Turn the Page

I am done with Sprint. On Monday I begin the next chapter of my career working for Ericsson, in its North American Services division. Anxiety and apprehension are high. Many things will likely change, but the specific changes are not known.

I started working for Sprint on August 13th, 1996. As I look back on my last 13 years, one thing is obvious. Sprint has been very good to me and my family. I became a Sprint employee as an individual contributor with a narrowly focused technical aptitude. Over the course of my employment with Sprint, my role, aptitude and comfort area has transitioned to management and leadership. During this transition, I have developed my management principals and philosophy. Sprint rewarded that development by paying me well.

I have watched the company I work for move from a total monopoly in the markets they serve, to one that competes for every customer. I have been intimately involved in the entire life cycle of high speed data and wireless products, from business case to implementation to operation. High speed data and wireless services have moved from high end extravagances to the point where they are considered commodities. A majority of homes now have one or both services.

I have seen the incredible adoption of email, text messaging and wireless voice services. My smart phone does more than my first computer did. That phone has become both a blessing and a curse that keeps me connected to the office 24 x 7.

When I started this job, there were times in every day when I could not be reached. Today there is never a time when I cannot be reached. If I forget my phone, I feel weird and unequipped to perform my responsibilities. I worry that Terri or my kids may not be able to reach me in an emergency. It is completely irrational, but real none the less.

I wonder what the future with Ericsson will hold. There is a measure of excitement. This may lead to growth, both personal and professional. I wonder if I will be able to hold on for another 13 years? What will the telecommunications industry look like then? If the changes are as dramatic as the past 13 years, I wouldn't be able to recognize it through the eyes of today.

Sprint is currently in a bad place. They are losing customers while the competition is gaining them. That fact must be reversed someday in the near future. While I will no longer be an employee, Sprint is still my concern. They must be profitable in order for Ericsson to do well. In many ways, nothing has or will change. I will go to the same parking garage, building and cube. I will sit in front of the same PC and monitor. I will lead the same people. I have the same peers, boss and internal customers. Yet, I no longer work for Sprint and will turn the page.