Published April 2004

Verizon moves regional oversight to California

By Eric Fetters
Herald Business Writer

Verizon will no longer have a regional president of operations in Everett, making the region’s operations staff report instead to a company executive in California.

The change comes with the recent departure of Sheila Lau, who served as the Everett-based Northwest president of operations before being promoted to a similar job in Texas. Verizon spokesman Kevin Laverty said the move, however, doesn’t mean anything worrisome for local employees and customers.

“There will be no change in the day-to-day service for customers,” Laverty said.

Instead, the management shift to a larger regional office reflects the way Verizon already operates in other parts of the country, he said.

“The combined state model is something we already had somewhat in the Northwest, but it’s something we’re doing more of in the company,” Laverty said.

As the local telephone service provider for Snohomish and Island counties, as well as much of northwestern Washington, Verizon is one of the area’s largest employers. In Snohomish County, the company has about 1,400 workers.

Officials with the union that represents some of Verizon’s local employees have met the new regional president, who works in Los Angeles.

“I have reservations, but I think the end result is the new person who is the regional president ... is willing to work with us,” said Ray Egelhoff, business manager for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 89 in Everett. “And I think we’ll get through the change in corporate structure. Hopefully, things will work out for the better.”

With the change, the highest Verizon executive in the Everett regional headquarters will be the vice president for public policy and external affairs. Following the retirement last fall of Allan Thoms, that position has not yet been filled, Laverty said.

Meanwhile, Lau already has moved back to Texas to begin her new job. She arrived at the Everett headquarters in September 2002 from Irving, Texas, where she oversaw Verizon’s business and consumer repair centers in the western half of the nation.

Like her predecessors who served as the Northwest operations president, Lau was responsible for a network of 1.6 million phone lines in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and northern California.

During her time in Everett, Verizon expanded its digital subscriber line network, increasing customers’ access to high-speed Internet service. She also maintained the Northwest region’s reputation as the best for customer service among Verizon’s territories across the country.

Lau also was well known locally for her involvement with a number of community service organizations.

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