Larissa L. Herda Chairman, CEO and President

Ms. Larissa Herda took the helm of tw telecom inc., formerly Time Warner Telecom Inc., as CEO and President, on June 19, 1998. She was elected Chairman of the tw telecom inc. Board of Directors effective June 7, 2001, and currently holds the title of Chairman, CEO and President. Ms. Herda served as the company’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing from March 1, 1997 until her appointment as chief executive.

 
Under Ms. Herda’s direction, tw telecom grew from $26 million in revenue in 1996 to $1.4 Billion in 2011; expanded its broadband network footprint from 17 U.S. markets to 75; built a national IP backbone recognized as one of the top 10 most connected IP networks in the world; introduced comprehensive data, voice, Internet and national Ethernet products and made three acquisitions. Ms. Herda has raised approximately $7 billion in the public and private debt markets, including a $290 million IPO, since becoming tw telecom President and CEO.

Ms. Herda is a member of the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC) and is chairman of the board of the Denver Branch of the Federal Reserve of Kansas City. She is also a member of the Colorado Innovation Network advisory board, appointed by Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, to promote collaboration among Colorado’s private, public and academic organizations and to stimulate economic growth, help create jobs and attract new businesses.

 
Ms. Herda has been a member of the board of directors for eight years at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado and is currently a member of the school’s advisory board for the Center for Education in Social Responsibility (CESR). She is a member of The Committee of 200 and a member of the community advisory board of SungateKids, a local children’s advocacy center helping abused children and their families.

Recognized for her business efforts and leadership in the community, Ms. Herda was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Rocky Mountain Region and the Denver Business Journal’s CEO of the Year and Outstanding Woman in Business. In addition, she was named Telecom Executive of the Year by the Denver Telecom Professionals. She also received the “Swede” Johnson Hope Award presented by the Colorado Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the Women of Distinction Award from the Girl Scouts of America.

Ms. Herda is a graduate of the University of Colorado.

John T. Blount

John T. Blount was appointed Chief Operating Officer in June 2005. Mr. Blount oversees the company’s business goals, operational efficiencies, and market development. In addition, Mr. Blount is responsible for new product development, sales, and customer service. Prior to then, he was Executive Vice President Field Operations and was responsible for double digit enterprise growth and implementation of our Internet strategy and data product portfolio. From 1998 to 2000, Mr. Blount was the company's Senior Vice President – Sales. From January 1997, he was Regional Vice President for the Midwest and Southwest regions; and Milwaukee's Vice President and General Manager from January 1996. Before joining the company, Mr. Blount held various sales positions at US WEST, starting in 1988, including Director of Sales for US WEST Enterprise in Minneapolis, and Sales and Service Manager for South Dakota.

Mark A. Peters

Mark A. Peters is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. He joined tw telecom in 1998 and became CFO in 2005.

Mr. Peters is responsible for the company's finance functions, including tax, financial planning, treasury, accounting, capital allocation, procurement, internal audit, and investor relations. Mr. Peters' prior experience includes serving in executive financial positions at public and private telecommunications, Internet, and wireless service providers. Early in his career, Mr. Peters was a Certified Public Accountant at an independent accounting firm and was an internal auditor at a large media company. Mr. Peters is a graduate of the University of South Dakota. 

Paul B. Jones

Paul B. Jones is Executive Vice President – General Counsel, and Regulatory Policy for tw telecom Inc.

Mr. Jones previously served as Senior Vice President – Corporate Development for Time Warner Cable Ventures and was Senior Vice President and General Counsel for Warner Cable Communications. Prior to joining Warner Cable, Mr. Jones served as Vice President, Strategy and Development for CBS, inc.'s publishing group. In 2004, President George W. Bush nominated Mr. Jones to serve a 5 year term on the IRS Oversight Board as one of the Board's "private life members." In 2006, the IRS Oversight Board elected Mr. Jones to serve as its Chairman. 

A native of Worthington, Ohio, Mr. Jones earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University in 1968 and a Juris Doctorate degree from Yale in 1972.

Michael A. Rouleau

Michael A. Rouleau serves as Senior Vice President – Business Development and Strategy and has been with tw telecom since November 1999. His extensive experience in the telecom and data communications industries resulted in the successful implementation and delivery of many advanced and innovative products. In his current position, Mr. Rouleau is responsible for developing
tw telecom’s strategic direction and integrating new services and technologies over the next several years. Prior to joining the company, he spent 15 years with US WEST where he was responsible for the development, deployment and management of data, Internet, and DSL businesses.

Robert W. Gaskins

Robert W. Gaskins has served as Senior Vice President – Corporate Development and Strategy since January 2003. In this position, he oversees the company's business strategy evolution and goals formation and the development of strategic business opportunities. Mr. Gaskins was previously Vice President of Corporate Development from 2001 through 2002; Vice President of Operations Planning, Development and Implementation from 1998 through 2000; and Vice President of New Operations from 1993 through 1997. From 1979 to 1993, he held various financial management positions with Time Warner Cable.

Jill R. Stuart

Jill R. Stuart was appointed Senior Vice President – Accounting and Finance and Chief Accounting Officer in April 2005. Ms. Stuart is responsible for all aspects of accounting, financial planning and analysis. Prior to then, she was Vice President Accounting and Finance and Chief Accounting Officer. Ms. Stuart joined the company in 1994 with more than 20 years of financial management experience with communications and cable companies. Earlier in her career Ms. Stuart was a Certified Public Accountant with a Big 4 Public Accounting firm.

Steve Hardardt

Steve Hardardt is Senior Vice President – Human Resources and Business Administration and joined tw telecom in 2007. Prior to joining
tw telecom, Steve was employed by Johns Manville Corporation as Vice President – Human Resources and Communications for their Building Products Division. Previously, Steve held Human Resources leadership roles with several industry leading companies including Honeywell, Monsanto, Hasbro, Frito-Lay and Dow Jones & Company. Steve’s community service includes his role as Board Chairman for Douglas County Partners, a Colorado-based mentoring program for at risk youth, as well as a guest lecturer at the University of Colorado, University of Denver, and Colorado State University. Steve earned his Bachelor’s of Science degree from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations.

Graham Taylor

Graham Taylor was appointed Senior Vice President – Marketing for tw telecom in 2009. He served as Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing since 2006. Mr. Taylor currently oversees product development and management, field and segment marketing, offer management, market research, and sales engineering. Prior to joining tw telecom, he has held a variety of executive positions at Teleport Communications Group, Logix Communications as well as sales and marketing experience with VMX Corporation and ITT World Communications. A New Jersey native, Mr. Taylor is a graduate of Rider University.

Harold W. Teets

Harold W. Teets was appointed Senior Vice President – Information and Network Technologies for tw telecom in 2006. Mr. Teets, a 35-year veteran in the technology and network communications fields, oversees the company's Information Technology, Network Technology, Technology Management, Technology Operations, Carrier Relations and Access Management groups. Prior to joining the company, he was Chief Information and Chief Technology Officer at Xspedius Communications. Mr. Teets has held executive level technology leadership roles with several industry leading companies including AT&T Canada, MCI, Brooks Fiber, Conversent Communications, Looking Glass Networks and MFS.  In 2010, Mr. Teets was appointed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to its prestigious Technological Advisory Council (TAC). Mr. Teets earned his BS degree in Computer Science from LaSalle University.

Marc Willency

Marc Willency was appointed Sr. Vice President – Corporate Operations in April 2007. Mr. Willency is responsible for our operation centers including provisioning, service assurance, and customer service. Prior to then, he was vice president Customer Care as well as leading the Customer Network Solutions and Services departments. From 1999 to 2005, Mr. Willency oversaw the creation and development of several functional support teams including sales engineering and field market management. Prior to joining the company in 1997, Mr. Willency held a leadership position at a large Midwestern Internet services company. Mr. Willency is a graduate of Western Michigan University.