Verizon Wireless’ Kristi Crum Returns To Arkansas

Editor’s note: This article appears in the latest magazine edition of Talk Business Arkansas, which you can read here.

Verizon Wireless South Central Regional President Kristi Crum returns to Arkansas after stints in New Jersey and California.

A Hendrix College alum with a degree in biology, Crum started her career as an analyst with Alltel Corp. The North Little Rock native and mother of twin boys talks about technology and offers career advice.

Talk Business Arkansas editor-in-chief Roby Brock visited with Crum at Verizon Wireless’ regional headquarters in Little Rock.

Roby Brock:  Tell me a little bit about what it feels like to be back in the Natural State.

Kristi Crum:  I left here a little over five years ago. When the opportunity came, I obviously jumped on it. But when you leave here, you realize what a gem it is; just the people and the beauty of it. I really missed it. New Jersey was beautiful, California was amazing, but there’s nothing like coming home.

Brock:  You realize you left the wine country of northern California and the technology center of the universe near Silicon Valley, what were you thinking?

Crum:  It’s funny, last October I was talking to some peers of mine and I said my next step – and I’ve never been bold enough to tell everyone what my next step was going be – I said my next step: I want to go home to Arkansas and be the president of the South Central Region. That’s what I want. I’m from there. You guys aren’t from there. Let me have it. So, this was definitely what I wanted.

Brock:  Your industry is undergoing fundamental changes. Every day things seem to move at the speed of light. How do you balance moving quickly, but also moving cautiously?

Crum:  Three years ago, we launched our first LTE markets. It was the first time anybody had experienced true LTE speeds. Now fast forward three years later, and we’ve got over 300 million people covered in LTE in 500 markets. But we have to balance that with what our customers want. We still have customers who want to have a basic device. They aren’t interested in moving into that type of technology. So we’re trying to balance what they want with what we have to offer.

Brock:  How should consumers think about the technology you have to offer?

Crum:  We don’t want our consumers to think of us as a wireless company. We want you to think of us as a technology company. We’ve got so many things, so many tools besides just smartphones. We have accessories that can really change your life. There are so many things you can do right now just off your smartphone that you could not have even dreamed about three years ago. We want to make sure that our customers come in and take a look.

Brock:  What’s the best career advice you’ve either received or shared with people?

Crum:  Number one, be relentlessly optimistic because people want to work with someone who’s fun and wants to be here. I’m not the smartest one, but I’m the one that’s willing and the one that’s most excited to be here. The other thing, cultivate a beginner’s mind. Beginners don’t see any reason why you can’t succeed. They don’t see any objections or any obstacles. They just see green pastures. So I would say ask a lot of questions and just pretend you’re a beginner.