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Teams

The nordunet team

A number of dedicated teams put all their efforts together to pursue the daily tasks and hence the vision of NORDUnet.

Meet our leadership team:

Valter Nordh has been with NORDUnet since 2021. Valter’s prior career has been with Swedish NREN Sunet and the University of Gothenburg. A driving force of SWAMID, and actively served on a number of committees and boards, including the GÉANT Board of Directors. Valter holds an M. Sc. From Chalmers Technical University in Sweden.

Valter Nordh

Chief Executive Officer

Jørgen Qvist joined NORDUnet in 2008 following management positions in tech and telecom companies. Responsible for NORDUnet service delivery, operations, and development. Jørgen holds a diploma in Engineering Bus. Admin. From the Copenhagen College of Engineering and in Specialized Information Technology from Copenhagen Business School

Jørgen Qvist

Chief Operating Officer

Lone Nilsson joined NORDUnet in 2019 with +25 years’ experience of finance & accounting primarily within the tech industry including the auditing community. Lone holds a Diploma degree in Financial & Management Accounting from Copenhagen Business School, Denmark

Lone Nilsson

Chief Financial Officer

Josva Kleist joined NORDUnet in 2006 from an position as associate professor in computer science at Aalborg University. Responsible for stakeholder engagement, support for research communities and infrastructures, as well as international relations and events. Josva holds a Ph.D. and an M.Sc. in Computer Science from Aalborg University, Denmark

Josva Kleist

Chief Technology Officer &
Chief Information Security Officer

Lars Fischer joined NORDUnet in 2004 from a career with telecoms and internet providers. Responsibilities include stakeholder relations, support for key science communities, and strategic projects. He is a member of the GÉANT Association Board of Directors. Lars holds an MSc.EE from Aalborg University, Denmark, and an MBA from the Technical University of Denmark.

Lars Fischer

Chief Relations Officer

Erik Kikkenborg has worked with NORDUnet since 2009 and drives service innovation in collaboration with our Nordic partners and for engaging global partners in Nordic collaboration. Since 2011 part of the TNC Technical Support Team, lead of Up2U, and actively engaged in Asi@Connect. Erik has been awarded the Vietsch Foundation Medal of Honour for his commitment to the R&E Community

Erik Kikkenborg

Chief Collaboration Officer

Lars Lange Bjørn started his career with NORDUnet in 2007 following a number of years in the telecom industry. He is Manager of the Planning and Engineering department. Holds an M. Sc. in Optical Engineering

Lars Lange Bjørn

Manager of NPE

Susanne Michelsen came to NORDUnet in 2011. Previous career includes P.A./E.A. positions with national and international organizations. Administrative support combined with event and conference management. Susanne holds an M.A. in International Business Communication from Copenhagen Business School, Denmark

Susanne Michelsen

Executive Assistant

Read more about our teams:

Systems Engineering & Integration (SEI) is NORDUnet’s software and integration expert unit. We provide brain and manpower to projects run by our colleagues.

Our goal is to deliver top quality software by combining innovative thinking, coordinated use of the manpower and information exchange between colleagues working on software development. We handle development and maintenance of software and software services as well as integration between different software systems.

The department is a distributed entity with people located in both Aalborg and Copenhagen. We are a team of highly skilled professionals aiming to break new land while contributing to a solid day-to-day operation.

Network Planning & Engineering is responsible for what NORDUnet is basically all about: the core backbone equipment and infrastructure including IP, fibre and DWDM.

We design and implement our networks all the way from idea to delivery to our customers and handle 3rd level trouble shooting. We deliver top class network solutions characterised by innovative design and second-to-none stability.

Media is the team responsible for the NORDUnet services and service portfolio. We develop and deliver the smartest, most relevant and requested services to our owners and clients.

 Our main responsibilities are to coordinate and consolidate requirements for both new and exciting services, as well as to manage roll-out of new services, and deployment of new software release for existing services. One of our main focus areas is within media and collaboration services. We operate a series of services including state-of-the-art conference and live streaming.  We see ourselves as customer focused technology experts who turn ideas and request into smart solutions at the absolute forefront of new technology.

The IRI team is NORDUnet’s looking glass beyond the Nordics. We try to keep up with  R&E activities on a global scale.

We work with both local and regional NRENs from all over the world. We interact with funding and governing bodies relevant to our community, and we do our utmost to stay on top of the latest developments, projects and ideas.

Finance HR and Administration is NORDUnet’s organisational backbone. We handle all financial, administrative and employee related matters.

 We carry out accounting, reporting, payments, tax issues and audits. We are also responsible for contracts and legal issues, salaries and travel expenses. Within HR we focus on building the right competencies and capabilities in the company. How can we attract the best people? How can we develop the existing employees? How can we support knowledge sharing and team spirit?  These are the questions we ask ourselves within our team where specialist skills and a good consideration for colleagues go hand in hand.

Read more about our Divisions:

The Finance Division, headed by CFO Lone Nilsson, handles accounting, reporting, payments, tax issues and audits. It supports the organisation and other stakeholders with financial forecasts and budgets, economic analyses, and contract management.

Likewise, the Division manages loans and credit facilities in support of both short-term and long-term business development in alignment with the strategic directions, and is responsible for contracts and legal issues, salaries and travel expenses. Management of EU projects and project participation also form part of the portfolio of the Finance Division.

Headed by COO Jørgen Qvist, the Core Services Division is a streamlined service delivery, operations, and development organisation focusing on network engineering, systems engineering and integration, software development, and security.

Four key functions make up the basis structure:
Network and Service Technology, responsible for design and operation of the NORDUnet network, service infrastructure, and sites.
Dev. Ops. & Media Services, responsible for media and educational service delivery, service development, and infrastructure support software.  
Security and Compliance, responsible for security management and regulatory compliance, and Office Support, responsible for meeting and office facilities, logistics and care for staff and guests.

The Strategic Engagement Division, headed by CTO Josva Kleist, oversee stakeholder engagement, strategy, external relations, collaborations and external projects, NORDUnet events, and outreach.

Included in the portfolio of the Division are the development of NORDUnet’s strategic direction and objectives and engagement with policy bodies in Europe and the Nordic countries. Also, the Division is responsible for NORDUnet relations to Nordic, European and global partners, and for identification and development of strategic initiatives and projects, combined with supporting research communities and European research infrastructure.

NORDUnet events, including the NORDUnet conference, the NORDUnet community workshop and topical workshops are rooted in the Division, that also manages company marketing and communications.