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Remembering Rob Pullen

By – / 12:49 PM
8 Comments

Last week I lost my colleague and friend, Rob Pullen, to colon cancer. He spent 28 years giving his all to make Tellabs a great company. We’re going to miss Rob a lot. Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family.

Hundreds of employees gather to remember CEO Rob Pullen on July 9, 2012

Yesterday, employees gathered in front of our global headquarters for a memorial service. People shared great memories of Rob, including:

“Rob was human, he was smart, and he was kind. That’s what he gave to us.” – Chuck Bernstein

“He was a mentor to me from day one, and he was great at communicating and teaching. He’d do anything to help you learn.” – Stu Benington

“It’s up to all of us to serve Rob well and make Tellabs successful.” – Roger Heinz

“Rob worked hard as hell, and he always took care of people too.” – George Stenitzer

“One word comes to mind when I think about Rob—passion. He had infinite passion. He loved this company.” – Vikram Saksena

Rob taught us so much. Now we must be dedicated to moving forward with the things we learned from him. We’re going to make Tellabs better, faster and stronger. We’ll make Rob proud.

If you’d like to share your memories of Rob, please do so in the comments below or on Facebook.
Subjects: Community
Comments:
My time with Rob was regrettably short, however Rob showed me the three most valuable rules in negotiation that have guided me ever since - "Be prepared. Be empowered. Know when to stop negotiating"

Be prepared, Be empowered - what could describe Rob more succinctly? Perhaps it was time for Rob's negotiations in this life to end, as impossible as that seems to me now

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Scott Finney — July 10, 2012 2:00 PM
Sorry to hear that. Tellabs need you in this special time.
Kyle — July 11, 2012 4:17 AM
My heartfelt condolences to Rob. Tellabs is a company, one of its kind, i would say. It takes a lot to create its own identity by being a niche player and stay survived for decades. Rob's passion and commitment to the company has definitely helped Tellabs to play on the front foot.
Manas Sahu — July 11, 2012 3:15 PM
Rob started at Tellabs just a few months after I did, and you could see he was dedicated and driven from day one. He maintained a focus on getting things done right the first time and making sure everyone involved in a project or goal remained informed and inspired. I admired his tenacity and valued his friendship. He will be sorely missed.
Mary Breier — July 11, 2012 11:09 PM
RIP Rob. Your passion for Tellabs will go unmatched,

Jeff Pluto
Jeff Pluto — July 13, 2012 4:32 PM
Rob's spirit will continue to live on in his family as well as with all that he has mentored and inspired over his personal and professional career.

The single word that best defines Rob, is Success.

The best definition of Success that reflects the spirit of Rob that I will always remember comes from Margaret Thatcher, who said "Success. I think it is a mixture of having a flair for the thing you are doing,; knowing that it is not enough, that you have got to have hard work and a certain sense of purpose."

Thanks and Cheers to you Rob!
jsg — July 17, 2012 10:35 PM
Rob was a class act. This is such sad news. :(
Arnold Burian — July 20, 2012 6:19 PM
I first met Rob in 1986 when he was recruiting me in Tellabs TITAN 5500 team and kept up with him through is journey to being Tellabs CEO. Personally he was a true friend, down to earth telecom executive, loved Tellabs and most of all a high integrity person. I will miss him.

Wishing his family and extended family peace.
Shri Dodani — August 3, 2012 7:34 PM