New Verizon CEO wants 'entrepreneurial' wireline business, new union deals

Verizon has executed its long-planned succession strategy, naming Lowell McAdam CEO as Ivan Seidenberg steps down from the role but maintains his post as chairman of the telco. McAdam steps up from his role as COO, and he will oversee the company's wireline and wireless operations starting Aug. 1.

Lowell McAdam

McAdam said he wants to remake the wireline side to more closely resemble the entrepreneurial flair that typifies Verizon Wireless.

"We will definitely try to bring that entrepreneurial culture from the wireless side into the wireline side," McAdam, 57, told Bloomberg, adding that the company also would focus on "an acceleration of applications and services."

The change in leadership has been long-expected, with McAdam, who has--and will continue to--served as Verizon's president since September, being groomed for the top spot. He has run Verizon Wireless for more than three years.

In addition to his role with Verizon Wireless, McAdam also has been working to change the contracts of wireline workers, a mission he sees as critical to the company.

"(Unions) understand that the business has changed, and our relationship needs to evolve," McAdam told Bloomberg. "It will give us a brighter future from a growth perspective, instead of being kind of an antiquated phone company that slowly loses business and eventually goes out of business."

"This is a well-orchestrated handoff. Given that he's been chief operating officer for the past year, we don't expect much change in strategy," said Todd Rosenbluth, an equity analyst at Standard & Poor's in New York.

Verizon, according to an ABI Research study released in January, is the top hosted VoIP and UC provider in North America.

For more:
- see this release
- see this Bloomberg article

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