Cablefax The Magazine - December 2010 - 33

29. Lisa Washa
VP/GM, Wisconsin KMA,
Charter Communications
Washa's duties include serving
850K Charter customers in MN,
NE, and WI. Next year (her 26th
year in cable), she'll focus on
further simplifying and enhancing
the customer experience
while driving revenue. A skilled
and highly competitive golfer
and a " die-hard " Minnesota
Vikings fan, she owns a local
radio station with her husband.
30. Marilyn Burrows
SVP/GM, Cox Las Vegas,
Cox Communications
Burrows' job overseeing
operations for Cox's Las Vegas
system (420K+ customers) has
become more difficult in light of
the state's sluggish economy.
Undaunted, she's quickly ascended
to Chair of the Nevada
Cable Telecom Association.
32. John Crowley
Regional VP,
Charter Communications
Based in Greenville, SC, the
thoughtful 28-year cable/
broadband exec constantly
ruminates on the issue of how
to best " meet our customers'
expectations. " He believes
" we are closing the gap on a
better customer experience
based on a number of internal
customer experience metrics,
but we still have to work
on the customer's perception
of the company and the
industry. "
of the first independents
to latch on to the digital
revolution, jettisoning analog
channels from his Massillon,
OH, system, 50 miles
south of Cleveland. When
that was over, the affable
Gessner jettisoned analog
TV-literally. At Massillon's
End of an Era company party,
an analog set was hoisted
and dropped unceremoniously
from a crane as firecrackers
exploded. The influence of
Gessner's forward thinking
continues to resound with his
45K customers.
with the New York power
elite, politicos and press
corp, Novet spearheads
TW Cable's government
relations, communications
and philanthropy in the Big
Apple. A Betsy Magness
fellow and board member of
The Queens Library, she's
also known for her negotiating
style, which is a mix of
grace, style and grit.
31. LeAnn Talbot
Regional SVP, Greater
Chicago Region, Comcast
When Chicago Mayor Richard
Daley turned to the local business
community for insight on
management improvement,
Talbot was among the halfdozen
leaders selected. Besides
cable, she's " passionate
about finding a cure for breast
cancer. Women, get your
mammograms. Men, remind
us to get them. All, please give
generously to find a cure. " Her
drive is fueled by " the memory
of my dear friend, and cable
superstar, Mary White. " Amen.
CableFAX: The Magazine
33. Jim Gleason
President/CEO,
NewWave Communications
In '09, Gleason beamed as
NewWave was named a
co-honoree of CableFAX The
Magazine's Customer Service
Award for independent cable.
This year, NewWave was our
Independent Operator of the
Year for its stellar services
to 122K subs in parts of 6
states. Jim's brother, Tom,
was named one of our Lifetime
Achievement honorees.
After all this, only a better
result for his St. Louis Cards
could please Gleason more.
34. Bob Gessner
Pres, Massillon Cable TV
Honored by CableFAX: The
Magazine as indie cable's
Strategic Thinker of the Year
in '09, this second-generation
cable provider is known for
innovation and community
service. Gessner was one
35. Steve Friedman
COO, Wave Broadband
While Friedman's progressive
record at Wave Broadband is
exemplary, he's on our list for
his role as ACA President. A
founding father of the group,
the soft-spoken baseball
trivia fanatic set the vision for
nondiscriminatory programming
pricing for independent
cable operators.
36. Marie Grumbles
RVP Customer Care,
Time Warner Cable
Grumbles is one of the
leaders of the revolution in
customer care at Time Warner
Cable, moving the process
into the virtual world. In the
midst of this major change,
she has increased customer
satisfaction scores in Texas
by several percentage points.
A visionary, Grumbles often is
consulted by her counterparts
in other regions for best
practices.
37. Harriet Novet
RVP, Public Affairs,
Time Warner Cable
A known mover and shaker
november 2008
38. Kim Woodworth
Regional VP, Eastern
Division, Comcast Spotlight
An accomplished writer
and author of the 7-book
children's series Today I
Can, Woodworth oversees
the Eastern Division's
efforts on all new product
launch strategies and
implementation, including
Comcast.net Geo-Targeting
and RFI. Her brainchild, the
" Women in Leadership "
program, expands the type
and level of training for
female executives within
Comcast.
40. Patrick Knorr
CEO, Knorr Solutions
It's a no-brainer that Knorr's
fabled brainpower will
be in great demand as a
newly minted consultant.
After pushing Sunflower
Broadband ahead of most
indie operators (and several
MSOs) on the technology
front, the affable former
COO is busy helping
operators do what he
used to make look easy at
Sunflower. Knorr's expertise
ranges from commercial
services to bandwidth
billing, all digital, advanced
advertising, VOD, bundling
and more. Oh, and he's
looking at acquisitions, too.
39. Theresa
Chillianis
GM, MSG Varsity
Under her guidance, MSG
Varsity-a network totally
dedicated to high school
sports and activities-
has engaged with 85%
of the 600+ schools in
Cablevision's footprint and
produced more than 400
multi-camera game productions,
including 1,200 hours
of original programming and
3K full-length games for the
network's digital platforms.
A diehard Yankees fan and
yoga addict, she's looking
at 24/7 HD programming
next year.
41. Mitch Robinson
Manager, Marketing & Business
Ops, Click! Network
Arguably one of the most
creative people in cable,
CableFAX: The Magazine's
2010 Independent Marketer
of the Year actually dyed his
hair purple to inspire staff
to exceed sales and customer
service milestones.
Seattle-Tacoma-based Robinson
has literally remade
the Click brand, giving it a
distinct voice from its utility
company parent. And talk
about touching your customers,
Robinson offers free
classes for subs to teach
them about new services.
He re-created an Oprah
moment by handing out new
remotes to customers in
one of the classes. ■
cablefaxmag.com
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Cablefax The Magazine - December 2010

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