Before Alex Gonzalez ever installed internet into a household relying solely on hotspots — let alone led an entire team of trade technicians — he understood the value of showing up.
Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Gonzalez is a natural connector — bridging technology and people with an infectious energy and unwavering enthusiasm for what he does. Serving in the National Guard of both Puerto Rico and New Jersey, Gonzalez followed his mother to the mainland, where she made one thing clear: “You need a job.” That nudge led him to an entry-level field technician role — where he quickly connected to the craft and the people it served.
“I fell in love with it from day one,” he reflected fondly in an interview with Broadband Nation.
In high school, he attended an electrician trade school, laying the foundation for the hands-on work he would grow to love. “I've always been really techie,” he said. Today, he is a community-focused leader and serves as Area Vice President of Field Operations for internet provider Charter Communications.
As many technicians will describe, the hours can be long and the work tiring. But the combination of hands-on gratification and interacting with local businesses, renters and homeowners makes for a sated state of mind at the end of a work day. Even on the toughest shifts — when storms roll in and everyone else runs inside — “we’re running out. We're keeping the network going. We’re keeping lives running,” said Gonzalez, from work calls to at-home therapy sessions.
When it comes to “the good, bad and ugly” of the job, sometimes the bad and ugly are what makes the good more meaningful in Gonzalez’s eyes. “I self-made myself. I worked really hard to be where I'm at," he said. "I grew up in a family where hard work wasn’t optional, it was expected."
The appetite for people and learning has made for a satisfying work life.
“Anyone that's in the search to be in the broadband community: have a goal. Don't just come here for a job, come here for a career.”
Boricua in broadband: family roots and time-tested boots
As someone who came from the mission-driven, team-based world of the National Guard, Gonzalez fit naturally into the social, hands-on variety of broadband field work.
“I'm meeting new people every day, I'm going to different homes, I'm going to a different atmosphere,” he said. “That's what made me fall in love with this... I was not a big office guy. I was a field guy."
Gonzalez said the National Guard has continued to influence his work in the field, instilling in him both discipline and leadership in engaging with people. The same can be said for his relationship to family.
"Growing up, my family placed a strong emphasis on hospitality and respect. We were taught that how you treat people matters, whether it's a guest in your home or someone you just met. That mindset carried into my professional life," he explained. "I don't just see customers as account numbers or service calls, I see them as people who deserve kindness, honesty and my full effort. When you approach every interaction with that kind of care, you're not just solving a problem; you're building trust."
Gonzalez has approached every homeowner or renter he helped with that familial respect. “I made sure that [every] customer was treated just like if it was my aunt Rose, or even my grandmother or my mother.” That combo helped him excel in the trade and move into bigger roles — something he welcomed.
“I love to evolve... Change for me is exciting,” he said, adding that change has made his line of work a bit more recognized. “COVID changed the industry. It made us [change] the way we look at internet, the way we look at broadband, the way people rely on it. During those times, those kids couldn't go to school, that's what expanded our trade.”
Broadband hasn’t always seen the same light as traditional trades, but that’s changing — especially as younger workers look to toolbelt careers for stability in a burnout economy.
"People are seeing broadband workers,” he said. “Back in the day it was electrical workers, water workers, gas people. I want to say broadband workers are just like electrical workers, you know. We're needed, we're out there, we're expanding.”
Gonzalez recalled his mother, who needed access to a doctor but didn’t want to set up internet. "I said, ‘Mom, trust me.’ Now she does not want to go to the doctor's office," now preferring one-on-one telehealth calls when an in-person visit isn't necessary. That is just as central to his work as connecting cables. In nursing homes, businesses and schools — he helps teach people how to understand and fully use broadband for its benefits in work, health and education.
"That's what these technicians gotta see,” he argued. “You're not just installing internet; you're literally creating a livelihood.”
Making the purpose livable: pay and benefits to the job
With a temperament and ethic already well suited to change and growth, Gonzalez has excelled in the trade. But pay remains the critical piece to sustainability — the part that makes meaningful work livable.
While Gonzalez acknowledged the stability of the broadband trade itself, he offered extra praise for his employer’s self-progression program, that allows for a more transparent way to move up in both pay and title.
“It's self-led,” he explained, meaning that an entry-level technician can go through the courses and field work needed to advance to Field Tech II. “We get a $500 bonus, and we get a 10% [pay] increase. You can do that up to 5 times,” effectively creating a clear-cut track to increase wages by over 60%.
“That's what kept me hungry,” said Gonzalez. “Because I'm not stagnant here. I can continue progressing.”
After advancing to a field tech V, other opportunities in leadership can open up. You can also transfer into other areas of the trade like maintenance or construction — or move into other technical areas like engineering or cybersecurity, he added.
The other big financial perk is the education benefit — which offers numerous degrees, completely paid for.
Recently shifting from a reimbursement model to an upfront coverage of tuition, books and fees, Gonzalez — who’s currently earning a degree in organizational leadership — can study while still getting paid in the field.
“Back in the day, I was like, ‘Oh my god, I'm never going to college,’... because I didn't think it could be done, but it could be done,” he reflected, now back in the classroom at age 44. “I can do this free of charge while working, and I want to show my kids that it could be done.”
He takes the responsibility seriously, in part, because he had mentors who did the same. "They taught me that being a leader isn’t just about results, it’s about developing others, communicating clearly and showing up consistently."
Support for boots on the ground doesn't always come from programs, as Gonzalez pointed out. It also comes from a leadership interested in listening to its field teams.
During a town hall in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Charter CEO Chris Winfrey stopped by to take questions and ideas from field techs. One of them brought up the concept of stock ownership for their teams — something Gonzalez never expected to go anywhere.
“He ran with it. I couldn’t believe it when I heard that it was coming. I was like, ‘Oh my god, that started in one of my shops,” Gonzalez said. “We’re giving ownership to technicians, which is great.”
The move to expand stock access to field technicians was more than symbolic. For a workforce that makes up the bulk of the company’s operations, it was a shift in structure — and expectation. “Our frontline population represents 70% of our workforce. So now [they can all be] partial owners,” he said. “They work harder. They want to see the company just grow.”
Correction, August 5th, 2025: This article originally quoted Gonzalez on frontline workers representing 80% of Charter's workforce, which was corrected by Charter to be 70%.
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