In November 2024, Lise Fuhr took on the role of Chief Executive Officer at GÉANT. Now, six months into her new role, she reflects on her first impressions, shares what she wishes more people knew about the GÉANT community, and offers a glimpse into the forthcoming GÉANT Association strategy.
You’ve now been at GÉANT for six months. What have been your first impressions and experiences since joining? Any surprises along the way?
I thought I knew this world, but I quickly realised that there is a lot I did not know, especially about our members and, through them, the wider community. My first impression was that this is a strong NREN community. Even though there’s variety in terms of size, what each one does, and how they do it, I was surprised by how strong the bond is between them. The fact that they created something like GÉANT together is very impressive.
On the GÉANT organisation side, I felt very welcomed. From the very beginning, I was confronted with some challenging tasks, like the EuroHPC tender. But despite it being a stress test, I was happy to see how the organisation came together to work on this. This project is strategically important, and a strong opportunity to position the Association as a key EuroHPC partner.
Overall, I believe we should be more visible in Europe in terms of what we do, because we have a lot to offer. Having seen what we actually deliver, I believe that value deserves to be highlighted, and we need to make sure that we are seen, heard, and recognised as an essential part of a Europe that needs to keep developing and innovating, especially with the new world order we have today. I see us as a strong component in the competitiveness that Europe is striving for.
How would you describe your leadership style, and how do you see it influencing GÉANT’s culture and direction in the coming years?
I would describe my leadership style as open and inclusive, with a strong focus on deliverables.
I see an organisation as a team. No one can do their job without the support of others, and I would not succeed unless I ensure everyone feels included and that their contribution matters. As a leader, it is essential to listen first and understand before taking action.
I also see leading the Association as a different thing. So, while I need to ensure the organisation runs efficiently and that people feel they are contributing, at the same time, we have our members. GÉANT and our member NRENs have a strong and interdependent relationship, where we need to listen to each other at all times.
That is why, as we develop our strategy, one of the questions we are asking is: “How can GÉANT help you achieve your strategy?” Our strategy should enable our members to fulfil theirs.
Having a clear direction, vision, and idea of where to go is essential. But if you get stuck in your own vision, you are not going to be successful in reaching what you have set out to do. As the saying goes: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” This is something I truly believe in.
You already touched a bit on the 2026–2030 GÉANT Association strategy that is in the making right now. Can you share a bit about some of the key priorities and themes that are defining this new strategic vision?
I think what needs to define it is the core. Connectivity has to remain central. But we also need to ask ourselves: Do we need to change how we work because of how the European Commission will structure future funding? Do we need to deliver more full-stack services? Should we look at providing federation services for the education sector? Can we build on the areas where we are already strong and expand from there?
We need to assess our readiness for technological changes, while also considering the evolving funding landscape. I am not saying we should revolutionise what we do, but we should examine our strengths and see whether we can build on them to create new income streams.
I also want us to think three, five, and ten years ahead. You cannot predict exactly where you will be in ten years, but if you have no idea at all, I do not think you will move forward or progress enough. For me, it is important to look at what we are doing now, what we are good at, and where we want to go. And as always, everything we do must take the members into account.
It is also important that we get input from within the organisation. My hope is that their insights, combined with the perspective of our membership, results in a kind of hybrid strategy model that reflects both what we see internally and what our members are seeing externally. That combination will make the strategy stronger.
GÉANT’s mission has always been about empowering the European R&E community. How do you see this mission evolving?
I think it is extremely important that we continue to empower and make Europe stronger. We have excellent services like eduVPN that help make communication secure, but I would also like us to go further in creating an environment that supports student mobility even better – so you can, for example, transfer your grades from Belgium to Bulgaria without any issues. I think we can do more here, and I like the idea of doing more.
I know there are ongoing efforts already, but this is where I see us making a more tangible and easier to understand impact for Europe, because it affects people’s everyday lives. eduroam is another great example here. People know it, and many have used it as students.
Another example is the Erasmus Without Papers project, which offers a practical solution to some of Europe’s student mobility challenges – we have so many countries, each with different systems and ways of doing things. It will not be easy, because each member state has its own way, and not everyone will immediately want to buy into a common solution. But if we do not try, we will not get anywhere.
Our mission has not changed, but I do believe we should be supporting both research and education equally. Both legs are important for us.
And now looking from the global perspective, what role do you see GÉANT playing in that context in the coming years?
I think we need to make sure that we are connected to the rest of the world – not just through connectivity, but also on the political and strategic levels.
The world is rapidly changing. Countries are trying to control how the internet works, and large industrial players already hold power. That is why I believe we as GÉANT, an organization deeply involved in connectivity, should make our voice heard. We have deep technical knowledge and strong political awareness in the community. So, let’s use that influence for good.
Internationally, I think GÉANT has done fantastic work. We have helped establish NRENs, advised on governance structures, and shared knowledge. That is very valuable and something we should continue doing.
TNC is another key part of this. We are creating a space where people from across the globe come together to share, collaborate, and build relationships. That kind of community-building will only grow in importance. The same goes for our involvement in communities like APAN and Internet2. Showing up, participating, and committing to global collaboration – that really matters.
For our latest Women in STEM campaign, we interviewed the next generation of young women rising. As a woman in STEM, how has your journey been so far, and what would you say to young women looking to make their mark in this space? What would you say to your younger self?
I would tell my younger self, “It’s a long way. You’ll take some hits along the way, but it’s worth it. Stand by what you love and what you know. Don’t let anyone intimidate you.”
It is an intimidating world, because still today there are very few women in tech and STEM. I have taken pride in staying true to myself. I think that is important – for your own integrity, but also so others can see that you do not have to be a ‘tough lady’ to be a leader in the STEM world.
We need more female role models as well. If I look at my own Exec team, we are three women out of eight – not very impressive. But I believe we need to get more women organically into board and leadership positions. There is still a tendency that, in some work environments, women have to prove themselves 50% more than men.
Luckily, when I was hired at GÉANT, I did not feel like I had to prove myself more than the male candidates. Of course, I had to show that I could do the job. But during the process, it really helped that the hiring committee explicitly said they had worked on their own biases. That made me feel good, because I have met a lot of bias in the past.
What is also clear, from all the research, is that diverse teams simply perform better. It is not just about diversity for diversity’s sake; it actually leads to better results for everyone.
At the start of the interview, you mentioned that you wish more people knew about GÉANT and its impact. What’s something that you’ve learned about this community that you wish more people recognised?
Honestly, almost all of it – we do a lot of cool things. Just look at what we are doing: connecting supercomputers through our NREN members, eduroam, federation services.
And going back to eduroam, it was not there when I studied, and I wish it had been. But today it is one of those things that has an impact on people’s everyday lives. These are essential tools that benefit students every day and that is what makes it so valuable.
Then there is the network itself – the bandwidth is truly impressive. I wish more people knew that. It is something we need to talk about more. The European Commission has funded a lot of it, so it is thanks to them, but there are some parts of the Commission that aren’t fully aware of what they have helped to build, and how it can help deliver their priorities. So, we need to make sure we are clearly seen as delivering on one of the key parts of the European cohesiveness plan.
Want to meet the rest of the leadership team?
Read our companion article: Meet the GÉANT Executive Team
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