Barry Rowan
EVP, CFO & Chief Administrative Officer of Vonage Interview: A Search for Meaning in Our Work | Transcript CFO Studio Magazine Article: Building on Values, 3rd Quarter 2012
| |
Bio: Barry Rowan has thirty years of senior leadership experience building significant technology and communications companies. He currently serves as EVP, CFO and Chief Administrative Officer for Vonage Corporation in Holmdel, New Jersey where he has been since March 2010. He is fully engaged in helping lead the turnaround of this internet communications company with revenues of approximately $900 million. From 2003-2006, he was with Nextel Partners, serving as its EVP, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. From its founding in 1999 in Kirkland, Washington, Nextel Partners grew into a Fortune 1000 company providing Nextel-branded services to over 2 million customers in mid-sized and rural markets in 31 states. The company was consistently ranked among the fastest growing wireless companies in the U.S., reaching $1 billion in revenues in its first five years. Fueled by this rapid growth, the equity value of the company grew from $2 billion to over $9 billion during the three years of Rowan’s tenure, culminating in its sale to Sprint for $10 billion in June of 2006.After starting his career in the finance department for a division of Hewlett-Packard, Barry joined Comlinear Corporation after graduating from the Harvard Business School. Comlinear was a venture-backed technology company that would become the 110thfastest growing company in the U.S. He began as its Chief Financial Officer and was later promoted to President at age 32. In 1992 he joined Fluke Corporation (NYSE) as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In 1995, he became Vice President and General Manager of the verification tools division, and in 1996, he was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Manager of the newly-created networks division, a business that grew from start-up to $100 million in six years. Fluke’s stock price more than tripled during Rowan’s six years with the company. From 1999 to 2001, Mr. Rowan served as Chief Financial Officer at VeloCom Inc., a large-scale telecommunications start-up doing business inSouth America, and subsequently served as Chief Executive Officer of Vesper, the company’s Brazilian subsidiary. From 2002 to 2003, he was a principal at Rowan & Company, LLC. Mr. Rowan earned his M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School in 1983, and his B.S., summa cum laude, in Business Administration and Chemical Biology from The College of Idaho in 1979. Mr. Rowan has been a director for publicly-traded companies, including ICO Global Communications and ARIS Corporation, has served on the boards of multiple privately held companies, and is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors. Driven by his belief in giving back to the community, he has also served many non-profit organizations, including as a trustee for Seattle Pacific University, the board of advisors for the Honors Program in Entrepreneurial Leadership at Gonzaga University, and as President of the Bellevue Christian School board. He has taught university courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels and is a frequently requested speaker at a wide-variety of forums. He is married to Linda, his best friend and wife of thirty years, and they have two sons, Mark and David, both in their early twenties. An avid reader and lover of the outdoors, Barry enjoys skiing, hiking, golf, and most sports. | |
www.CFOstudio.com/BarryRowan |