Mike Zafirovski, the white knight CEO brought in to rescue Nortel Networks, resigned from the beleaguered company this morning, saying he had done all he could and it is time to move on.

Instead of revitalizing the onetime industry giant, Zafirovski watched the global telecommunications equipment maker lose traction against competitors. He finally had no choice but to guide the iconic
Canadian company into bankruptcy proceedings in January. As a sign of Nortel’s decline, Research Triangle Park site is down to 1,850 employees from a onetime peak of 8,500.

In a statement the company said it had reached a natural transition point for Zafirovski to step down. As the company winds down operations, the company's board of directors is being trimmed from nine seats to three, a move that ends the board tenure of Jim Hunt, the former governor of North Carolina.