Jerry James, CEO of COMPTEL and half of the new two-executive team leading the association in 2008, will report success with business as well as policy goals set for the association earlier this year, during Monday’s opening remarks at the COMPTEL PLUS Convention & Expo.
James, a telecom veteran, and Matt Salmon, a former congressman, were tapped in December 2007 to take on the roles of CEO and president, respectively, for the association. Previously, the job was held by one person.
“We are doing a lot of new things,” James said in an advance interview. “We are trying to bring better value to our membership in multiple ways, not just advocacy but to their business interests. Obviously, what we want to do is be a marketplace of ideas and connections for our members to work with each other.”
COMPTEL long has been viewed as a policy-centric association, but even those efforts have been stepped up under the new management team. According to James, Salmon’s experience and relationships in Congress have resulted in “literally hundreds” of meetings between COMPTEL staff, its members and the country’s legislators and regulators. “That was a significant increase in activity than formerly seen by COMPTEL,” he said.
As part of the lobbying efforts, Salmon and the COMPTEL staff brought more than two dozen member company CEOs to Washington, D.C., June 3-4 to oppose the Qwest forbearance petition. “That was very successful,” he said. The FCC on July 25 voted 5-0 to deny Qwest’s long-pending request for relief in four major markets: Denver, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Phoenix and Seattle.
Salmon also was invited along with member CEOs to testify at Congressional oversight hearings on various issues, such as forbearance, copper utilization, USF reform and interconnection. “That shows that they recognize our role in the competitive industry,” James said.
Raising COMPTEL’s profile was one of the leadership duo’s goals. As part of that, the association has been working with a marketing firm to place ads in Roll Call, the Capitol Hill newspaper, and also in billboards in the DC Metro, promoting competition in the telecom industry. It also cohosted meetings coinciding with both the Republican and Democratic conventions.
Its consumer education program also includes the Free to Compete Web site (www.freetocompete.com), which it took over from Vonage Holdings Corp. last fall. The Web site provides news and education on policy issues that impact telephony services and offers consumers a way to contact their lawmakers.
COMPTEL also has beefed up education programs for members. It hosted its first regional workshop, “Acquisitions from the Perspectives of Investors, Management and the Legal Community,” in April. The C-level executive event was so successful that its sponsors — Bingham McCutchen LLP, Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, Matrix Telecom and Waller Capital Partners — signed on to reprise the event this fall in Dallas. In addition, they are doubling the number of participants to 100.
COMPTEL also has launched a Webinar series. There have been two sessions so far this year.
The association’s Partners Program also is expanding to offer members discounts and special offers on a wider range of services. ID cards for the program are being issued to help facilitate those transactions, James said.
The expanded programs and initiatives have supported COMPTEL’s aggressive recruitment goals. James said 25 new members have joined the association; some of the newcomers also are in line with COMPTEL’s diversification efforts (e.g., not CLECs). James cited one example, the Federation of Internet Solutions Providers of America (FISPA), which has entered into an affinity agreement with COMPTEL for its membership of ISPs.
“We’ve continued to diversify our membership across the broad spectrum of our competitive industry,” James said, noting this includes a range of service providers (voice, data and video) as well as providers of content, software, managed services, enhanced services, equipment and professional services.
Looking ahead, James said he is optimistic about next year. Regardless of the outcome of the presidential election, there will be changes that may bode well for the industry.
“We are looking forward to 2009 and the possibilities for COMPTEL and our industry. We will have a new White House, a new Congress and a new FCC. There’s the possibility of telecom legislation and reform.”
