Joe Rodriguez

Vice President/General Manager

tw telecom

What we do:
tw telecom is a leading provider of managed services, including Business Ethernet, Converged voice/data and IP VPN solutions, to enterprises and large organizations in Fresno, Central California, and throughout the U.S.

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Education: Monmouth College, Long Branch, New Jersey.  (Marketing)
 
Age: 53

Family: Wife Helen and myself

What is tw telecom’s history in the Fresno area, Joe?
tw telecom has been delivering voice, Internet and data services to businesses in Fresno since January 2001.

What is your professional background, Joe?
Twenty-five years in the high-tech industry, including sales, customer support, business operations and management positions.

There seems to be a lot of competition for telecommunication services, especially in the business-to business market. How does your company stand out, Joe?
tw telecom delivers big company capabilities with hometown service to businesses and organizations in Fresno. Our key differentiator is that our own fiber networks enable us to deliver robust products and services locally and to connect our customers across town, throughout California and to locations all over the U.S. and globally, if needed. We offer an unprecedented customer experience as we monitor our network for quality of performance nationally with our local technicians available 24/7/365 to keep businesses always connected.  It’s delivering quality service anytime, anywhere that is the tw telecom difference.  

What is the greatest opportunity facing your company today, Joe?
Meeting the customer need for more and more bandwidth to sustain emerging applications. We have been able to increase revenues, net income and cash flow each year because we focus on understanding and meeting customer needs. Now, more than ever, customers need assistance to manage their applications, which we offer over our reliable, resilient and highly secure networks.  

What have you learned from doing business in Fresno over the last year, Joe?
Central California customers are extremely loyal to partners that treat them well. If you complete the tasks you’ve agreed to, when you said you’d have them done, then you’re a great business partner. Since customer support is at the heart of tw telecom’s customer commitment, we’ve been able to create a very loyal customer base throughout the Central Valley.

What is tw telecom’s network footprint in the central valley, Joe?
tw telecom operates hundreds of fiber route miles throughout the Valley, has over 1,400 buildings connected to our fiber network and operates two collocation facilities in this marketplace alone. Our Fresno central office also acts as a regional transport center for tw telecom’s national network and is one of the safest and secure facilities of its kind in the area.

What is the best advice you have ever received, Joe?
“Honesty is the best policy”

Where do you see your company in 10 years, Joe?
At tw telecom, our focus continues to be the industry leader in providing high-quality, scalable and cost effective network solutions and applications management to enterprises and large organizations in Fresno and the U.S.   We expect to continue our growth by collaborating with customers to understand their needs, craft solutions to move their businesses forward and serve their network better than anyone else.
What was your first job and what did you learn from it?
In the sixth grade, I was up at 5a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays preparing the Asbury Park Press newspaper for weekend deliveries. I realized early on the importance of keeping commitments to ensure customer satisfaction.