Nortel appoints ex-GE exec as global services VP

TORONTO (Reuters) - Nortel Networks said on Monday it had appointed a former General Electric executive, Don McKenna, as its new vice-president of global manufacturing services.

McKenna, who spent 40 years at GE, will play a key role in transforming the company's supply chain, Nortel said in a statement. He starts his new job on Monday.

His appointment follows that of another GE executive, Joel Hackney, as vice-president of global supply chain and quality, as new chief executive Mike Zafirovski, himself a GE veteran, shakes up his team.

Nortel, one of the world's largest telecommunications equipment makers, has been working to recover from an accounting scandal that hurt demand and its share price.

Zafirovski, who joined Nortel in November, has said his focus will be on raising operating margins to between 13 percent and 19 percent from the low single digits.

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