Wendy Mars

Wendy Mars is President of Cisco’s Europe, Middle East, Africa and Russia region (EMEAR).

Wendy is responsible for Cisco’s growth, business and operations across the EMEAR region. Her focus is on driving strategies which deliver on customers’ digital and sustainability transformation requirements and which help to close the digital divide. The region delivers over $12bn annually and represents more than a quarter of Cisco’s revenue.

In her previous roles at Cisco, Wendy has led the Partner, Enterprise and Technology teams for EMEAR.

Wendy is a passionate supporter of greater diversity in business. She specialises in creating high-performing teams that are grounded in a strong sense of common purpose, a focus on results and holding each other accountable. She is driving initiatives that promote greater inclusion and is the Executive Sponsor of Cisco’s Connected Women community. She understands the talent and skills challenges facing the technology industry and firmly believes in promoting education in digital skills as a driver of transformation and differentiation.

Prior to joining Cisco, Wendy was the Global CTO at ThruPoint for 11 years, working primarily with its enterprise and service provider customers. She began her career at Morgan Stanley, where she lived abroad working on a variety of IT programmes in Europe, the US and Asia.

Originally from the North of England, Wendy now lives in London and in her spare time loves walking, wildlife and nature. She has a BEng(H) in Electronic Engineering from York University and an MSc in Operational Research from Lancaster University.