Randall Stephenson: Leading AT&T

College degrees count but it’s not the only indicator for success.  People who are successful put in a lot of hard work and have a track record of achievements as they rise through the corporate ranks. A company like AT&T is more on the technology side of things. Yet it is led be someone who was into accounting and learned what he needed to know along the way.

Randall Stephenson graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting.  Later on he would also earn a Masters in Accountancy from the University of Oklahoma.  Stephenson started his corporate career with Southern Bell Telephone (SBC) in 1982.

From there he climbed the corporate ladder getting a number of leadership promotions in finance. Stephenson also got international exposure having been assigned in Mexico City as the director of finance for SBC International.  He was in charge of looking over the company’s ownership interest in Teléfonos de México. 

Stephenson then became the controller for SBC, then senior vice president for Consumer Marketing.  He became senior executive vice president and chief financial officer for SBC from 2001 to 2004. It was during this time there that the company was able to reduce its net debt from $30 billion to nearly zero in the early part of 2004. This financial condition allowed the company to make key acquisitions of AT&T wireless, AT&T Corp. and BellSouth.

From 2004 to 2007 Stephenson was the COO even through the acquisitions of AT&T and BellSouth. For all his hard work and accomplishments he got appointed as chairman and CEO of the company in 2007. SBC is now known as AT&T.  Ironically AT&T was the parent company otherwise known as Ma Bell which used to dominate the telecommunications scene in the U.S.; it was broken up and SBC and BellSouth were amount the spun off entities.

While not possessing a technology background Stephenson understands the technology game very well.  He has strengthened the company’s position as the world’s largest telecommunications company.  He also transformed the company into an international leader in mobile Internet services and IP-based business and communications solutions.

This accountant has become very astute and accomplished in the field of technology.