Ritter Communications, a Mid-South service provider, has tapped Heath Simpson as its new CEO, signaling the company’s plan to position the company to continue its aggressive growth strategy.
Simpson came to Ritter in March 2020 as Chief Financial Officer after what the company said was a rigorous nationwide executive search for a candidate who could initially excel as CFO, with the potential to grow into the CEO role. He brings nearly 30 years of extensive financial and operational experience with over 20 years in the telecommunications industry at major brands such as AT&T and Frontier Communications.
"Heath has established himself as a distinguished leader in our organization. He has the strategic vision, experience, skill set, and focus to sustain our strong momentum and carry our performance to the next level," said Alan Morse, current CEO of Ritter Communications. "I am confident that, under his leadership, Ritter Communications will retain and enhance its position as a regional leader in the fiber broadband and telecom space."
One of the critical initiatives that Simpson has been driving is the ongoing expansion of the telco’s fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) business unit called RightFiber.
Under the terms of the company’s succession plan, his scope of responsibilities gradually increased over his four years with the company. He was promoted to president and COO in late 2022, overseeing finance, information technology, project management, customer experience, field operations, and human resources.
Simpson, who will begin in his new role at the end of January, will succeed Alan Morse, who will remain with Ritter Communications as Executive Chairman. In this new role, Morse will serve in an advisory capacity to ensure an effective and seamless leadership transition, retain his seat on the company's Board, and continue contributing to strategic initiatives.
Morse came to Ritter Communications in 2014 as President and was named CEO in 2019. During his time with the company, he developed its strategic plan and steered it through a period of rapid expansion. Under his leadership, Ritter Communications has grown from serving 57 rural communities to operating in over 148 communities in four states, representing a direct investment of over $300 million in network expansion.
He was a key driver of Ritter’s partnerships with the Arkansas and Tennessee state broadband offices to expand fiber internet service to underserved rural communities, deploying over $70 million in grant funding. Morse conceptualized and led the market introduction of the RightFiber residential suite of products in 2021 and oversaw a comprehensive network enhancement initiative that brought gigabit internet speeds to the company's legacy markets.
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