Deb Cleary is frank when discussing why she returned to the telecommunications field after a stab as a regional sales agent with Norcom Insurance/AFLAC in Avon: the economy.
With three young children (ages 9, 6, and 4), she didn’t have the financial means to work on commission.
She headed back to her telecommunications career. This time, though, she resolved not to be part of a huge corporation where she was a number and not a member of the team. When Paetec offered, she said yes, and became a senior sales executive at its Constitution Plaza office in Hartford. She is now one of 4,000 employees instead of one in 100,000 as she was in her 15 years with MCI.
Paetec may be one of the biggest companies you’ve never heard of. According to Cleary, it’s the fifth largest telecommunications company in the U.S., behind such giants as AT&T and Verizon. Paetec provides business communications for medium and large businesses across the United States. It offers a comprehensive suite of IP, voice, data and Internet services, as well as enterprise communications management software, network security solutions, customer premises equipment and managed services.
“We’re a premium alternative to AT&T and MCI,” Cleary explained. Paetec focuses on smaller to medium sized businesses that have billings above $2000 a month. She said her employer sets itself apart by focusing on customer service with local action teams that can resolve customer difficulties without going through “1-800 hell.”
Cleary jumped back into telecommunications because it’s a field she has enjoyed over the past 19 years. “It’s really different and new. There is always something pretty sleek that comes out. You’re not stuck doing the same thing every day,” she said, appropriately enough, during a telephone interview that was conducted through Voice Over Internet Protocol.
All of that technology at work, though, doesn’t necessarily make its way home. Cleary and her family enjoy decidedly low-tech fun by building an ice skating rink in the backyard of their Avon home. The Clearys also enjoy skiing and the cultural experiences offered at The Bushnell.
