Reappointment of Swenson to top spot on FirstNet board is great news for public safety

Of course, Swenson is not doing all of this on her own. Her complementary relationship with Vice Chairman Jeff Johnson has been crucial both internally and in delivering FirstNet’s messages to others. President TJ Kennedy—a man who has held a variety of titles during the past three years—and current CEO Mike Poth have hired hard-working, knowledgeable staff members that have received compliments from even some of FirstNet’s harshest critics.

But such working environments typically are a reflection of leadership, and that appears to be the case with FirstNet and Swenson. That’s why it is great news for public safety that Swenson has opted to remain at FirstNet, despite taking on the CEO role at Novatel Wireless a year ago.

Today, the evaluation process for the FirstNet request for proposals (RFP) is well underway, and an announcement of a contractor is expected in the next three months. Assuming a qualified proposal is accepted from at least three announced bidding teams, then FirstNet should be self-sustaining financially for the next 25 years with no additional funding from Congress.

As important as Swenson has been to this point, her greatest impact likely will come after a contractor is named, because operating a wireless network—not planning or procuring one—is her real professional expertise. For public safety, having someone with Swenson’s operational experience as an advocate should be a real boon to first-responder agencies as this much-anticipated network is established.