Charles E. Hoffman
Encyclopedia
Charles "Charlie" E. Hoffman (born January 27, 1949) is an American business executive, having served two publicly traded companies as CEO for over 10 years. Hoffman was the President
and Chief Executive Officer
of Covad
Communications Group from June 2001 to April 2008. Known as a turnaround artist, Hoffman successfully took Covad through bankruptcy and transformed it into a leading nationwide provider of broadband voice and data communications. He negotiated the sale of the company to Platinum Equity
in late 2007, and stepped down from Covad when the acquisition was completed in April 2008.
Prior to joining Covad, Mr. Hoffman was President
and Chief Executive Officer
of Rogers Wireless
, Inc. (formerly publicly traded as Rogers AT&T), Canada's largest, national wireless service provider. He held this position from January 1998 to June 2001. Under his leadership, the company grew from fourth to first place in a market of four national wireless providers. He also successfully negotiated the sale of one-third interest in this publicly traded company (NYSE and TSE) to a partnership of AT&T
and British Telecom.
Before Rogers, Hoffman served as President
, Northeast region, for Sprint PCS. He was responsible for operations in the largest region in the U.S. and successfully launched PCS wireless service in nine markets. Mr. Hoffman also spent 16 years at SBC Communications (now AT&T
) in various senior management positions, including Director General (President
) of Telcel
, the national wireless carrier in Mexico. During this time, he also served as Managing Director-Wireless for SBC International. Preceding this, Hoffman was President
and General Manager
of SBC's Cellular One
operations, during which he turned around the second and fourth largest SBC markets, Washington/Baltimore and Boston, from underperformers to market leaders in record time.
He is currently a member of the board of directors of Synchronoss Technologies, Softlayer Holdings, and the College of Business Administration at University of Missouri-St. Louis. He previously served on the boards of Chordiant Software and Tollgrade Communications. Both companies were profitably sold while Hoffman served on the board of directors. He attended the Directors College at Stanford University in 2006 and the Corporate Governance program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School in 2009. Hoffman received a bachelor of science and a masters of business administration from University of Missouri, St. Louis. He and his wife Maureen have four children and six grandchildren.
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
and Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Covad
Covad
Covad Communications Group was an American provider of broadband voice and data communications. By 2006, the company had 530,000 subscribers, and ranked 16th largest ISP in the United States. Covad was acquired by U.S...
Communications Group from June 2001 to April 2008. Known as a turnaround artist, Hoffman successfully took Covad through bankruptcy and transformed it into a leading nationwide provider of broadband voice and data communications. He negotiated the sale of the company to Platinum Equity
Platinum Equity
Platinum Equity, LLC is a private equity investment firm founded by Tom Gores in 1995. The firm focuses on leveraged buyout investments of established companies in the U.S. and Europe....
in late 2007, and stepped down from Covad when the acquisition was completed in April 2008.
Prior to joining Covad, Mr. Hoffman was President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
and Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of Rogers Wireless
Rogers Wireless
Rogers Wireless is a wireless telecommunications provider offering mobile phone and data services throughout Canada using Global System for Mobile Communications and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System technology. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rogers Communications...
, Inc. (formerly publicly traded as Rogers AT&T), Canada's largest, national wireless service provider. He held this position from January 1998 to June 2001. Under his leadership, the company grew from fourth to first place in a market of four national wireless providers. He also successfully negotiated the sale of one-third interest in this publicly traded company (NYSE and TSE) to a partnership of AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
and British Telecom.
Before Rogers, Hoffman served as President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
, Northeast region, for Sprint PCS. He was responsible for operations in the largest region in the U.S. and successfully launched PCS wireless service in nine markets. Mr. Hoffman also spent 16 years at SBC Communications (now AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
) in various senior management positions, including Director General (President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
) of Telcel
Telcel
Telcel is Mexico's largest mobile phone carrier, owned by América Móvil. Founded in 1989 and based in Mexico City, Telcel is the leading provider of wireless communications services in Mexico. As of December 31, 2006, Telcel's cellular network covered more than 63% of the geographical area of...
, the national wireless carrier in Mexico. During this time, he also served as Managing Director-Wireless for SBC International. Preceding this, Hoffman was President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
and General Manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
of SBC's Cellular One
Cellular One
Cellular One is the trademarked brand name used by several cellular service providers in the United States and Bermuda. The brand was sold to Trilogy Partners by AT&T in 2008 shortly after AT&T had completed its acquisition of Dobson Communications...
operations, during which he turned around the second and fourth largest SBC markets, Washington/Baltimore and Boston, from underperformers to market leaders in record time.
He is currently a member of the board of directors of Synchronoss Technologies, Softlayer Holdings, and the College of Business Administration at University of Missouri-St. Louis. He previously served on the boards of Chordiant Software and Tollgrade Communications. Both companies were profitably sold while Hoffman served on the board of directors. He attended the Directors College at Stanford University in 2006 and the Corporate Governance program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School in 2009. Hoffman received a bachelor of science and a masters of business administration from University of Missouri, St. Louis. He and his wife Maureen have four children and six grandchildren.