News that Paul Jacobs is succeeding his father, Irwin, as chief executive officer at Qualcomm is not surprising. It’s part of a long history in wireless telephony. To name a few father-son combinations inevitably means I will leave out someone, but here is a quick rundown of some who come to mind:
- RCR Wireless Hall of Fame 2005 Inductee Wayne Schelle and son Scott. APC in November 1995 launched the first PCS network in the United States in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore market while partnered with Sprint Spectrum L.P.
- When APC became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sprint Spectrum in January 1998, company founder Wayne Schelle retired, and Scott resigned as president. Scott is now with Bluefire Securities Technology, and Wayne is retired in Florida.
- You can’t talk about Qualcomm’s legacy without noting a longer tradition at Motorola Inc., started by brothers Paul and Joseph Galvin, then handed down to Bob Galvin and finally grandson Christopher Galvin. The youngest Galvin was forced out as CEO a few years ago.
- At Alltel Corp., a couple of Fords run the company (no relation to me). Chairman Joe Ford retired as CEO in 2002, and son, Scott, took over.
- My favorite combination was a father-daughter one-Jack Goeken, who started MCI, and daughter, Sandra. The two were instrumental in In-flight Phone, one of the early telephony systems offered on airplanes.
- TDS, which owns part of U.S. Cellular, is governed by the Carlsons. Leroy founded the company in 1969, and Ted Jr. is CEO today.
- At Dobson Cellular, Everett Dobson runs the company founded by his dad, Russell.
- And Qualcomm, TDS and Dobson all have brothers active in the companies.
I suspect there are a couple of reasons for hiring the son once the father decides to step down, even at public companies, which have to bear shareholder scrutiny. Who better to learn from than the master? Irwin Jacobs has built a successful company. He is a man on a CDMA mission. Paul likely picked up that passion along the way and feels he has a personal stake in continuing that success.
It’s kind of nice that in this big corporate world, there is still a place for families.
