Zafirovski Answers Motorola's Call

Just a week after GE Lighting (Cleveland) dazzled Lightfair 2000 (New York) with a huge booth, myriad new-product introductions and several off-hour events, Mike Zafirovski, the division's president and ceo, resigned. Tall, well groomed and tan, Zafirovski had been a commanding presence in GE's booth and throughout the show.

Now, Zafirovski has assumed the role of president of Motorola's personal communications sector. This is the company's largest business segment — comprising cellular phones, two-way radios and pagers.

His successor is Matthew Espe. At age 41, Espe is perhaps, one of the younger execs to take the helm of a major lighting division. However, half of these years have been spent in service of the General Electric Company (Fairfield, Conn.). Upon completion of his undergraduate degree, Espe joined GE Supply's Technical Marketing Program in 1980, as an industrial sales representative. While there, he held various sales management functions before transitioning to marketing roles. In 1993, he moved to GE Plastics. His most recent position was president and senior managing director of GE Plastics Europe, where Espe was based in Bergen op Zoom, the Netherlands.