Peter V. Leparulo has served as a director since May 2003, as our Chairman since November 2006 and as our Chief Executive Officer since April 2008. He also served as our Chief Executive Officer from January 2003 to November 2006. From May 2001 to January 2003, he served as our Senior Vice President, General
Manager, CDMA Operations. From September 2000 to May 2001, he served as our Senior Vice President, Corporate and Strategic Development and General Counsel. From June 1998 until September 2000, Mr. Leparulo was a Senior Partner at the law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, where he specialized in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, securities, intellectual property and general corporate matters. Prior to joining Orrick, Mr. Leparulo was a Partner at the law firm of Pillsbury Madison & Sutro LLP, from January 1992 until June 1998, and an Associate at that firm from October 1989 until January 1992. He holds a Bachelor of Science from Colgate University and a Juris Doctor from Case Western Reserve University.
Russell Gerns
Russell Gerns has served as director since September 2009. Mr. Gerns has more than 25 years of operational and finance experience, having participated in the founding and dramatic growth of numerous high-tech companies, including Scientific Data Systems (which was acquired by Xerox Corporation), Computer Machinery Corporation, Cipher Data Products and Rexon, Inc. (which was acquired by Legacy Storage Systems Corporation). Since 1985, Mr. Gerns has concentrated on venture capital financing of start-up companies, private equity investments, and company acquisitions. Mr. Gerns is a member of the Board of Advisors of the UCLA Anderson School of Management Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, a member of the Board of Directors of the California Council on Economic Education, and has taught as a professor of business management at Pepperdine University. Mr. Gerns earned his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.
James Ledwith has served as a director since March 2008. Mr. Ledwith served as a partner at J.H. Cohn, an accounting and consulting firm, from 1992 until his retirement in 2009 and was a lecturer at San Diego State University from 2000 to 2007. Mr. Ledwith serves as a director of San Diego Trust Bank, a privately held community bank. Mr. Ledwith is a certified public accountant and received his undergraduate degree from Babson College and a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton Graduate Division of the University of Pennsylvania.
General John D. Wakelin (U.S. Army, Retired) has served as a director since May 2009. For the last 20 years he has worked in senior executive and business development roles at SAIC, a Fortune 500 scientific, engineering, and technology applications company. At SAIC, General Wakelin has overseen numerous programs in large scale computing, telecommunications systems, and complex enterprise software systems for the public and private sector. He retired as Brigadier General for the Army where he served for 30 years in a number of roles, culminating in the Joint Staff as Deputy Director for Command Control and Communications for the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents Reagan and Bush and as Deputy Commander for Research and Development for the U.S. Army Communications Electronics Command at Fort Monmouth, N.J. General Wakelin holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of San Francisco and he completed all graduate level course work in Social Psychology for the Army's Foreign Area Officer Program at San Diego State University. General Wakelin also attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and National War College. He is a member of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association and the Association of the United States Army.
Sue Swenson has served as a director since June 2012. Ms. Swenson has more than 20 years of executive management experience in the telecommunications industry and considerable experience serving on the boards of growing technology companies. Since 1994, she has been a director of Wells Fargo and sits on their Audit and Examination Committee and Governance and Nominating Committee. Ms. Swenson also is a director on the boards of Spirent Communications Plc and Harmonic, Inc., and has previously served on boards of numerous public and private companies, including Leap Wireless International, mBlox and Palm. Ms. Swenson recently retired as president and CEO of Sage Software, Inc. Before joining Sage Software, Ms. Swenson held positions in a variety of telecom companies, including COO of Atrinsic, Inc. (formerly known as New Motion, Inc.), COO of Amp'd Mobile, Inc., president and COO of Leap Wireless International, Inc., and president and CEO of Cellular One.
David A. Werner
David A. Werner has served as a director since January 2004. Mr. Werner has been co-owner of Aerofit, Inc., an engineered component manufacturer, since 2004. Mr. Werner was previously a partner at Engineered Components, an acquisition and business development company serving the engineered components market, which he joined in 2002. Mr. Werner also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Day Runner, Inc. from 1999 to 2002. From 1994 to 1999, Mr. Werner was Executive Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors of Kaynar Technologies, Inc., a specialty component manufacturer. From 1990 to 1993, he served as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Microdot, Inc. From 1978 to 1990, Mr. Werner served in various accounting, financial, operating and executive positions with Lear Siegler. From 1974 to 1978, Mr. Werner worked for Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. (currently KPMG). Mr. Werner is a certified public accountant and received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California.