Sue Swenson’s roots in telecommunications are deep and wide. There are few executives in the wireless industry with the variety of leadership experience Sue has accumulated over the course of her career. Over three decades, she has earned a reputation as an energetic, straightforward leader willing to tackle obstacles with creativity and commitment. She has never shied away from challenges.
Beginning her telecom career with Pacific Telesis, Sue served from 1979 to 1994 in various operating positions within the organization on both the regulated and unregulated sides of the corporation. Under her leadership as President and COO, PacTel Cellular became the first carrier to commit to the nascent CDMA technology in 1992. This support led to the development of CDMA as a second industry-wide standard for digital wireless systems. Sue helped shepherd CDMA into the standards process as co-Chair of the CTIA Technology Committee. During this time she also served on the Board of CTIA, helping guide the industry through the spirited technology debates over the transition to digital standards.
In 1994, she went on to serve as CEO and President of Cellular One in the Bay Area, a joint venture of AirTouch and AT&T. She served as President of Leap Wireless from 1999 to 2004, followed by a stint as COO of T-Mobile USA. Sue moved beyond her roles with major carriers into the software industry, serving as CEO of the software firm Sage Corp. She retired from Sage in 2011.
Sue applied her extensive experience as a telecom and technology executive to FirstNet, the First Responders Network Authority. She was appointed to the original FirstNet Board in 2012 and took over the role of Chair in August 2014. Sue embraced the FirstNet mission to build the first high-speed, nationwide wireless broadband network dedicated to public safety, and took on the challenge of moving many diverse interests toward the FirstNet goals.
She previously served on the Board of Directors of Wells Fargo, Spirent Communications, Harmonic and Novatel Wireless and on the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine. Sue is on the boards of Faraday Future, Vislink Technologies, and Sonim Technologies Inc. In 2015, Sue became the second woman inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame at the awards celebration in Las Vegas.