Executive Profiles

Chad West - President & Chief Executive Officer

Selected to lead the executive management team from the company’s inception in April of 2000, Chad is responsible for the overall strategy and success of Ascom’s activities in North America. Chad has more than 20 years leadership experience with a successful track record of P&L management, product management, operations and marketing efforts.

Before joining Ascom, he held a variety of marketing, product management, operations and general management positions at Bell & Howell and Ericsson. Chad’s corporate tenure was preceded by 10 years service in the U.S. military where he served with distinction as a U.S. Army Officer and Attack Helicopter Pilot. Chad currently serves on the Board of Trustees of UTAM Inc., a non-profit agency designated by the Federal Communications Commission to oversee frequency coordination in the unlicensed PCS spectrum.

Chad holds a B.S. degree in Aeronautical Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and an M.B.A. from New York University's Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

Tom McKearney - Executive Vice President,
Marketing & Business Development

Responsible for all marketing and business development functions associated with the on-site wireless product sales in North America, Tom joined Ascom in January of 2004 following a variety of sales and marketing management positions at Motorola, Ericsson, Siemens, Nortel, and NYNEX, where he gained extensive experience in both wireless and wired networks for voice and data products.

With more than 23 years of experience in telecommunications, Tom has a strong background in market planning, business development and staff management. Tom plays a key role in defining the strategic plan for Ascom in the North American market.

Tom received an M.S. degree in Engineering and a B.A. degree in Planning from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He also completed the Executive Marketing Management Program at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Allen Crockett - Vice President, Sales: Americas East

Allen brings over 20 years of success in Sales, Marketing, Business Development and Mergers & Acquisitions experience in high-technology hardware and software environments. Prior to Ascom, Allen worked with emerging startup technology companies such as Computer Decisions (acquired by Productivity Point), Interpath Communications (acquired by USi) and Peopleclick (pre-IPO). 

Originally hired as a Channel Manager, Allen quickly vaulted to the #1 revenue producer in the US, #10 Internationally and President’s Club in both of his first 2 years. In 2006, Allen was promoted to National Director of Alliance Partners to create, launch and accelerate Ascom’s mindshare penetration into new and large distribution channels such as Hill-Rom and Agfa. His proven experience and success in energizing channels and winning in highly competitive environments make his promotion to Vice President Sales for Americas East a natural extension towards enabling the high growth strategy for Ascom.

Allen is a graduate of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill with a B.S. in Industrial Relations.

Bill Foster - Vice President, Sales: Americas West

Bill joined Ascom in August of 2006 as the Director, Regional Sales for the western Region where he more than doubled the sales within his region within his first year. As a result of his success along with Ascom’s growth, Bill was promoted to Vice President, Sales for Americas West.

He is a practicing manager and trainer with over 25 years experience in helping others perform better. Prior to entering the Telecommunications industry, Bill spent 15 years in the Human Resource Development field working for industry leaders such as IBM and Blanchard Training where he lead both domestic and international sales teams. He has also served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for a leading telecom dealer in Southern California. He is co-author of the book "Coaching For Peak Employee Performance" and has had several articles published in various trade publications.

Bill holds a B.A. in Business Administration from California State University, Fullerton and is a graduate of the IBM Management School in Armonk, NY.

Nancy Duffy - Vice President, Finance & Administration

As part of the executive management team and one of five individuals selected to establish the presence of Ascom in the US and one of five individuals selected to establish the presence of Ascom in the US, Nancy was instrumental in developing financial plans and policies, accounting and administrative practices, personnel policies and implementing the management accounting system needed to support the growth and goals of the company.

Nancy has more than 22 years experience in accounting and financial management with a proven background in rapidly growing companies and start-up organizations. Before joining Ascom in 2000, she was a key player in the successful start-up of a US subsidiary for Furuno Electric Co., LTD. Prior to that she held positions in companies that include General Mechatronics Corp., Fiat Products Inc., and Lincoln Savings Bank, where she served in operational and leadership roles. Nancy is a graduate of Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY and holds a B.B.A in Public Accounting.

Tim Overstreet - Vice President, Technical Services

As part of the executive management team and one of five individuals selected to establish the presence of Ascom in the US, Tim was instrumental in developing Ascom support strategies and operations in North America. Before joining Ascom in 2000, Tim held engineering and technical positions with Ericsson, NASA and the US Navy where he gained extensive experience in radio communications, telecommunications and mission critical protocol.

Tim offers more that 16 years of experience with a wide variety of wireless communications systems. Tim played a key role in the initial development, deployment and sustaining of the Ericsson’s DCT1900 Cordless Telephone system when it was first introduced in 1997. Tim has since designed and implemented some of the most robust on-site wireless communication systems in the world. Tim provides frequent consultation to pillar establishments that require mission critical, high volume wireless communications. Tim served in the US Navy before receiving a B.A.S. degree in Engineering from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Tim enhanced his engineering studies at ODU by providing Microwave and Antenna Research for the Old Dominion Research Foundation at the NASA Langley facility in Hampton, Virginia.