Is GTE still on AT&T's shopping list?
zdnet.com
Armstrong says acquisitions
will be key to AT&T's growth
By Margaret Kane
October 20, 1997 2:36 PM PDT
ZDNN
Incoming AT&T Corp. CEO C. Michael
Armstrong knows he doesn't have too much
time to get up to speed.
Armstrong said today that while he plans to take
about three months to learn the business,
something like the possible merger of
WorldCom Inc. and MCI Communications Corp.
could force him to hit the ground running.
"I don't think this business is going to stand still
while I continue to learn," Armstrong said in a
conference call with reporters. "We're going to
execute to win and to grow, and while I'm
learning everything I need to know we'll make
those decisions together."
Armstrong's appointment today was widely
anticipated. The chairman and chief executive of
Hughes Electronics Corp., Armstrong will
succeed outgoing AT&T Chairman and CEO
Robert Allen effective November 1. Allen will
serve as chairman of the board's executive
committee until his retirement in February, AT&T
officials said.
Armstrong's appointment completes a
three-month job search sparked by the
resignation of former president John Walter
after AT&T declined to hand him the CEO
position.
AT&T Vice Chairman John Zeglis, who had
been mentioned as a possible candidate for the
CEO job, has been named president and will
serve as a member of the board of directors. No
decision as to his eventual chances at the top
job has been made, said Walter Elisha,
chairman of AT&T's search committee, during
the conference.
Zeglis and Armstrong said today they will work
as a team and divide up their duties after
Armstrong has been onboard for a while. They
will also split the operational duties normally
handled by the chief operating officer.
While Armstrong would not go into detail about
his future plans for the company, he did
emphasize that AT&T needs to invest if it is to
survive.
"Maybe somebody out there has magic dust
where you can grow without investing. I have
never found the dust," he said. "I know we're in
an industry that is exploding globally, and it's
going to take investments to share in that
growth."
Armstrong said investments could include
acquisitions, mergers and building out
infrastructure.
"In a growth industry, investment is very, very
necessary, and acquisitions are going to be part
of that investment strategy," he said.
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