- Another long-time Verizon technology executive announced his departure
- Adam Koeppe, Verizon SVP and chief network officer/core, is leaving after more than 26 years with the company
- No replacement was publicly named; Koeppe will depart at the end of this year
Verizon SVP and Chief Network Officer/Core Adam Koeppe is leaving at the end of this year after spending more than 26 years at the company.
In a LinkedIn post, Koeppe said it’s time to move on to the next chapter after helping build the infrastructure that’s powering the modern economy.
Koeppe started his telecom career in customer service at Bell Atlantic Mobile, which became part of Verizon Communications in June 2000.
In the LinkedIn post, he credited his time at Bell Atlantic for introducing him to “two of my closest friends and my amazing wife.”
Career spans wireless, wired, cloud
“When I began my career here, the global telecommunications architecture looked fundamentally different. Being part of the leadership that helped shape the evolution of wireless, wired and cloud platform networks has been a profound honor,” he said.
Koeppe’s exit comes amid other executive upheaval in Verizon’s ranks since CEO Dan Schulman took over one year ago. Fierce reached out to Verizon for comment, but a spokesperson declined; no direct replacement for Koeppe was named.
The departing executive remains optimistic about Verizon’s prospects.
“My confidence in Verizon’s future remains high. The mission to build, secure and scale the foundational networks of tomorrow matters now more than ever,” he said, adding that he will be rooting for the V–Team as they “continue to expand the boundaries of what is possible with creativity and empathy.”
Schulman reshapes his team
It’s typical for a new CEO to bring in his own team. In a way, Schulman has gone above and beyond that, revealing plans to lay off about 15,000 workers shortly after he left his post as lead independent board director to take the chief executive role.
As for the executive shuffle, Abdu Mudesir earlier this year emerged as the heir apparent to Joe Russo, who announced his retirement after nearly 30 years at Verizon.
Mudesir’s career change came amid some atypical drama. In March, he abruptly left his role as head of product technology and development at Deutsche Telekom to take on a “professional role abroad,” leaving most folks guessing where exactly he was headed.
A couple months later, news emerged that he was headed to Verizon, where he’s expected to start his new role in 2027.
Meanwhile, Sowmyanarayan Sampath, former head of the Verizon Business and Consumer divisions, left at the end of the first quarter; he’s now the CEO at Zayo. Sampath was widely believed to be a strong candidate for the CEO role at Verizon before Schulman took over.
Alfonso Villanueva, whom Schulman worked with at PayPal, was named head of the Consumer division in July. Kyle Malady remains head of the Business Group.
Who’s next to leave? We have no idea, but definitely worth keeping on eye out.
Read more about Verizon's executive leadership on Fierce Network:
Ex-DT exec Abdu Mudesir to join Verizon
Verizon EVP Joe Russo says if the network is ‘invisible,’ it’s working
Sampath is leaving Verizon at the end of the first quarter
Verizon’s Jim Gerace to retire after 37 years