Sam DeSimone has learned a lot in his 16 years at EarthLink Holding Corp., but he can boil them down to two essentials: Life is short (and wild and precious) and family and friends matter most (including friends at work).
It is this practical yet human side that has guided DeSimone to lead the legal department as EarthLink changed from a consumer Internet service provider (ISP) to a managed network, security and cloud solutions provider for businesses. From coming on board as the sole attorney of Mindspring Enterprises to leading a legal department that at one point expanded to 30 employees, including eight attorneys, to the current 23, also including eight attorneys, DeSimone deftly identifies his company's strategic directions and forms a responsive legal team. He has led a legal team that serviced a company that once was an ISP with about 300 employees to a managed network that provides a wide range of cloud solutions with about 3,000 employees.
