Global Network Operations NOC Lead

Zayo names Mariana Agathoklis Schlock Executive Vice President, Chief Communications & Marketing Officer. Zayo has appointed Mariana Agathoklis Schlock as its first-ever Executive Vice President and Chief Communications & Marketing Officer (CCMO), bringing communications, marketing and environmental, social and governance (ESG) functions under a unified leadership structure. Schlock will report to Zayo CEO Sowmyanarayan Sampath and oversee the company's integrated communications, marketing and ESG teams. Her role will focus on strengthening brand positioning, market visibility and engagement with customers, employees, investors, industry partners and communities. The appointment comes as growing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure puts increased attention on the networks supporting cloud computing, enterprise platforms and AI applications. Zayo is positioning its communications and marketing strategy around these changing infrastructure requirements and the needs of businesses adopting AI technologies. Schlock joins Zayo after nearly nine years at Verizon, where she held senior positions across consumer, business, media and corporate functions. Most recently, she served as Head of Communications for Verizon Consumer, a business unit generating approximately $100 billion in annual revenue. During her tenure at Verizon, she contributed to several major brand and commercial initiatives, including the public launch of 5G, Verizon Business Small Business Days and the Verizon Family campaign. Before Verizon, Schlock spent 12 years at MTV, leading communications initiatives across corporate, brand, programming and digital operations. Her experience spans corporate reputation, customer engagement, brand strategy and communications during periods of business transformation. At Zayo, the combination of marketing, communications and ESG responsibilities under one executive reflects a consolidated approach to corporate messaging and stakeholder engagement. As AI adoption increases demand for digital infrastructure, the company will need to communicate its role in supporting enterprises, cloud providers and data center operators navigating this shift. Schlock's appointment adds a senior communications and marketing leader to Zayo's executive team as the company responds to evolving infrastructure needs across the digital economy.

Mariana Agathoklis Schlock reconnects with Sampath at Zayo. Former Verizon exec Mariana Agathoklis Schlock has been named EVP, chief communications and marketing officer, at Zayo, which is now led by another former Verizon exec, Sowmyanarayan Sampath. #pressrelease October 8, 2026 Zayo, the leading digital infrastructure network provider, today announced the appointment of Mariana Agathoklis Schlock as its first-ever Executive Vice President, Chief Communications & Marketing Officer (CCMO), reporting to Zayo Chief Executive Officer, Sowmyanarayan Sampath. She joins Zayo to elevate the company's brand and commercial visibility as the rapid expansion of the AI economy reshapes global infrastructure demands. In this role, Agathoklis Schlock will lead Zayo's integrated communications, marketing and environmental, social and governance (ESG) functions, strengthening its market presence, and building a unified approach to how the company reaches employees, customers, industry partners, investors, and communities the company serves. Agathoklis Schlock joins Zayo following nearly nine years at Verizon, where she held senior roles across its consumer, business, media, and corporate organizations. Most recently, she served as the Head of Communications for Verizon Consumer, a $100 billion annual revenue business unit. Over the course of her tenure, she helped lead major brand and commercial initiatives, including the public launch of 5G, creation of Verizon Business Small Business Days, and launch of the award-winning Verizon Family campaign. Want more Light Reading stories in your Google search results? Join 62,000+ members. Yes it's completely free.

Zayo launches Agentic Networking, bringing AI agents directly into network operations. Business Wire Published Sep 08, 2026 One year after redefining NaaS with DynamicLink, Zayo advances the solution with a first-of-its-kind MCP server that enables enterprise AI agents to take authorized action on the network Key facts: * Zayo is introducing the industry's first production Model Context Protocol (MCP) server built specifically for networking. * Agentic Networking combines Zayo's network infrastructure, DynamicLink platform, specialized networking skill, and MCP server so approved AI agents can understand network context and execute authorized network actions. * Zayo is advancing Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) from self-service network control to agent-enabled networking, where teams define objectives and controls while AI helps coordinate and execute network tasks. DENVER - Zayo, the leading digital network infrastructure provider, today launched Agentic Networking for DynamicLink, advancing NaaS from software-defined network control to a new model that enables enterprise AI agents to work directly with the network for the first time. Top Stories Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Zayo introduced a new approach to software-defined networking with DynamicLink in September 2025. Now, as DynamicLink reaches its first year in production, Zayo is introducing the industry's first production MCP server built for networking, progressing DynamicLink from self-service network control to Agentic Networking. This gives approved AI agents a governed way to understand network conditions, access network tools, and take authorized action. "Together, Zayo's network infrastructure, DynamicLink platform, networking skill, and MCP server create a capability that has not previously existed," said Chris Ranalli, Chief Revenue Officer for Enterprise at Zayo. "This combination creates a way for approved AI agents to understand what is happening across the network, access network tools, and execute authorized actions. Instead of simply asking AI questions about the network, enterprises can put AI to work on it." What This Capability Enables Agentic Networking brings network context and authorized network actions into the AI workflows enterprises are already building. Agents can use DynamicLink's product and network knowledge resources to understand network conditions, while retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) helps ground interactions in the DynamicLink knowledge base. Organizations define the information, tools, and actions available to agents, with automation, governance, and human oversight remaining in place. Potential workflows include: * Establishing cloud-to-cloud connectivity: Coordinate the steps required to connect approved cloud environments without engineers manually moving between multiple systems. * Investigating network performance: Gather and correlate context across network, cloud, and application environments to help identify the source of an issue and recommend next steps. * Coordinating multi-cloud connectivity: Help teams understand and manage connectivity requirements as workloads move across cloud environments. * Responding to unusual network activity: Surface relevant network context, identify potential issues, and recommend actions for an engineer to review. * Executing approved network changes: Invoke authorized DynamicLink tools to carry out network or security actions within enterprise-defined controls. * Extending networking into enterprise AI workflows: Enable organizations to build network operations into approved AI agents and workflows beyond the DynamicLink portal. For network teams, this means less time moving between systems and coordinating routine tasks and more time focused on higher-value decisions. This efficiency is especially valuable for industries like retail, financial services, healthcare, and media and entertainment organizations managing increasingly data-intensive environments. Why This Matters The first generation of NaaS gave enterprises software-based visibility and control over network infrastructure. Agentic Networking changes how that control is consumed by making network capabilities accessible within the AI systems enterprises are already using to coordinate work across applications, clouds, and other systems. "Enterprise AI will increasingly be measured by what it can responsibly accomplish across the systems that run the business," said Max Clauson, SVP of Network Connectivity at Zayo. "The future of networking is not another portal. It's making network capabilities available within the AI systems enterprises use to run their business. Agentic Networking gives organizations a path toward that future, where AI can take on more operational work while people maintain authority over the infrastructure underneath it." Agentic Networking is available immediately as part of the DynamicLink platform. The announcement builds on DynamicLink's momentum following its recognition as a 2026 CRN Tech Innovator Award winner for advancing enterprise networking. For more information, visit https://www.zayo.com/services/network-connectivity/dynamiclink/.About Zayo The world's digital future depends on networks that perform. Zayo builds and operates those networks. As the leading digital infrastructure provider, the Zayo network spans 32 million fiber miles and 224,000 route miles across North America and connects more than 400 markets globally. With dense long-haul and metro fiber connectivity, tailored connectivity solutions, and managed services, Zayo's network underpins the cloud, AI, and enterprise platforms powering the digital economy. Carriers, cloud providers, data centers, enterprises, schools, and governments rely on Zayo's future-ready infrastructure and expertise to design, scale, and operate the networks that connect what's next. Discover how Zayo connects what's next at www.zayo.com and follow us on LinkedIn. View source version on businesswire.com: This advertisement has not loaded yet. Join the Conversation Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.