Rick Stern | Chief Executive Officer |
 Direct 773.770.1360 |  rstern@nitelusa.com |
Conversation around the office with Rick Stern often involves a lot of four-letter words.
Plan. Lead. Grow. Fast. Bold. Idea. Goal.
He’s pushing us to do our best thinking for our customers every day. That’s his competitive nature, starting as a gutsy kid on the football field. Whether calling the plays on the field or in the boardroom, Rick is a natural leader who develops a solid team that shares his vision.
Rick built upon his extensive experience in the telecommunications industry when he created Nitel in 1997. He had held line and management positions with Sprint, MCI WorldCom and Universal Access. He saw the need among customers and agents for a full-service, network-agnostic wholesale data provider. He is the architect of Nitel’s growth from a single office offering telecom consulting services, to a single-source provider of nationwide data connectivity services. As Chief Executive Officer, Rick directs our finance, operations and client services functions and, together with COO Ron Grason, holds executive-level accountability for new business development and corporate strategy.
Rick earned a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from the University of Florida and served six years in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He is a 2009 graduate of Harvard Business School's Executive Education program in Owner/President Management. In 2010 he was named a Midwest finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® Award. Rick is a member of the Young Presidents' Organization, a global network of young chief executives, as well as the Harvard Business School Club of Chicago. Rick currently serves as a member of the Phone+/Channel Partners Advisory Board.
Rick thinks big. He set a goal early in life to start a successful company, and made it happen. Yet he’ll proudly show you pictures of his wife and four kids before he’ll hand you a business card. Because it’s still all about winning one for the team.