Clearfield’s Cheri Beranek Named Female Executive of the Year Finalist

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 25, 2016 -- Clearfield, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLFD), the specialist in fiber management, optical pathway and connectivity platforms for communication service providers, announced today that its CEO, Cheri Beranek, has been named by the Stevie® Awards as a finalist in the Female Executive of the Year category. As a finalist, Beranek will be recognized at an awards ceremony in New York on November 18 where she will ultimately be a gold, silver, or bronze Stevie Award winner within the Business Products division for those companies with less than 2,500 employees. Beranek is credited for distinctive management, fusing global marketing acumen with collaborative leadership, and converting a research and development based corporation, with limited revenue, into a leading provider of optical fiber management and connectivity platforms.

“In the 13^th year of the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the judges were very impressed with the quality of each nomination that qualified as a Stevie finalist. The competition has grown each year because there are so many high-achieving women all over the world who serve as an inspiration to those who would like to start, grow or lead a business,” said Michael Gallagher, founder and president of the Stevie Awards.

Beranek is a pioneer, a visionary and a transformative business leader in the telecommunications networking and high-tech growth industries. Under her leadership as CEO of Clearfield, the company was recognized as a member of NASDAQ’s Russell 2000 and was twice named by Forbes as one of America’s top 100 small-cap public companies. Under Beranek’s lead, Clearfield has a five year compounded average growth rate of nearly 20%, largely due to the increasing acceptance within the national carrier market of its value-added optical component expertise. Through a series of carefully calculated and strategic steps, Beranek has positioned Clearfield to be a strong company with intuitive and cost-efficient product solutions, unparalleled technical, sales and management teams, and an established international presence.

“At Clearfield, we have set out to change the way the telecommunications industry views optical fiber management. Beyond building a reputation for unrivaled product innovations and nimble service, Clearfield’s success is based on defining and adhering to our true values,” said Cheri Beranek, CEO of Clearfield. “It is imperative that every decision that is made is based on listening to our clients and understanding their needs. Clearfield’s success thus far would be impossible without the skills and talents that the entire Clearfield team brings to the table, while collaborating with our clients to deliver the best fiber networking solution to market.”

The Stevie Awards for Women in Business honor women executives, entrepreneurs, employees and the companies they run – worldwide. The Stevie Awards have been hailed as the world’s premier business awards. Finalists were chosen by more than 110 business professionals worldwide during preliminary judging. Members of five final judging committees will determine the gold, silver and bronze Stevie Award placements from among the finalists during final judging October 17-26. Gold, silver and bronze Stevie Award winners will be announced during a gala event at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York on Friday, November 18. Nominated women executives and entrepreneurs from the USA and several other countries are expected to attend. The event will be broadcast on Livestream and the pre-show from the red carpet will be streamed on the Stevie Awards’ Facebook feed.

Details about the Stevie Awards for Women in Business and the list of finalists in all categories are available at www.StevieAwards.com/Women. 

About Clearfield, Inc.
Clearfield, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLFD) designs, manufactures and distributes fiber optic management, protection and delivery products for communications networks. Our “fiber to the anywhere” platform serves the unique requirements of leading incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECS), competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs), Wireless operators, and MSO/cable TV companies, while also catering to the broadband needs of the utility/municipality, enterprise, data center and military markets. Headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, Clearfield deploys more than a million fiber ports each year. For more information, visit www.SeeClearfield.com.

About The Stevie Awards
Stevie Awards are conferred in seven programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 10,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 60 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at www.StevieAwards.com.

Media & Analyst Contact:
Jas McDonald
Connect2 Communications, Inc. for Clearfield, Inc.
919-435-9115
[email protected]