A regional wireless industry association could be coming to a neighborhood near you. A movement is afoot in the wireless industry, and the tower sector, hungry to learn the intricacies of the industry from the experts, is leading the charge.
Atlanta, home to the likes of Cingular Wireless L.L.C., is playing host to the newest statewide wireless association-the Georgia Wireless Association. GWA was modeled after its predecessors, similar groups in Tennessee and Alabama.
All three organizations function under the same mission: “to cultivate the relationships among the members of the wireless arena with local communities to ensure a unified message that supports our industry.”
GWA, TWA and AWA are not in competition with larger, national associations like PCIA and the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association since they are focused on education of statewide legislation and policy rather than lobbying at the national level. Organizing at the state level also allows big and small industry players to work together and network on an equal level, whereas smaller players tend to get lost in the overall national picture.
Each group has a customized version of bylaws and is led by a president, a handful of board members and several committees. The groups meet on a rotating, quarterly basis to discuss legislative and regulatory issues that affect the wireless industry as a whole.
GWA’s distinction is its great accessibility to industry players, explained Karen Fraser, GWA’s state secretary, and Crown Castle International Corp.’s vice president of program management for the southern area.
“It is monumental to something like this in Atlanta, Georgia,” added Pat Tant, who serves as a vice president on each of the associations’ boards. Tant also serves as vice president of national sales and marketing at AAT Communications.
Fraser spearheaded the effort to form GWA after attending a meeting of one of the sister associations. “If something is proven and is working, then it’s a good model to work with,” said Fraser, of choosing to follow the examples set by TWA and AWA. “The format was already there.”
About 180 people attended GWA’s first meeting May 25 in Atlanta, making it a “huge success,” according to Fraser, and all aspects of industry were represented, including wireless carriers, tower companies, consultants, equipment vendors and construction companies.
During the hour-long lunch meeting, representatives from TWA and AWA spoke of their experiences. GWA President David Downing, of Milestone Communications, spoke of GWA’s expectations and goals. In addition, GWA enlisted volunteer members for the five committees it plans to install to handle membership, public relations, steering, regulatory issues and Web site development.
Tant and Fraser expect GWA’s steering committee to be core to the group. It will consist of someone of influence from each wireless carrier-big and small-located in Georgia and will serve to assist the association in focusing on the industry’s most current issues. The goal is to attract carriers to the meetings. “If the carriers show up at these, people will come,” said Tant.
