and operations at Rogers, where he was responsible for the technology development, design, engineering and operations of wireline access and core networks. A graduate of the Delhi College of Engineering, Tandon held a variety of network operations roles at telecom companies in India and Indonesia before moving to the Greater Toronto Area to join Rogers in 2020. Goldberg said Tandon will play a “crucial role in building and integrating best-in-class technical operations systems and worldwide facilities” for Telesat’s new constellation of 200 low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellites, dubbed Lightspeed, that is aimed at delivering better broadband internet service to far-flung parts of the globe. “Asit’s deep expertise and global experience will be invaluable as we execute on our ambitious growth plans,” Goldberg said in a statement last week. Tandon’s hiring comes as Telesat continues to make headway on the US$3.5-billion Lightspeed program, which will include 198 LEO satellites in a network the company says will “revolutionize broadband connectivity for enterprise and government users.” He is the second high-profile addition to the company’s executive team in the past few months. In September, Telesat named G. Michael Adamson, a retired brigadier-general in the Royal Canadian Air Force, its new senior director of defence strategy and business development. Telesat also announced last week that Michel Forest is moving into the role of chief technology officer. Forest, who most recently served as Telesat’s vice-president of LEO system engineering, will replace David Wendling, who is retiring in February after nearly four decades with the firm. Forest, a University of Ottawa engineering alumnus, has worked on Telesat’s LEO satellite technology program since 2015. Before joining Telesat, he held senior roles in satellite systems and antenna engineering at MDA Space in Montreal. “Michel has a strong track record of leading the development of innovative solutions and delivering exceptional results to optimize the performance, reliability and cost of Telesat’s satellite assets,” Goldberg said. “I have great confidence in Michel’s leadership, expertise and vision in supporting our global customer base and executing on the Telesat Lightspeed program.”