SALISBURY — Fibrant has a new leader.
The city of Salisbury announced today that City Manager Doug Paris has hired Michael F. Jury as general manager of Fibrant, the city’s new broadband utility. Fibrant competes with private industry to sell Internet, cable TV and phone services to Salisbury residents.
Director of Salisbury Rowan Utilities, Jim Behmer, has been serving as the acting director of broadband services.
Jury is an industry veteran with more than 24 years of experience, Elaney Hasselmann, the city public information officer, said in a press release.
Before joining Fibrant, Jury was general manager and chief executive officer of Mediastream, a 9,000 subscriber system in Waycross, Ga.
He turned around a 21-month slide in revenue, rebranded the company, rolled out new Voice-Over-Internet Protocol services and completed a five-year plan within three years, leading to the successful sale of the company, Hasselmann said.
Before leading Mediastream, Jury held various executive-level positions with cable and telecommunications companies including WideOpenWest, RCN and Adelphia Communications Corporation.
He is known throughout the United States for his knowledge of the industry, Hasselmann said.
“We are extremely grateful to hire an industry veteran of Mike Jury’s caliber to manage our broadband utility,” Paris said. “He was the unanimous choice of our hiring panel and has the exact experience and skill set needed for Fibrant at this time.”
Jury holds an electronics degree from the National Cable Television Association. In addition, he is a longstanding member of the Society of Cable Television.
His civic involvement includes participation in local Rotary, Chamber of Commerce and YMCA organizations.
“I’m honored to join the Fibrant team and be part of an organization with a similar mission and values to my own, including a superior level of customer service,” Jury said. “I’m looking forward to helping Fibrant continue to provide state of the art technology services to business and residents in the community.”
Jury is married to wife Kary Jo and has three children. Jury has volunteered in his spare time as a Cub Scout leader and a Little League Baseball coach.
Paris said the city conducted a lengthy, nationwide search, including search efforts by consulting firms in Charlotte and New York City that specialize in recruiting for technology-based positions.
Potential candidates were interviewed by a hiring panel comprised of local industry professionals, individuals from the city’s management team and members of City Council.
City Council will welcome Jury publicly at the regular meeting at 4 p.m. April 3.
Fibrant has more than 1,700 customers. Fibrant uses a state-of-the-art, 100 percent fiber optic network.