FEMA chief tenders resignation
Joe Allbaugh tendered his resignation as Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency effective March 1.
He has been FEMA director since February 2001, and prior service includes President Bush’s national campaign manager in 2000 and chief-of-staff in Texas from 1995-2000.
By the time of his departure, he will have worked for Bush for nine years.
Most visibly, he has been President Bush’s personal representative following the Sept. 11 attacks. Allbaugh immediately made federal resources available to New York City and Arlington County, offering them trained incident commanders, Urban Search and Rescue Teams and the resources of 26 federal agencies under the Federal Response Plan.
Allbaugh said he wants to explore other opportunities in the private sector and spend more time with his wife and children.
Wheeler plans CTIA departure
Thomas Wheeler, President and CEO of Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA) announced his resignation as President of the organization, stating he wishes to pursue other activities, including writing books and more involvement in community activities. He also serves on the Board of the Kennedy Center for the Arts.
CTIA was founded in 1984 as the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association and Wheeler became its president in 1992. Prior to that, he served as president of the National Cable Association. Under his direction, CTIA has grown to be a $42 million trade association and is credited with bringing PCS carriers and others under the group’s umbrella. He was also responsible for changing the association’s name to best reflect the growing role of the internet and expanding its lobbying group. He built CTIA into one of the most formidable lobbying groups on the beltway and could personally work both parties easily. He has more than 25 years experience in the cable, wireless and video communications industries.
Thomas Wheeler is an avid history buff and an expert on the Civil War, having authored one book entitled “Take Command!,” which profiles nine specific leadership lessons of the Civil War and their results. He plans to work on the next book as he “pursues other activities.”
Just after his announced resignation, The Foundation for the National Archives named Wheeler as the president of the board of directors for the National Archives Foundation.
The National Archives serves a role in preserving the history of the United States democracy and educating all Americans about the importance of documents as resources for future generations. Wheeler gladly accepted the position.
“My grandfather taught me to love history, and before I could drive, he had walked me around almost all of the major battlefields of the eastern theater and made them come to life before my eyes,” Wheeler said. “For the past 10 years, the Foundation has supported the education and outreach programs of the National Archives that serve to enrich, enlighten and educate Americans of the importance of the National Archives as a public trust upon which our American democracy depends. I am proud to continue the path of Charles Guggenheim to help bring this important national institution into the next stage of discovery.”
Wheeler’s resignation from CTIA will take effect December 2003.
CeoTronics names president
Devra Herlin has been named company president of CeoTronics Inc. (Chesapeake, Virginia). She comes to the company with 15 years of experience in the land communications industry. Most recently, Herlin held the position of vice president for governmental sales and director of digital development at RELM Communications Inc., a manufacturer of analog and digital radios for governmental and business/industry applications.
Paul Minton joins California Eastern
California Eastern Laboratories is pleased to announce that Paul Minton, a longtime strategic planning consultant to CEL, has joined the company. He will serve as Vice President, Corporate Development. Minton has worked closely with CEL for over seven years, and has held a seat on the company’s board of directors for the last two.
“We’ve experienced considerable growth in the last seven years, in both our sales revenues and our product offering,” says Jerry Arden, CEL President and CEO. “Paul’s expertise has contributed significantly to the successful management of our growth. It has also helped us steer a stable course through the downturn.”
Minton earned a bachelors degree from the University of Maryland, where he studied economics, chemistry, and mathematics. He earned a master’s degree at Stanford University, where he studied economics, business and engineering. Prior to joining CEL, Mr. Minton was a Senior Consultant with the Center for Simplified Strategic Planning, for which he led the California regional office. He helped clients like Cisco Systems Capital, Toshiba Medical Systems, and CEL develop their go-to-market strategies and align their internal activities and resources to support those strategies.
“CEL’s world is changing rapidly,” states Minton, “globalization, outsourcing, and a variety of other factors are changing the way we do business. I’m looking forward to working with the many talented people at CEL, and our business partners at NEC, to develop new ways to collaborate with our customers. We want to be able to help our customers identify and execute new solutions, and help them deliver the results they have promised their customers and investors.”
Lloyd climbs Pinnacle Towers
Pinnacle Holdings Inc. announced that W. Scot Lloyd, 41, has joined the company as executive vice president, sales and Marketing. Lloyd has 20 years of experience in commercial real estate development, management and leasing, the most recent six of which have been in wireless communications.
Prior to joining Pinnacle, Lloyd served for four years in executive positions with SpectraSite Communications Inc., most recently as vice president of sales.
He also served as managing director of Spectrasite Transco Communications Ltd., in the United Kingdom, where he was responsible for the overall management and leasing of the company’s site portfolio.
Prior to Spectrasite, from 1998 to 1999, Lloyd held the position of director of tower assets for Nextel Communications Inc. and from 1996 to 1998 was President of Cypress Real Estate Services Inc., a firm specializing in site selection, acquisition and permitting for wireless clients.
Earlier in his career, Lloyd was a principal in commercial real estate firms providing property management, leasing, brokerage, and mortgage banking services for retail, office and industrial properties. He began his career with Arvida Realty and holds a bachelor of science from the University of Missouri.
Steven R. Day, Pinnacle’s Chief Executive Officer, said “We are extremely pleased to add Scot to our executive team. He brings to us extensive experience in site acquisition, development and leasing from both the carrier and tower company perspectives.
In addition, he has a proven track record in building and leading successful sales and marketing organizations. I am confident that he will have a positive impact on our strategic selling efforts and operating initiatives.”
Scot Lloyd, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing commented, “I am very excited to be joining Pinnacle at this stage in its evolution. Pinnacle has tremendous assets that I am confident we will be able to grow over the long term by strengthening our customer relationships and raising the bar on our service levels.”
Cell phone billionaire McCaw dies
Keith McCaw, a billionaire whose family helped create a cellular-phone empire, was found dead in a hottub in his lakeside Seattle mansion. He was 49.
Reached in Auckland, New Zealand, family spokesman Bob Ratliffe told The Associated Press late Sunday that McCaw had died early that morning.
Police and firefighters received a 911 call of a possible drowning in the block where McCaw’s mansion sits near Lake Washington. Paramedics tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The cause of death was not immediately known.
“There is no indication of foul play at this point. This is just a normal death investigation,” police spokesman Scott Moss said.
McCaw made his fortune as a stockholder in McCaw Cellular Communications, which AT&T bought in 1994 for $11.5 billion.
Keith McCaw served in various management positions at his family’s company, but was reportedly never a major player. He ended his role as an employee in 1986, but continued as a director until 1991.
Forbes magazine listed McCaw as the 445th-richest man in the world this year, tied with brothers Bruce and John. His brother, Craig McCaw, was listed as the world’s 168th richest person, worth $2.4 billion.
“He was a good man and a good friend,” said Ratliffe, who was in Auckland, New Zealand, working with Craig McCaw in his bid to win the America’s Cup Challenger Series with Seattle’s OneWorld.
Keith McCaw was the youngest of four brothers in a family known for their successful business deals. Their father, Elroy McCaw, made a fortune owning radio and television stations, but the family estate was declared bankrupt after he died of a stroke in 1969.
