Bill Geppert is not only preparing for war, he's looking forward to it. San Diego is the first real battleground in the telecommunications conflict, with nothing less than the exploding, multibillion dollar telecommunications industry at stake. As vice president and general manager of Cox Communications San Diego, Geppert is one the generals sounding the war cry.

    President Clinton fired the first shot a year ago by signing the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Simply put, the law allows telephone companies to get into the cable business and cable companies to offer telephone service.

    After years of gearing up for this conflict, Geppert says Cox is battle-ready. "(This) will be the year the digital revolution hits San Diego, and Cox is poised on the forefront," he says.

    Cox Communications is the fourth largest cable company in the United States with 40 systems and 3.5 million subscribers. In San Diego, where Cox is the largest cable company, nearly a half million people have a Cox cable wire bringing television programming to their home or office. It has 1,037 employees and is headquartered in Chollas Creek, off State Route 94, just east of Interstate 805.

    Why have companies like Cox and Pacific Bell deployed their troops to San Diego first? This is a techno-savvy city; and as Mayor Susan Golding's City of the Future Initiative creates a highly-wired technological network, companies are scrambling to take advantage of the fertile field.

    "San Diego has 80 percent cable penetration and 25 percent cellular ability," notes Geppert. "About 50 percent of the homes have computers."

    Cox, in partnership with Sprint, now offers consumers PCS (Personal Communication Systems), the digital version of wireless, portable telephones. (PacBell won the battle to be first, launching its pure-digital PCS telephone service in fall 1996.) Cox also plans to get into home telephones as well as cable modems, which give computer users Internet access at 50 times the current speed.

    But while Cox plans new products, other companies are preparing their assault. On the offensive, PacBell is spending millions on its local fiber-optic network and has announced it will add television service in the next few years. On the defensive, Air Touch Cellular has already counter-attacked PCS's innovations with negative pure-digital television ads.

    Yes, the battle has begun.

    "Clearly the communications titans are already competing for customer loyalty," Geppert, 41, notes. "And ultimately, while this kind of choice bodes well for the customer as far as price, product and packaging, it will fragment the market more than it is now."

    All-out combat can result in heavy casualties, especially considering how much it takes to outfit an army these days. "Companies need to be able to make a substantial investment," Geppert points out. "It’s expensive to get into the game because the ante level is very high."

    Cox has invested $300 million locally in state-of-the-art fiber-optic technology. By helping to develop PCS an effort that cost it billions of dollars and several partners Cox received a pioneer's preference in bidding for FCC licenses.

    Competition isn’t the only challenge Geppert faces as a leader. Cable companies in general have to overcome a negative reputation for over-pricing. Along with persuading the public that they can reliably provide other products at fair prices, cable companies have to stop focusing on a single line of revenue.

    "We’ve set a steady course to transform Cox from a cable company to a full-service communications company," Geppert says. "We want to be the company people call when they want video, voice and data. It’s a challenge to lead an organization from a one-product company to a multi-product culture. It’s going to be very exciting."

    Competition is nothing new to Geppert. Before coming to San Diego 16 months ago, he headed Cox's system in England. That system offers both telephone and cable, which is why he was selected to head Cox's largest system in the United States.

    "Bill's leadership talent and skill as a motivator make him a key asset to Cox as the company continues to reinvent itself as a full-service provider of a wide array of telecommunications services," says

    Jim Robbins, president and CEO of Cox Communications Inc. "These abilities, combined with his experience in the United Kingdom managing a video/telephone services operation, make Bill uniquely suited to guide Cox's San Diego system into the new telecommunications era."

    During the two-and-half years Geppert spent in England, the customer base exploded from 15,000 to 170,000. He'd like to see those kinds of results here. "We think we can double in size in the next four to five years," Geppert forecasts.

    It’s a daunting assignment. But since he was a boy in Maryland, working for the local cable company in a variety of summer jobs, Geppert dreamed of this opportunity. "When I started in the business I had a goal of managing the largest cable operation in the country. At the time that was San Diego, which is one of the reasons I joined Cox seven years ago."

    Geppert, who lives in Rancho San Diego with his wife of 18 years and their two children, has plenty of experience in leading a company. In the course of serving as general manager for four other systems, he won Cox's national leadership award three years ago. But what seems to make this graduate of Dale Carnegie stand out is his firm belief in the power of people.

    "I’ve always had the ability to surround myself with smart people and get out of the way," he says, making light of the charisma and strong vision that make him a recognized leader. "What I enjoy most is seeing people and an organization grow."

    The telecommunications war will be fought with lethal ad campaigns, cut-throat pricing and the latest in technology. Ask Geppert what will win the battle for Cox, and he quickly responds that it’s Cox's commitment to the customer as well as to its employees.

    "Our job is to define our strengths and then nurture them," he says. "We have great people working for us who really believe in the customer. At the end of the day, it’s not about technology, it’s about people."

    That's why the honor Geppert is proudest of is the Customer Is Key Award, which Cox San Diego has won for customer service the last three out of five years.

    But Geppert isn’t going into this conflict blindly. As chairman of the Tour of Technology exhibit at the September Insights conference organized by the Greater San Diego Chamber of Commerce, he's fully aware that it’s going to be a do-or-die business environment. Still he welcomes a full-out war.

    "It’s going to be very competitive and I look forward to it because I think it will make us all better. Choice is the American way. It’s a great opportunity to provide high quality products and services. We’re committed to delivering that. That's the challenge."

    To the victor go the spoils.