In 2006, McAdam became the
chief operating officer (COO) and
chief executive officer (CEO) of
Verizon Wireless. On September 20, 2010, parent company
Verizon Communications announced he would be president and COO beginning October 1, 2010, succeeding
Ivan Seidenberg. He was made chairman of Verizon Communications on January 1, 2012, and its CEO on August 1, 2011. In June 2018, Verizon announced that McAdam would retire from his role as CEO on August 1, 2018, remaining executive chairman through the end of the year. He then concluded his tenure as non-executive chairman in March 2019. McAdam had previously been the CEO for
PrimeCo Personal Communications, a joint venture of
Bell Atlantic and
Vodafone AirTouch. He was vice president of international operations for AirTouch Communications and a lead technical partner for cellular ventures in Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Italy, Korea and Japan. He joined
AirTouch as executive director of international applications and operations in 1993. From 1983 to 1993, he held various executive titles with
Pacific Bell, including area vice president of Bay Area marketing and general manager of South Bay customer services. McAdam is past chairman of the board of directors of
CTIA – The Wireless Association, a trade association. He is a director of the
National Academy Foundation, a partnership between business leaders and educators that aims to help high schools across the US establish and run technical and service academies. He is also co-chair of the
CEO Council on Health and Innovation, which encourages affordable improvements in employee health. He is an emeritus member of the
Cornell University Board of trustees. ==External links==