ROBERT McCANN:
 
ALEX BURKULAS




 
 
 
 
 
President of Bright House Networks Michigan Division in Livonia. McCann oversees the management team and is directly involved in most aspects of the business, focusing primarily on new business development and customer service. This year, Bright House Networks of Michigan opened the Bright Kids Network, a five-year community outreach program housed at the Livonia Family YMCA. McCann also led the charge to donate 12 computers to the Livonia and Farmington YMCAs, and to Farmington Youth Assistance to support after-school programs. Bright House employs more than 250 people in Livonia and has added staff annually for nearly 30 years. McCann serves on numerous community boards and commissions, including the Michigan Cable Telecommunication Association, Michigan Governmental Television Network, Michigan ’50s Festival, and Hearts of Livonia Charity. He began his career in 1980 as a manager trainee with MetroVision in Ohio. After holding a succession of positions with increasing responsibility, he returned to Michigan as general manager of MetroVision’s Oakland County system. Upon MetroVision’s merger with Time Warner, McCann was named regional operations manager for the Michigan region. Within two years, he was named general manager for Time Warner's Michigan operations. In 2003, following a restructuring of the Time Warner Entertainment-Advance/Newhouse Partnership, the Michigan region became Bright House Networks, and McCann was named vice president/general manager of the Detroit division before being promoted to his current post. McCann received his bachelor’s in communications and political science from Central Michigan University and completed the executive management program at Harvard Business School.


WHERE BORN: "Right here in Detroit."

MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS: "My father – by leading by example."

LAST BOOK READ: "The Associate by John Grisham.”

WORDS THAT DESCRIBE ME: "It depends on who you ask – driven, engaged, funny."

WHERE MY FIELD/INDUSTRY IS HEADED: "It is taking the world to the next step in technological evolution in terms of the ability to communicate. We’re a telecommunications company, and this industry is moving in directions that are as yet unknown. We’re in a wireless world. I always give this example: a Pentium III processing chip is very small. It’s an obsolete chip that used to be in your computer, but there’s more memory there than in Apollo 11. That’s where the world is going from a communications standpoint, and we’re at the leading edge of that."

FAVORITE TECHNOLOGICAL GADGET: "My iPod because it doesn’t get email."

FAVORITE PLACE: "Watching my kids play baseball."

FAVORITE HOBBIES: "Golf."

FAVORITE FOOD: "Seafood."

MY HIDDEN TALENT: "I can carry a tune."

HOW I WANT TO BE REMEMBERED: "For helping people.”


Grant Thornton Website At the annual awards reception in April 2014, one Leader & Innovator from the previous 12 months will be selected as the Grant Thornton Leader & Innovator of the Year.