NEWS
With hurricanes heading for the coast of Florida there is plenty of turbulence in north America at the moment, but the telecom industry has been far from immune to change.
The sudden departure of CFO Bob Gunderman from Windstream after eight years is the latest change as internal candidate Drew Smith replaces him – formerly treasurer and SVP of financial planning.
Tony Thomas, president and CEO of Windstream commenting on Smith’s appointment said “He has a deep understanding of the financial and operational drivers of our business, is data driven and results oriented. He will lead our efforts to continue to invest in our strategic growth areas to drive improvements in operating results.”
Earlier in the week Charter Communications CEO Tom Rutledge announced his retirement with Chief Operating Officer Chris Winfrey stepping up to succeed him. Rutledge has been CEO since 2012 and has overseen massive growth in the company, driven mostly by acquisitions including Bright House Networks and Optimum West and its merger Time Warner Cable.
Winfrey who has been with Charter for more than a decade restated his commitment the company’s success saying we “will continue our track record of delivering the best connectivity products and service to our customers, investing in the careers of our employees, and building long-term value for shareholders.”
Elsewhere Jeff Storey also announced his retirement from Lumen Technologies with him replacement coming from Microsoft in the shape of Kate Johnson, whilst Altice USA has also looked outside for a new CEO appointing long time Comcast executive Dennis Mathew to succeed Dexter Goei who will become Executive Chairman of the Board.
There will be executives in abundance at the Total Telecom Connected America event in Dallas next March. Find out more about how you can get involved here.
