CEO Profile: Sprint's new CEO showed grit from the start

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Don't let the polite manners and Jimmy-Stewart-like earnestness fool you.

Hesse is characteristically low key — and plain-spoken — about his swift housecleaning. "Accountability is a big thing with me," he says simply.

Forsee, who engineered the Sprint-Nextel merger in 2005, was shown the door in fall. Hesse, 54, was CEO of Embarq, a Sprint spinoff, when he was tapped to take over.

Pressure on Hesse ratcheted up last week when Verizon announced an all-you-can-eat wireless plan for $99.99 a month. It was a watershed moment for the U.S. wireless industry, which has historically sold big buckets of minutes for a set monthly price.

Within hours, AT&T and T-Mobile matched Verizon's offer. Sprint has yet to respond.

Hesse declines to offer any specifics, but he clearly sees an opening for Sprint. "Let's just say I'm glad they put their cards on the table," he says with dead calm.

Roger Entner, a senior vice president at IAG Research, thinks Sprint will counter with an unlimited plan that is slightly cheaper than what AT&T and Verizon are offering. He doesn't think Sprint can wait very long to respond.

Those who have worked closely with Hesse don't doubt he can deliver.