Verizon faces pressure as Schulman promises a reset

Verizon’s new chief executive, Dan Schulman, inherits a franchise under pressure and a customer base running out of patience. The latest quarter delivered a sliver of overall subscriber growth, but the gains came from prepaid and business lines; postpaid phone users shrank by thousands.

Rival T-Mobile is closing the gap in total customers, and as the following Breakingviews report argues, investor maturity is wearing thin. Schulman vowed a reset of strategy and culture during the earnings call, reiterating that he had overstretched prices without adding value, damaging customer trust. He promised big moves but, more notably, repeated a word throughout the interaction: delight. Ultimately, while words matter immensely, this essay supposes that they are insufficient. Here is what needs to shift for a real course correction.

Perceptions of reliability give way to value and clarity

For many years, Verizon leveraged a reliability reputation as competition closed the gap. Although independent network tests from Ookla and Opensignal frequently found T-Mobile to have the nation’s highly reliable 5G speeds, RootMetrics and Verizon have generally finished above all in the nation. But perceptions change – and what drivers cherish now, after a pandemic, often centers on abundance, simplicity, and transparency, i.e., where price rises, perplexing promos, and additional fees have alienated people.

Service income will fall because postpaid phone growth has returned. Fixed wireless home internet is a bright spot, but it remains a worry in core mobility. The industry baseline is brutal: postpaid phone churn from the dominant carriers remains below 1%; good is the enemy of acceptable, and even small misses throw you back.

Pricing discipline and simpler, clearer plan structures

• Stop reflexive price lifts.
• If rates will be moving, customers must see and feel the upgrade — more hotspot data, simpler insurance, broader roaming, and cloud extras built in.
• Adopt all-in pricing and minimize line-item fees so the bill feels as predictable as a streaming subscription.
• Simplify the plan lineup to three clearly differentiated unlimited options.
• Do not hide tenure behind call-center negotiations; reward tenure automatically.
• Clarify family discounts.
• With new plans, offer a short-term price lock so customers do not need to worry about a surprise jump in month two.

Reinvent retail experiences and support around outcomes

Verizon’s retail model has to reset.

• Slim the number of corporate-owned stores and focus investment in a smaller number of flagship service centers.
• Staff the centers with better-paid and better-trained affiliates with a set of incentives that prioritize satisfaction and first-time-right resolutions, not attachment rates.
• Where stores close, replace lost convenience with better logistics — same-day delivery, curbside device swaps, and robust appointment systems.
• In care, use AI to triage routine tasks and surface solutions for human agents, but keep the human path easy and fast.
• Implement a practical goal: live-agent access within minutes in peak periods, measured and reported annually.

Offer meaningful perks and bundle home internet smarter

• Securitized perks that actually differentiate — customers want visible value, not coupon books.
• T-Mobile is still using included entertainment; Verizon’s bundle has thinned out.
• The top unlimited tier should get one included perk of the customer’s choice — a major streaming, gaming, or cloud partner — so it feels personal and immediate.
• Bundle fixed wireless home internet more aggressively with mobile lines, with straightforward monthly savings and a single, clean bill.
• Align benefits across Visible and Total by Verizon so the portfolio complements rather than competes with itself.

Network and product focus to improve daily performance

The network remains Verizon’s franchise, but consistency must improve.

• Accelerate mid-band 5G densification and backhaul upgrades so suburban and indoor performance match the marketing, not just freeway corridors.
• The FCC’s C-band and 3.45 GHz wins provide spectrum; density and optimization turn it into everyday speed.
• On the enterprise side, lean into strengths—private 5G, IoT at scale, and edge compute with partners like AWS Wavelength.
• Package these for mid-market firms that lack deep IT benches, not just Fortune 500 buyers.

Enterprise stickiness and higher-margin solutions can balance consumer volatility.

Cut costs carefully without eroding customer trust

Schulman has signaled a leaner portfolio.

• Target savings in legacy billing platforms, overlapping systems, and procurement, not just headcount.
• Expand trade-in refurbishment and certified pre-owned to reduce subsidy burn.
• Exit low-return projects decisively — the shuttering of BlueJeans was a template.
• Let automation prove itself with customer outcomes.
• Track first-contact resolution and satisfaction alongside deflection.
• The fastest way to accelerate churn is to bury help behind bots and hold music.

What success looks like in the next phase for Verizon

A real pivot would happen with three near-term markers:

• Postpaid phone net adds are consistently positive.
• Churn holds well below 1%.
• Service revenue grows more than 7% annually faster than operating expense.

If those marks move up and down together, confidence returns.

External validation would come second:

• Steadier mid-band performance in independent analysts’ tests at Ookla, Opensignal, and RootMetrics.
• Fewer FCC-tracked complaints.
• A clearer path on divesting non-core assets to stay focused.

Schulman’s rhetoric indicates the tone. Unmistakable customer wins that show paying a premium is worth it will need to follow. Otherwise, the rival’s faster movement will dominate the narrative and the market.