AT&T Indiana has a new leader at its helm. William Soards II has recently been named president of AT&T Indiana and promises to maintain excellent service to customers while branching out beyond their industry and impacting the community.
“Having the opportunity to come back home in a leadership role after spending five years in Colorado is great. I’ve always had a passion for technology and public service and working with those two things in my home state gets me excited,” said Soards, who is a North Central High School and Butler University graduate and spent eight years as a member of the Indianapolis City County Council prior to relocating west.
He’s happy to be home and also happy to spearhead all of the cutting edge and unique products offered by the company. AT&T has successfully transitioned from a phone company into a high tech, broadband company. Their wireless platform touches industries such as personal, health care, education and finance. A new service called AT&T Digital Life, allows customers to manage personalized home automation and security from virtually anywhere.
AT&T also has U-verse which offers digital TV, Internet and voice. Soards, affectionately known as “Bill,” said many of AT&T’s services came to Indiana before branching out to other states thanks to the Indiana General Assembly and public policy makers in the state’s commitment to avant-garde technology policy.
As president, he’ll get the opportunity to rub elbows with state lawmakers and help influence policy. Representing AT&T’s interests across the state, he will work closely with community leaders, elected officials and other policymakers, as well as local and regional business leaders and customers, to help meet AT&T’s objective of connecting people with technology everywhere they live and work.
“It’s an exciting time at AT&T, as consumer demand for our mobile Internet skyrockets and new mobile devices and apps are connecting us as never before,” said Paul LaSchiazza, president, AT&T Midwest Region. “Bill’s knowledge and experience will help AT&T continue to bring innovative technology throughout the state, and I’m thrilled to welcome him to his new leadership role as Indiana state president.”
AT&T is certainly planning on continuing to provide service to customers while simultaneously engaging in the community at a more meaningful level.
According to a White House report, even though long-term unemployment remains elevated, it has somewhat subsided for historically marginalized groups, with the African-American rate reportedly decreasing .5 percent from November (12.4 percent) to December (11.9 percent).
While workers come and go at other companies, AT&T officials believe they have not significantly contributed to the unemployment rate. The company’s employee retention rates remain high and they boast of having a 39 percent minority workforce nationwide. Nineteen percent is African-American and 31 percent of AT&T’s managers are people of color.
“At 5,000 strong in Indiana, we’re holding pretty steady. We are hiring so there’s always jobs available. And as technology makes working more efficient, instead of layoffs, usually we transition people into new roles and continue to educate and train that workforce,” said Soards who has been at AT&T for 14 years. “It’s a large company, but it’s not a faceless company. It’s a pretty diverse work space and Indianapolis is a great melting pot.”
The company has also enjoyed intergenerational and legacy employees – many employees are older and began their careers when AT&T was primarily a telephone company however, their younger offspring are entering the company with new technology experience.
Not only is AT&T committed to its employee-base, it is also committed to youth. The company understands that education is the key to success and states they have always supported initiatives that encourage students to excel.
The company launched “AT&T Aspire” nearly six years ago to combat America’s high school dropout crisis and ensure that students graduate prepared for the next chapter of their lives. Since it’s beginning, the Aspire program has impacted over 1 million students nationwide. Last year, AT&T further renewed its commitment to Aspire with a $250 million investment planned over five years. In Indiana, $1,420,957 has been invested through the program.
“We focus on the drop out rate using existing services. So if you’re a foundation, not for profit, school district – if you have an established program with tangible results, this is what (Aspire) is for,” said David Lewis, director of corporate and external affairs for AT&T.
In addition, through the Aspire Mentoring Academy, the key community engagement program of Aspire, AT&T employees provided 527 hours of mentoring to Hoosier students who are at risk of dropping out of high school.
AT&T also has the “Cell Phones for Seniors” program among other services that allow African-Americans to engage with one another and in their communities, connect with elected officials, be exposed to various online educational opportunities and have access to jobs and health care among others.
At age 40, Soards is relatively young compared to many executives in his industry. He believes the AT&T workforce reflects a fresh perspective in the communications field and that AT&T remains a company that has products that satisfy customers regardless of their differences.
“Telephone networks as we know them aren’t going to be around for much longer. It’s computer networks, internet-based communications with interfaces that are familiar and welcoming to consumers,” said Soards.
For more information, visit ATT.com. For job openings, visit connect.att.jobs/Indiana.
