A veteran business development and channel marketing professional, Kevin Fitzgibbons brings deep industry expertise and experience to the transportation and municipal marketplaces with special focus on wireless technologies, network infrastructures and communications. Mr. Fitzgibbons’ breadth of experience has included positions in manufacturing, distribution and consumer services. These roles have given him a 360-degree view of the strategies, intelligence and sales skills required to effectively develop and close business at all levels of government – from local and state to national and international strategic accounts.
With an eye always on key performance metrics, Mr. Fitzgibbons has successfully mapped out communications strategies for municipalities large and small and managed all aspects of a city-wide network deployment. As senior director of business development, transportation systems, at Rajant Corporation, Mr. Fitzgibbons is responsible for creating plans and driving new business directives toward helping municipalities and governments advance their network and communications strategies. As such, he helps them enable mobility and support applications on their respective networks. Moving organizations into the smart transportation mode while obtaining a solid return on investment is what drives his enthusiasm daily.
Mr. Fitzgibbons is a regular presenter at industry conferences and forums, where he has shared his strategic and hands-on experiences with all levels of participants – from engineers in the field to CTOs in the boardroom.
Q: How did you get into the industry?
A: My first job in the wireless industry was for a distributor that sold a lot of different products. There I worked with 10 or 12 different broadband manufacturers, and we would combine and suggest different solutions for different projects and applications. My role was to help package them and communicate to all of our customers which wireless technology fit where, how they were supported and how they could solve different challenges.
At a point in my career, one market that seemed to open up significantly was transportation. It was an area in which cellular was no longer meeting the needs of that market and figuring out how to provide high-speed broadband to moving devices was a real challenge, because most of what broadband had been doing involved static applications. This created new issues for municipal and transportation markets.
When I started to work more on those kinds of applications, I learned about Rajant. It turned out that this unique and difficult challenge of delivering high-speed broadband to moving vehicles via private network is something that Rajant had been doing for 15 years, which took me aback.
I previously had worked with other manufacturers of mesh, but those solutions delivered a compromised version of what mesh could be. So when I heard of Rajant as a mesh company, I thought, I know how to compete against this – until I finally understood that theirs is truly mesh and is able to deliver all it promised. That changed a lot for me.
I was ultimately drawn to this technology because I saw in my experience more and more that we were going to need to deliver high-speed broadband – not just to fixed buildings or towers, but to a lot of devices and a lot of moving vehicles, and I thought Rajant was in great position to do that. I was a believer even before I accepted my current role with them.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your role?
A: I like that it’s consultative and gives me the opportunity to solve very challenging problems for customers. Our customers are companies trying to improve their business by running a number of applications or ramping up their existing network. They are trying to do big things, challenging things, and I like to be able to step in to help them solve their problems and implement something new that will really improve their business. Often, by the time a customer is ready for us, they’re dealing with something that is at a critical point – they absolutely must find a solution that works.
Q: What is your favourite thing about presenting to a live audience?
A: Generally, I like engaging in conversation with people more than presenting, but a presentation can be just another way to get a conversation started. With a presentation, I’m able to provide a group of people with information that is relevant to their business and show them something they may not have been aware of, or a way of doing something they may not have thought of. I enjoy educating people, and when I can tell active and engaged participants about creative network solutions that are relevant to and helpful for their businesses, it’s a great feeling.
Q: What motivates you?
A: I enjoy the level of work, and the engagement, but what I really enjoy is figuring things out. I meet with customers that have unique challenges, and often we are not the first ones they call. I truly enjoy the consultative, problem-solving aspect of listening to customers and understanding their needs, how we can improve their business and how we can grow revenue or optimize their investment together – and there is a real feeling of accomplishment when I can help them make their business better.
Q: Where is your favourite place in the world and why?
A: Well, I just got back from a few days in Yosemite, which was simply incredible. Before that, I was in Iceland, and saw the Northern Lights and did some hiking – it was spectacular. But really, my favourite place in the world is home. I am often traveling as part of my job, and the best thing in the world is coming home to see my wonderful family. After days or even weeks on road, in airports and hotels, there is nothing better.
Join Kevin in the Rajant webinar, “High Speed Mobile Networks for Integrated Transit, Public Safety and IoT”. Learn how to implement Kinetic Mesh communications systems for mass transportation systems, smart city initiatives and public safety within a city or region. Register now!