Verizon has appointed a new CEO to improve customer satisfaction and set a new direction for the company.

Verizon is modifying its executive leadership structure amid strong competition, rising customer attrition, and critical strategic choices.

Schulman, a Verizon board member since 2018 and Lead Independent Director since late last year, previously led PayPal as CEO. He also held roles at AT&T, Priceline, and Virgin Mobile. Mark Bertolini, formerly CEO of Oscar Health, has been elected Chairman of the Board.

According to Mark Bertolini, Verizon Board Chairman, Schulman's experience and leadership make him the right person to guide Verizon's focus on customers and growth.

Vestberg, CEO since 2018 and central to Verizon's 5G development, will now be a Special Advisor overseeing the Frontier Communications acquisition. He is expected to remain on the Board until 2026.

Verizon expects Schulman to usher in a period of financial growth, customer focus, and market leadership.

According to Dan Schulman, Verizon CEO, the company has a clear chance to improve its performance by expanding its market share in all sectors.

Verizon hopes Schulman's experience and leadership can help it navigate a challenging period. The company's performance has been below expectations, and it has lost postpaid subscribers this year.

Meanwhile, AT&T has gained subscribers, and T-Mobile claims to have the best network.

Schulman aims to "regain our leadership in our sector across mobility and broadband."

The announcement precedes T-Mobile's CEO transition by a month. Verizon is the largest US carrier by subscribers, but it has lost subscribers for two consecutive quarters.

According to Mike Dano, Lead Industry Analyst at Ookla, Schulman must decide whether to acquire EchoStar's 21 MHz of AWS-3 spectrum to compete with AT&T and T-Mobile. This would increase Verizon's spectrum holdings by roughly 7 percent, boosting its fixed wireless access (FWA) capacity.

KeyBanc Capital Markets analysts said the timing and Schulman's background as a "change agent" rather than having direct wireless experience was unexpected.

Many anticipated Sowmyanarayan Sampath, Executive VP and CEO of Verizon Consumer Group, would succeed Vestberg.

While Schulman has a track record of success, his expertise lies in corporate turnarounds rather than wireless innovation.

While immediate changes for customers are unlikely, addressing the high churn rate appears to be a primary reason for the CEO change, which could increase competition in the wireless sector. Verizon has already initiated a price war.