When Cisco Systems employees head into work Monday they’ll encounter something they haven’t seen in two decades: A new boss. Chuck Robbins – formerly senior vice president of worldwide operations – takes over as CEO from John Chambers, one of the most visible and quotable figures in business.

In this early-access interview with John Gallant, chief content officer of IDG US Media, Robbins sets out his priorities for Cisco and his new management team, and talks about the opportunities and challenges facing the network giant. Robbins dissects the competitive landscape and explains why so-called ‘white box’ data center gear and software-defined networks are not the threats to Cisco that some pundits contend. He also describes his vision for the “hyper-connected architecture” that will speed customer digitization efforts and help IT capture the value in the Internet of Things. Finally, Robbins talks about life at Cisco under a leader not named John.

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