In a career that spanned more than 40 years, Dennis (Denny) Strigl has been a leader in telecommunications and was a pioneer at the forefront of the wireless industry.  His path began in 1968 working at the New York Telephone Company.

After gaining industry experience at various companies, Denny was named president and CEO of Ameritech Mobile Communications in 1984. Ameritech was the first cellular telephone network in the U.S., rolling out wireless service in Chicago on October 13, 1983.  He then became president and CEO of Applied Data Research, Inc., an Ameritech subsidiary. Denny’s management style aimed to minimize corporate bureaucracy, make wireless communications easy for consumers, and fuel the company’s growth. He initiated Ameritech’s “Wireless at Work”, a philanthropic community service program with the goal of improving safety and emergency communications in local communities through wireless products and services.

Starting in 1989, Denny was VP of product management at Bell Atlantic Network Services. By 1991, he was named its president and CEO. Denny oversaw Bell Atlantic’s merger with Metro Mobile CTS, and its merger with Nynex Mobile in 1995, continuing his role as its president and CEO.  In 2000, Denny was in charge of integrating Verizon by combining Bell Atlantic Mobile, Vodafone AirTouch and GTE Wireless. As the Verizon Communications chief operating officer, he oversaw Verizon Wireless, Verizon Telecom, Verizon Business and Verizon Services Operations. Denny retired from Verizon in December 2009.

In 1984, Denny was a founding member of the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA), and sat on its board for several years.  He also served as the chairman of CTIA from 1996 to 1997.

Denny is a graduate of Canisius College in Buffalo, NY, and served as a trustee and then as chairman of their board of trustees.  He holds an MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Rutherford, NJ and was named to its Pinnacle Society for distinguished alumni.  Denny was inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame in 2004, and received Wireless Week’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. He has served on a number of boards including PNC Financial Services and Eastman Kodak. Denny is an author, guest speaker, owns a small consulting company, and is a frequent guest on the FOX News Channel, FOX Business, CNBC and MSNBC. He has been a visiting professor at Princeton University since 2013 where he teaches an undergraduate level course in leadership.