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Hans Vestberg

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Hans Vestberg
Personal details
Born 1965/6/23 (age 60)
🇸🇪 Hudiksvall, Sweden
Nationality 🇸🇪 Swedish
Languages Swedish, English, Spanish, Portuguese
Education BBA
Spouse Married (name undisclosed)
Children 2
Career details
Occupation Former Verizon Chairman & CEO (2018-2025)
Compensation $24.2 million (2024)
Net worth ~$35 million (2024)

Hans Vestberg (born June 23, 1965) is a Swedish business executive who served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Verizon Communications, America's largest wireless carrier with over $140 billion in annual revenue, from August 2018 until October 2025 when he was replaced by Dan Schulman in a surprise "effective immediately" departure.[1]

Born in Hudiksvall, Sweden, Vestberg earned a BBA from Uppsala University in 1991 and joined Ericsson Cables the same year.[2] He spent 25 years at Ericsson across four continents before becoming CEO in 2010 (the first without an engineering background), but was ousted in July 2015 following poor financial performance.[3] He joined Verizon as CTO in April 2017, was promoted to CEO in August 2018, and became Chairman in March 2019.[4]

His 2024 compensation reached $24.2 million ($1.5 million base, $18 million stock, $797,000 other).[5] His net worth is approximately $35 million including $19 million in Verizon stock holdings.

Early Life and Education

Born June 23, 1965, in Hudiksvall, Sweden, Vestberg was raised by his father Jan Vestberg, a handball coach who trained Hans throughout his sports career.[6] He attended Uppsala University, earning a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1991.[2] Vestberg was a former semi-professional team handball player in Sweden before transitioning to business.

Personal Life

Vestberg is married (wife's name undisclosed) and has two children (names undisclosed).[7] The family lives in New Jersey. He is fluent in Swedish, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.[8]

Vestberg has maintained strong ties to Swedish sports. He founded the Jan Vestberg Handball Academy, named after his father.[9] He chaired the Swedish Handball Federation from 2007 to 2016 and served as President of the Swedish Olympic Committee from 2016 to 2018, resigning when he took the Verizon CEO role.[10]

Career

Ericsson (1991-2016)

Vestberg joined Ericsson Cables in 1991 in his hometown of Hudiksvall.[2] Over 25 years, he worked across management roles on four continents, serving as Senior VP and Executive VP before becoming Chief Financial Officer from 2007 to 2009.[11]

In January 2010, Vestberg became Ericsson CEO, the first without an engineering background, replacing Carl-Henric Svanberg.[12] However, in July 2015, he was ousted following Ericsson's poor financial performance, raising questions about his operational execution capabilities.[3]

Verizon (2017-2025)

On April 3, 2017, Vestberg joined Verizon as Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President of Network and Technology.[13] On June 8, 2018, he was announced as CEO successor to Lowell McAdam.[4] He officially became CEO on August 1, 2018, and was appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors in March 2019.[14]

On October 6, 2025, Vestberg was replaced by Dan Schulman "effective immediately" in a surprise departure after mounting customer losses and criticism of Verizon's 5G strategy.[1]

Compensation

Vestberg's 2024 total compensation was $24.2 million (+0.13% from 2023), comprising:[5]

  • $1.5 million base salary
  • $18 million stock awards
  • $797,000 other compensation

His net worth is approximately $35 million (2024), with $19 million in Verizon stock holdings.[15]

In 2021, the Association of BellTel Retirees criticized Vestberg's $39.4 million golden parachute executive compensation plan while workers faced outsourcing and layoffs.[16]

Controversies

5G Millimeter Wave Strategy Failure

Vestberg was described as "one of 5G's original cheerleaders" but analysts concluded "5G has bombed."[17] Verizon's millimeter wave strategy was criticized because signals have limited range and are blocked by physical barriers. Verizon's 5G availability score was 54.2% versus T-Mobile's 90.8%.[18] Critics cited "costly millimeter wave debacle, premature edge investments, slow rollout of 5G standalone" as strategic failures.[19]

Massive Workforce Reductions

Under Vestberg's leadership, Verizon's headcount dropped from 144,500 (end 2018) to approximately 100,000 (June 2025) - a 31% reduction.[20] Despite occasional small headcount increases, Vestberg stated "job cuts will continue," describing the company as "very efficient in managing resources."[21] Employee forums reported pay cuts exceeding $20,000 accompanied by increased responsibilities.[22]

Executive Compensation Criticism

The $24 million annual pay while frontline workers dealt with outsourcing and layoffs sparked significant criticism.[16] Critics questioned the compensation-performance disconnect as customer losses mounted and the stock underperformed competitors.

Customer Exodus & Sudden Departure

In October 2025, Vestberg sounded the "alarm on why customers are leaving in droves."[23] Customer losses mounted amid 5G disappointment and service quality issues. The October 6, 2025 replacement by Dan Schulman "effective immediately" surprised observers with its abruptness, ending a troubled seven-year tenure.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 <ref>"Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg Replaced by Dan Schulman in Surprise Move".{Template:Newspaper.October 2025.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 <ref>"Hans Vestberg Biography".Verizon Communications.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 <ref>"Ericsson CEO Hans Vestberg Steps Down".{Template:Newspaper.July 2015.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 <ref>"Verizon Names Hans Vestberg as CEO".{Template:Newspaper.June 2018.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 <ref>"Verizon 2024 Proxy Statement".Verizon Communications.2024.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  6. ↑ <ref>"Vestberg's Sporting Roots".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  7. ↑ <ref>"Verizon CEO Profile".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  8. ↑ <ref>"Hans Vestberg Executive Profile".Verizon Communications.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  9. ↑ <ref>"Vestberg's Handball Academy".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  10. ↑ <ref>"Swedish Olympic Committee President Vestberg Steps Down for Verizon Role".{Template:Newspaper.2018.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  11. ↑ <ref>"Ericsson Names Vestberg CFO".{Template:Newspaper.2007.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  12. ↑ <ref>"Ericsson Picks Non-Engineer as CEO for First Time".{Template:Newspaper.January 2010.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  13. ↑ Template:Cite press release
  14. ↑ <ref>"Vestberg Adds Chairman Title at Verizon".{Template:Newspaper.March 2019.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  15. ↑ <ref>"Verizon Executive Stock Holdings".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 <ref>"Verizon Retirees Criticize CEO Pay Package".{Template:Newspaper.2021.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  17. ↑ <ref>"Verizon's 5G Strategy Under Fire".{Template:Newspaper.2024.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  18. ↑ <ref>"5G Coverage Comparison: Verizon vs T-Mobile".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  19. ↑ <ref>"What Went Wrong with Verizon's 5G".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  20. ↑ <ref>"Verizon Workforce Shrinks Under Vestberg".{Template:Newspaper.2025.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  21. ↑ <ref>"Verizon CEO: More Cuts Coming".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  22. ↑ <ref>"Verizon Workers Report Pay Cuts".{Template:Newspaper.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
  23. ↑ <ref>"Verizon CEO Addresses Customer Exodus".{Template:Newspaper.October 2025.Retrieved December 15, 2025.</ref>
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