MCMINNVILLE – Ben Lomand Connect has named a new CEO of its cooperative and subsidiaries
Lisa Cope, who has 22 years of service at Ben Lomand, was named to the position in August and began her tenure immediately. Cope’s employment at Ben Lomand began in 1986 in customer service; she later worked in several departments in the Sparta office. After obtaining her degree in business administration with a major in accounting from Tennessee Tech University, she was part of an expansion in Ben Lomand’s accounting department. In 2004, she became controller and has overseen the operations of the accounting department for several years.
“Lisa is the ideal person to lead Ben Lomand during this transitional time in the telecommunications industry,” said Ben Lomand board President, Dr. J.R. Troop. “We have great confidence in Lisa and know she will work diligently to further advance the company and help position Ben Lomand to be a leader in the state and nation.”
Cope was named interim GM following the resignation of Ray Cantrell, who stepped down in February.
Ben Lomand Connect was incorporated in 1954 in Warren County to provide local telephone service to rural Middle Tennessee. It has more than 33,500 access lines covering 3,200 square miles of territory. Ben Lomand began its diversification in 1993 by forming BLC, a wholly owned long distance subsidiary, and it was the first competitive local exchange carrier in the state of Tennessee. The cooperative has 20,000 Internet customers with over 5,600 connected with Ben Lomand Fiber. It serves over 12,600 video customers and 869 security customers.
