Richard J. Lynch
Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
Verizon Communications

Title: Investment, Invention and Innovation:  The Role of Communications in the 21st Century Economy.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008, 9-10 AM



Richard J. Lynch is executive vice president and chief technology officer for Verizon Communications. In this role he is responsible for technology direction and network planning for all the Verizon business units.

Prior to assuming his current position in July 2007, Lynch had been the executive vice president and chief technical officer for Verizon Wireless since its formation in 2000, and before that, had held the same position at Bell Atlantic Mobile since 1990. In those positions he was responsible for network technology selection and planning as well as network operations. Under Lynch, the Verizon Wireless network attained the distinction of quality and reliability which has formed the basis for the very well known “Can you hear me now?” advertising campaign.

Lynch has been at the forefront of wireless data solutions, starting with Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) in 1995 when he led Bell Atlantic Mobile’s build of one of the largest CDPD networks in the country. In 2004, Lynch again led the industry with the decision to widely deploy EV-DO, in the first true wireless broadband service widely provided to the public in the US. Lynch was also responsible for the decision to deploy CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), which still remains the basis for the Verizon Wireless high-quality voice network. Building on these and other key technology decisions, Lynch has supported the introduction of key innovative products and services into the marketplace.

Lynch is a Fellow of The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE). He has served on the executive board of the CDMA Development Group (CDG) and as a member of the Federal Communications Commission Technical Advisory Committee. For his leadership in the early years of wireless data, Lynch was honored with the President’s Award by the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA). He has earned patents for advances in the area of wireless technology. He is a frequent guest lecturer in academia and industry on technology and its business implications.

Lynch began his career in 1972 with New England Telephone and has held a variety of positions in planning, operations, and engineering there and in Bell of Pennsylvania.

Lynch is a graduate of Lowell Technological Institute (now University of Massachusetts) where he received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering. He has also completed post graduate work at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Johnson School of Management at Cornell University.