Verizon officials declined to comment on a new report that said the head of the company's wireless business may leave. Specifically, the United Kingdom’s Telegraph reported that Ronan Dunne, EVP and group president of Verizon’s wireless business, recently visited the United Kingdom to discuss the potential of becoming the CEO of BT.
The news comes amid efforts by BT to find a new chief executive and the recent appointment of Hans Vestberg as the CEO of Verizon.
Dunne joined Verizon in late 2016; before that he was the chief executive of Telefónica’s business in the United Kingdom, operating under the O2 brand. Dunne was one of several new faces added to Verizon’s executive leadership team at that time—a notable development at a company that had previously promoted from within. Other executives who joined Verizon circa 2016 include Frank Boulben, SVP of strategy and marketing; Rima Qureshi, SVP and chief strategy officer; and Diego Scotti, EVP and chief marketing officer.
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Importantly, Vestberg—formerly the CEO of infrastructure giant Ericsson—earlier this year was named as the successor to Lowell McAdam as Verizon’s new chief executive. During Verizon’s recent second-quarter earnings conference call, Vestberg laid out the company’s strategy—which centers squarely on its launch of 5G technology—and Dunne wasn’t on the call. However, Dunne is scheduled to appear at the upcoming Mobile World Congress Americas trade show next week in Los Angeles.
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Vestberg's most recent salary figures peg his total compensation package at almost $10 million. McAdam's package totals almost $18 million.