Brian Strom

SureWest Communications

If Brian Strom had become a financier instead of the president of SureWest Communications, he would be the kind portrayed by Michael Douglas in the movie “Wall Street”: smart, daring, aggressive and successful.

“A lot of companies in the telecom industry play follow the leader, but Brian has never allowed the industry to dictate what they do,” said Betty King, sales director for Lucent Technologies.

Strom has quietly built SureWest into a major player among second-tier regional incumbent carriers as the company continues to hit impressive benchmarks other carriers only dream of reaching. Among them is a DSL penetration rate of 11%, which analysts believe is the best in the industry. (The average is 5% to 7%.)

SureWest's success traces back in the mid-'80s, when Strom ventured into uncharted territory by extending service to rural, undeveloped areas around Sacramento. (The company is headquartered in nearby Roseville.) He did it by putting fiber and electronics into neighborhoods, an unproven concept at the time.

Strom's aggressiveness hasn't been limited to technology decisions. He and his SureWest colleagues are omnipresent in greater Sacramento, showing up at various business events and going door-to-door when necessary to ask for the business. “Penetration is the key to success in this business, and you can't wait for the customer to come to you,” Strom said. “You have to get out into the community and talk up your service.”

Strom said the company would concentrate on improvements in its current footprint — increasing its DSL penetration rate to 16% is a goal for 2002 — and resist the temptation to grow beyond the Sacramento area.

“There's still a great deal of opportunity in our region, so there hasn't been a lot of desire to go outside.”