Alcatel SA (NYSE: ALA; Paris: CGEP:PA) CTO Niel Ransom has resigned from the French vendor after nearly three years in the role, and will leave in the coming few months, Light Reading has learned.

Ransom, who joined Alcatel from BellSouth Corp. (NYSE: BLS) as general manager of the local networks business unit in 1997, is returning to the U.S., and will leave the company when he moves back across the Atlantic.

He was appointed as CTO in February 2002 (see Ransom For New Alcatel CTO).

Before he leaves, Ransom will continue to work closely with CEO Serge Tchuruk on setting up a number of new technology initiatives within Alcatel.

He will be replaced by the VP of corporate strategy, Olivier Baujard, who currently reports to Ransom. Baujard, who has been with Alcatel for 16 years, has also held the roles of president of the Network Applications Division, president of the Enterprise Solutions Division, and president of the Switching Systems Division. Prior to joining the vendor, he worked at France Telecom SA (NYSE: FTE).

An Alcatel spokesman confirmed that Ransom is set to retire from the company in the next few months and will be replaced by Baujard. However, it's unclear whether Ransom's departure will precipitate a more extensive executive-level reshuffle at Alcatel.

Ransom leaves a company that is in good financial shape (relative to many of its peers), is a clear leader in the increasingly important access gear market, and has made recent significant strides into major carrier accounts (see Alcatel Reports 'Solid' Q3 Results, Alcatel Turns a Corner, Alcatel Wins Best M&A Award, BellSouth Picks IPTV Finalists, Mais Alors! Alcatel Bags $1.7B SBC Deal , and Alcatel Claims DSL Milestone).

— Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading