Anyone who still subscribes to the adage that nice people finish last hasn’t met Nomi Bergman.
Bergman has been shining her light and leadership on a family legacy that’s seen her serve early executive stints at Advance/Newhouse (in publishing and cable) and Time Warner Cable; as president of Bright House Networks, the sixth-largest U.S. cable operator at the time of its 2016 merger with Charter Communications; and in her current role as an adviser on the evolution of the cable infrastructure she’s been championing since day one.
“The continued innovation of our infrastructure has enabled us to deliver products and services to our customers that we might not have dreamed of during earlier days,” she said.
Also: Welcome to the 30th Anniversary of the ‘B+C’ Hall of Fame
A self-described “rational optimist,” Bergman has “a lot of hope for the remarkable things a healthy team can create by working collaboratively together, staying close to customers, falling in love with our craft and aiming high.”
It’s a descriptor shared by Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts, a decades-long ally and friend who counts Bergman as a Comcast board member.
“Nomi is a force in telecommunications — having been at the forefront of many trends in media and technology over the last several decades,” Roberts said. “She is unique for her knowledge, passion and unwavering optimism. It has been a privilege to have her great insights on our board, and we are lucky that Nomi’s leadership and vision are helping to shape our industry.”
Nomi has made a career out of ‘saying yes’ to customers, colleagues, and partners who need her.”
Peter Stern VP, Apple,
That vision began in the early ’90s with Bergman joining her father Robert Miron in the cable business, initially consulting on back-end systems including the streamlining of disparate billing systems.
In 1998, she was on the ground in Charlotte, North Carolina, for the launch of Road Runner, TWC’s initial cable-modem internet service.
“It really felt like a historical moment,” said the mother of three daughters. “The fact that plants could be two-way … it was huge. People didn’t believe it, and they didn’t think they needed it because they thought dial-up was fine.”
Bergman ascended to perhaps her most notable career highlight to date — helming, along with her father and brother, Steve Miron, Bright House Networks and its 8,500 employees serving 2.2 million customers.
“The opportunity to build a multibillion-dollar brand, and to build leadership teams and cultivate a culture of care by authentically engaging and listening to employees and customers and learning how to best show up to serve them was just incredible,” she said.
Steve Miron, also a 2022 Hall of Fame honoree, said it’s been a career highlight to work so closely with his sister: “She’s the most driven person I know; she’s got a great strategic head. She always knows what I’m thinking, and I always know what she’s thinking … and 90% of the time it’s the same thing.”
Among notable customer-first initiatives, Bergman launched a campaign called Just Say Yes, plastering signage in call centers and ensuring employees knew the company had their backs as they super-served customers. Then came the Friends Campaign, centered on the premise that Bright House would pull out all the stops to treat its customers like family and close friends, whether that meant bringing needed food to house calls or technicians working after hours to ensure a student could take an online test. “It was a magical time,” she said.
“Nomi has made a career out of ‘saying yes’ to customers, colleagues, and partners who need her,” said Peter Stern, a VP at Apple who worked with Bergman at Time Warner Cable from 2006 to 2014. “She has enriched countless people’s lives with her insight, integrity, and boundless generosity.”
Sharing Industry Pride
Throughout her career, Bergman has led with a genuine love for the industry, and for the people who make it run. “I look at the infrastructure our industry provided during the pandemic, and I feel such humility and pride,” she said.
What’s on the mind of the avid adventure traveler these days? Regulation and opportunity.
Aside from Comcast, Bergman is on boards of Black & Veatch, Visteon and her alma mater, the University of Rochester. She is also on the FCC’s Technological Advisory Council. For Advance, she’s a board member of 1010data and Hawkeye360, which enables the observation of RF signals from space.
“I love the space industry,” Bergman said. “There are a lot of ties to the cable industry.” ■
