Robert Seidel is currently an Operating Partner at Lakewood Advisors, a financial advisory and consulting firm that focuses on the media technology industries. Prior to joining Lakewood Advisors, he had a 43-year tenure at CBS, where he served as Vice President of Engineering and Advanced Technology. During his distinguished career in broadcasting, he directed the design and installation of CBS’s Broadcast Origination Center and spearheaded the conversion of CBS and CW networks’ broadcasts to HDTV. Bob headed up the engineering team that made broadcasting history when WRAL-HD, the CBS affiliate in Raleigh, NC, became the first television station to transmit HDTV on July 23, 1996.

Robert is the recipient of an Emmy Award for pioneering the use of portable satellite uplink systems in worldwide news gathering and a Television Engineering Achievement Award from the National Association of Broadcasters.

He served as Chairman of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Technical and Engineering Emmy Selection Committee for 10 years. He is a Fellow of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, where he has also served as President, and a member of the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers. Prior to his work with CBS, Robert worked for the U.S. Department of Defense, specializing in electronic countermeasures. Robert holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Lehigh University.