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Fusion Connect Leadership
Management Team
Brian McClintock
Chief Financial Officer
Brian McClintock drives financial strategy and planning while optimizing the company's capital structure. He is a seasoned executive with more than 25 years of experience in telecommunications and technology. Brian has delivered measurable gains in revenue, profits, and market recognition as a COO, CFO, and vice president. He is also a project management expert with experience in startup, turnaround, expansion, and consolidation of business situations. He has a Master of Business Administration in Finance from La Salle University and a bachelor's degree in business management from Lynchburg University.
Chris Updegraft
Chief Information Officer
Chris Updegraft oversees the information technology department, with a focus on expanding the company's Microsoft-centric solutions portfolio. With more than 30 years of experience in technology leadership, strategy, and execution, he optimizes IT services that enable businesses to rapidly scale their operations using Microsoft products. Chris has expertise in leveraging technology to drive business growth and improve operational efficiencies. Prior to joining Fusion Connect in 2018, Chris co-founded and served as vice president of IQMax for 18 years. He has a bachelor's degree in computer science from Azusa Pacific University.
Pieter Uittenbogaard
Executive Vice President, Growth and Strategy
Pieter Uittenbogaard focuses on expanding the company's Microsoft offerings, including Calling Services for Microsoft Teams, and driving product and service innovation. He has held numerous leadership roles at Microsoft over the past 15 years, was most recently the General Manager of the Microsoft 365 business in the United States, and in 2021 earned Microsoft’s prestigious Platinum Club award, a highly selective honor given to top-performing employees. Prior to that, he led the worldwide Windows Commercial go-to-market. Pieter has considerable experience accelerating growth, sparking cloud transformation at worldwide scale, and maintaining customer-centricity. He holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences.
Rod Brownridge
Senior Vice President Customer Operations
Rod Brownridge is the head of Customer Experience at Fusion Connect, drawing upon two decades of experience in operations, engineering, and customer success management. Before joining Fusion Connect, he held leadership positions at Covad Communications, where he oversaw operations and customer service teams. While at Covad, Rod led both onshore and offshore organizations responsible for customer service, operations engineering, and business analysis. Prior to his time at Covad, Rod was accountable for service delivery, customer service, project management, and business analysis at MegaPath.
Mark Jeary
Senior Vice President Operations
Mark Jeary oversees service delivery, network engineering, and access management, concentrating on enhancing customer experience by optimizing network infrastructure, systems, and processes. With over 20 years of experience, he specializes in rebuilding and transforming corporate infrastructures and operations. Mark has held senior leadership roles at Global Crossing, XO Communications, EarthLink Business, and Windstream. He earned a masters of management degree from Nazareth University and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Marist College.
Birch Blair
General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
Birch Blair is responsible for managing all legal affairs and ensuring that the company complies with relevant laws and both state and federal regulations. Birch has been with the company for five years, initially serving as Fusion Connect’s Deputy General Counsel before stepping into the role of General Counsel. Prior to joining Fusion Connect, Birch held various legal positions in the telecommunications and technology sectors, including serving as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for MegaPath Cloud Company. Birch holds a bachelor’s degree from Seattle University and a law degree from Penn State.
Board of Directors
Dudley Slater
Chairman of the Board
Dudley Slater holds several governances, operating, and entrepreneurial roles and works with investors and companies in the telecommunications, health care, banking, and media industries. His board experience includes Segra, WOW! Cable & Internet, Umpqua Bank, LS Networks, and Integra Telecom Inc., a company he co-founded in 1996. Dudley’s operating experience includes CEO and president roles in the health care technology, clinical trials, and telecommunications industries. He received a Master of Business Administration from Harvard University and a bachelor's degree in geophysics from the University of California, Los Angeles.
James Morphis
James Morphis is an executive director of Morgan Stanley and a member of the Morgan Stanley Private Credit team, where he focuses on originating and underwriting investment opportunities. James joined Morgan Stanley in 2016 and has over 12 years of relevant industry experience. Prior to that, James structured, marketed, and placed private debt and equity capital as part of Houlihan Lokey’s Capital Markets Group. Prior to Houlihan Lokey, James was an assistant vice president at GE Capital Markets in its leveraged finance business, structuring, marketing, and syndicating leveraged loans. James was also an analyst at M&T Bank, where he underwrote middle market credit facilities, conducting fundamental credit analysis and performing detailed financial modeling. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Rochester and a Master of Business Administration from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University.
Joe Harding
Joe Harding has most recently served as the vice president for product and solution marketing at Equinix. He was responsible for all product marketing globally in addition to leading regional product management. Previously, Joe served as a board member for QOS Networks and as executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Windstream, where he was responsible for leading the transformation of the enterprise and wholesale product strategy as well as leading all product management and marketing efforts. He received a bachelor's degree in finance from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Richard Jalkut
Richard Jalkut is a longtime telecommunications executive and the former CEO of TPx Communications. He was previously the president and CEO of Pathnet Telecom and the president, CEO, and chairman of NYNEX Telephone Companies, where he oversaw an organization with more than 80,000 employees and 16 million customers that produced more than $12 billion in annual revenue. Richard is a past chairman of the Partnership for New York City and of the New York State Business Council, and he was a trustee of the American Museum of Natural History. He received bachelor's degrees in economics and political science from Boston College.
Colby Wheeler
Colby Wheeler has been a director at Ellington Management Group since 2020 and previously served as a principal at Bardin Hill Investment Partners. He also worked as an associate and senior associate in PGIM Fixed Income's high-yield credit group. Colby began his career as an analyst in equity research at Citigroup, where he published research on a variety of technology and telecommunications companies. He holds a bachelor's degree in economics and finance from Utah State University and is a CFA charterholder and a member of CFA Society New York.
Timothy J. Bernlohr
Timothy Bernlohr is the founder and managing member of TJB Management Consulting LLC, which he founded in 2004 and specializes in providing project-specific consulting services to businesses in transformation, including in and out of court restructurings, wind downs, interim executive management, and strategic planning services. He is the former interim CEO of The Manischewitz Company, Bally Total Fitness Corporation, Parquets Marty, and BHM International, and the former president and CEO of RBX Industries Inc. Since the inception of his consultancy, Timothy has served more than 100 boards of directors in capacities that include chairman, lead director, committee chairman, strategic consultant, CEO, president, CRO, and trustee. He received a bachelor's degree in business administration from The Pennsylvania State University.
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