Living miDream
Dennis Barsema
“From Excellence to Significance”
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Dennis Barsema is an entrepreneur and instructor at Northern Illinois
University College of Business. He was previously the CEO of Blue
Lane Networks (acquired by VMWare), CEO and Chairman of
Onetta, Inc. (acquired by Bookham Technologies), and president and
CEO of Redback Networks, where he led the company through rapid
growth and one of the most successful IPOs in Wall Street history.
Dennis has more than 30 years of executive experience in telecommunications, software, and
optical networking. Prior to joining Redback in 1997, he held senior executive positions at
Centigram Corporation (acquired by ADC), Softswitch (acquired by Lotus Development
Corporation), Primary Access (acquired by 3Com), and Paradyne Corporation (acquired by
Zhone).
He serves, or has served, on the board of directors of numerous venture capital-funded
companies, including Redback Networks, Blue Lane Technologies, Onetta, Azanda, Telenisus,
Tahoe Networks, Stoke, Community Collaboration, and Restaurant.com.
Dennis is the current Chairman of the Northern Illinois University Foundation and he has been
a director on numerous non-profit boards, including Oportunidad Microfinanzas of Mexico, Se
Mas (a microfinance institution) of Mexico, NEST (St. Louis), Collaboration Group, and
Carpenters Place of Rockford, Illinois.
He is also an advisor to the non-profit, micro-finance organization, Opportunity International in
Oak Brook, Illinois, Panzanzee, and the School of Business at Northern Illinois University, and is
a past advisor to the School of Business at Santa Clara University in San Jose, California.
Dennis earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Management from Northern Illinois
University. He is married with three sons and resides in Barrington Hills, IL.
Early Years: Dennis Barsema grew up in the country in a town called Eola, Illinois. “I had
great parents,” Dennis spoke of his family. “Pretty traditional suburban family.” His dad was a
maintenance man at Pepperidge Farm Bakeries and his mother worked at the College of DuPage
as a secretary. “They taught me great moral values,” Dennis said. Having grown up in the
country, Dennis attended Big Woods school, a one room schoolhouse. At the tender age of ten,
Dennis was already earning his first paychecks. He worked at the Oak Brook Polo Club cleaning
horse stalls. “I love horses,” he recalled. “And I worked there until I graduated college.” On top
of his dedication to Oak Brook Polo Club, Dennis also played basketball, baseball, and track and
field.
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While in high school and during the first two years at the College of DuPage, Dennis had very
little social life. “We lived in the country, so I went to school, played sports, and went home to
work,” Dennis said. When he came to NIU, he experienced something like culture shock. He
joined a fraternity called Sigma Alpha Epsilon and got very involved on the university. He was
voted in first as Chairman then voted President of the fraternity. Dennis worked many jobs while
on campus: gas station attendant, bartender and bouncer at the Red Lion Inn, and a dishwasher
at the Sigma, Sigma, Sigma sorority house. He has made many great friends in his fraternity with
whom he is still in contact. ” I also made a great friend at the Newman Center, Father Daniel
Hermes. I am still very dear friends with Monsignor Hermes today. He is the head pastor at St.
Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Crystal Lake, which is the church Stacey and I attend.
Father Dan has been a tremendous influence in my life. I always ask myself when faced with
tough situations, "What would Father do?”
Dennis Barsema earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Marketing from the NIU College of
Business. He graduated on a Saturday in May and the following Monday he started working at a
company called Burroughs Corporation (now called Unisys), a global computer company where
he was a salesman. When Dennis was 25 years old, he knew exactly what he wanted to do,
“become a CEO of a high tech company in Silicon Valley by the time I was 45.” He created a
“roadmap” to guide him on his journey to this objective. He talked to every CEO that would
allow him in his office; they ranged from the CEO of AT&T to the CEO of a small tool and die
shop called Metz Tool and Die. He asked them how they got to where they are now and there
was never an instance where he walked out empty handed: there was always something he could
add to his “roadmap.” Among the things he learned were “get international experience” and
“manage more than just salespeople.”
Dennis enjoyed much about college, especially the relationships and the freedom. “I believe
college teaches you as much about responsibility and accountability, as it does almost anything
else because of the freedom you have. No one is there to make sure you attend class, or study, or
eat right, or get to bed. You have to make those choices on your own. Learning to take
responsibility is a big part of the college experience,” Dennis said of the lessons learned in
college.
As I mentioned, Dennis Barsema had a roadmap starting at age 25 and ending at 45 where he
became the CEO of Redback Networks in Silicon Valley. He did many things while on his
journey to CEO. He was a salesman, Branch Manager, District Manager, Regional Manager,
Vice President of Sales, Vice President of North American Operations, Vice President of
International Sales, Interim-CEO, and finally he became the CEO. It seems as if nothing could
stop this man.
I confronted Dennis with the question, “What unexpected events prevented you from moving
forward with your career?” Although his response was “Nothing prevented me from moving
forward,” he continued to tell me how in 1993 he went through a terrible divorce and was broke
by1994. He had three sons Matthew, Eric, and Jason, but he was not going to let them down.
After hitting what seemed like rock-bottom at the age of 42, he turned it around and in three
years became the CEO he set out to be. “I had a road map and I was sticking to it. I never got
lost,” Dennis told me. In 1996, Dennis set out for California where he would take up his throne
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at Redback Networks. “It was tough adjusting to perfect weather!” Dennis joked. It was in 1997
that he met Stacey, a woman working in Information Technology. They married in 1999. “Great
things happened to me after I met Stacey!” Dennis exclaimed. He wasn’t always the boss, and he
learned something from every single one of his role models; the great, the good, and the bad.
“Sometimes it was what not to do, but that is just as valuable as learning what to do.”
I feel a great sense of family and passion when learning about Dennis. He is devoted to his wife,
Stacey, his sons Matthew, Eric, and Jason, and now his grandchildren, Alexandra and Kate.
Matthew is 33 years old and is a primary school teacher. Eric is 31 years old and is a marketing
director for a non-profit. Jason is 26 years old and works for Credit Suisse in Chicago. Both Eric
and Jason graduated from NIU. Dennis loves to play golf and uses it to conduct business as well.
He has a passion for horses. He grew up around them and has taken care of horses almost his
entire life. Dennis and Stacey just completed a four-stall stable on their property in Barrington
Hills, where they just moved to a few weeks ago. They hope to buys some horses in the spring.
In 2002, Barsema Hall was built on Garden Street on the NIU campus. Dennis said, “We love
NIU, and we wanted to invest in the students of NIU.” The café in Barsema Hall is cleverly
named Three Sons Café, which was a surprise from the university. Dennis retired in 2007 and is
now teaching full-time in the College of Business at Barsema Hall with all of his
time being volunteered. “This is my way of ‘giving back to the world,’” he said,
“I love teaching in the NIU College of Business, and plan to do that for a long,
long time! I get to teach subjects that educate young adults on the needs of the
world, and how they can become involved in solving social and worldly issues
such as clean water, healthcare, clean air, etc. My classes are MGMT 311
(Social Entrepreneurship), and MGMT 411 (Microfinance).”
No longer do I see a name carved into a building, I see a man with a lot to offer. Dennis Barsema
is a very dedicated, yet decorated, individual. He is a man of passion and love. He took time out
of his busy schedule to meet with me. A smile never faded from his face. He has patience and
understanding. Dennis has the ability to not let the world bring him down, but to take advantage
of every opportunity rather than acquiescing when the path was too difficult. This is not the end
for Dennis Barsema: “? I don't think my greatest achievement has been seen yet. I don't know
what it will be, but I think God has bigger plans for me.” Dennis has full faith in the students at
NIU, and the most important thing he feels they should learn is, “What you believe in, defines
what is possible. Believe in something, and it is possible.”
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