Management Team
Tad Weed
Chief Financial Officer
Thaddeus “Tad” Weed joined Cogent in 2000 and served as Vice President and Controller. In May 2004 he became our Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer until May 2020 when he assumed the new role of Senior Vice President of Audit & Operations. Under this position he implemented numerous process improvements and achieved substantial cost savings for Cogent. In May 2022, he reassumed his position as Cogent’s Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. From 1997 to 1999, Mr. Weed served as Senior Vice President of Finance and Treasurer at Transaction Network Services, where he undertook a broad range of financial management responsibilities. From 1987 to 1997, Mr. Weed was employed at Arthur Andersen LLP where he served as Senior Audit Manager.
Dave Schaeffer
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Dave Schaeffer founded Cogent Communications in August 1999 and is the Chief Executive Officer. Under Mr. Schaeffer's leadership, Cogent has become one of the world's largest Internet Providers. Mr. Schaeffer has led the efforts of 13 successful acquisitions, propelling Cogent's originally U.S.-based network into Canada, Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific. Mr. Schaeffer has successfully founded and operated six other businesses prior to Cogent. These businesses span a wide array of industries from communications to commercial real estate. His diverse background and entrepreneurial successes have enabled him to build management teams that constructed and operate the only facilities-based, non-oversubscribed multinational network of its kind. In 2019, Mr. Schaeffer was named Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year® in Media, Entertainment and Telecommunications.
