Spurring Good Works in San Antonio

Cable World, Oct 8, 2001 by Shirley Brady

Investing in employees and in a community is second nature for Time Warner Cable's Navarra Williams.

San Antonio is where Navarra Williams got his first position in the industry as director of finance for Harte-Hanks Cable in 1984, which makes the city much more than just a place to live and work.

"I jumped at the chance to move back, particularly because my family was very comfortable here," says Williams, president of Time Warner Cable's San Antonio division. "We all like the climate, the people and especially the diversity of the city."

Williams, 47, moved back to San Antonio in 1991 to run a Paragon Cable system that is now a 330,000-subscriber system for Time Warner Cable and immediately immersed himself and the company in the social fabric of the city.

"We involve ourselves as much as possible, sponsoring cultural events in the Hispanic and Mexican-American community," says Williams. "But we also have company picnics with pie-in-the-face events, and I've dressed up as Captain Kirk in a Star Trek spoof for our employees. We also host an annual invitational basketball tournament, and, let me tell you, we don't play presidential ball. I get shoved around out there on the court."

An advocate for poor children, Williams has been involved with the Carver Community Cultural Center, a local community center, and the Carver Academy, a private school for inner-city children that was the brainchild of David Robinson, the center for the NBA's San Antonio Spurs.

"Navarra is a man who cares about his community," says Robinson, who is chairman of the Carver Academy. "He has selflessly devoted many hours and countless resources t,o ensure our success. If I am ever in a foxhole, I'd want him in there with me."

Williams himself has come a long way from growing up a self-described "poor kid" in Washington, D.C., where his wife, Deborah, also grew up. The youngest of three children, Williams was also the first to get a college education.

"All credit for my work ethic goes to my mother, Dolly, who was always there for me and my two sisters," says Williams. "She worked at night as a nurse's assistant so she could be there when we got home, and she always attended our functions at school."

While completing his college studies, Williams worked as a marketing representative for IBM and was hired in 1979 as controller for Royal Food Products in Indianapolis. He left in 1984 to join Harte-Hanks Cable, after deciding that cable was "more exciting" than the computer and food industries.

A year later the company promoted him to VP/GM of its 34,000-subscriber system in Philadelphia, bumping him up to regional president in 1987. He then spent a year as regional general manager for TKR Cable in Warren, N.J., before moving Deborah and their children, Adam, now a Wall Street analyst, and Angela, now a junior at Duke University, to Orange County, Calif.

He served as EVP and GM of Paragon Cable's Orange County system from 1989 to 1991, when the company asked Williams to run its San Antonio division. Williams was asked to remain in the top spot when Time Warner bought the system last year.

Williams learned early in his career that employees are a company's most valuable asset. He makes sure that Time Warner invests in the careers of employees, but that's not all. "We inaugurated the Hometown Heroes award, to recognize local residents dedicated to volunteering" with children's organizations, he says.

Williams was also integral to the success of the redevelopment of Kelly AirForce Base, serving as a board member of the Greater Kelly Development Authority since 1996 and as chairman from 1979 to 1999.

"Navarra brought a business orientation and a vision of where we ought to go with the redevelopment of this base," says Paul Roberson, executive director of the Greater Kelly Development Authority. "He was very, very important to our success, attracting major companies including Boeing, Lockheed-Martin and Pratt & Whitney to establish us as a major commercial aviation maintenance center and was directly involved in creating 2,000 positions as a result."

Doug Holloway, president of network distribution and affiliate relations at USA Networks, knows Williams from his involvement in CTAM, NAMIC and other organizations. All who "come in contact with him are made to feel as though they have known him a very long time," says Holloway. "He has done great work in the industry in support of the diversity and mentoring efforts with NAMIC, and on his own."

TIME WARNER CABLE San Antonio, Texas, division

OWNERSHIP: AOL Time Warner; system founded 1979

SUBSCRIBERS: 330,000

MILES OF PLANT: 5,500

HOMES PASSED: 630,000

BASIC CABLE: $11.10/month; 17 channels

STANDARD CABLE: $39.35/month; 68 channels

DIGITAL CABLE: $47.75-$82.75/month

HIGH-SPEED INTERNET: $35-$50/month

ADVERTISING: Local ad sales force; ad insertion in 40 channels

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