Technology >> CEO Interviews >> October 19, 2000
JOSEPH R. ZELL was named President and Chief Executive Officer of
Convergent Communications, Inc. in April 2000 and holds a seat on its
Board of Directors. Mr. Zell served as President of !NTERPRISE
Networking Services for U S WEST Communications, the unit responsible
for product development and operations for all data and Internet-related
products and services, from 1997 through April 2000. !NTERPRISE was
created by U S WEST in 1992 to address the advanced data and network
integration needs of customers in its 14 Western and Midwestern states.
Prior to this role, he was President of the Carrier/Wholesale Division
of U S WEST, which provides wholesale product marketing, sales and
operations support for long distance, wireless and local exchange
carriers. He also served as Vice President of Markets and Innovation at
!NTERPRISE, where he was responsible for developing, sourcing, and
managing applications and products that address the full range of voice,
video and data networking. Mr. Zell began his career at U S WEST in 1991
as Director of Product Development for !NTERPRISE. Later, he served as
the Executive Director of Applications Innovation. In that position, he
developed many new services and applications, which included frame
relay, ATM services, transparent local area network services and
networking integration solutions. Before joining U S WEST, he worked at
WilTel, now WorldCom, for six years and held a variety of marketing and
product development positions. During that time, he was responsible for
the development and introduction of the industry's first frame relay
service. Prior to his tenure at WilTel, Mr. Zell worked at United
Technologies Communications, a PBX manufacturer, and in sales at MCI and
Xerox. Mr. Zell currently serves on the Board of Directors for
USinternetworking (a leading application service provider) and the Shaka
Franklin Foundation. He graduated with honors from Southwest Missouri
State University in Springfield, Missouri, with a degree in Marketing. Profile
Communications, including its history, development, markets, and your
understanding of the firm's future potential?
Mr. Zell:
