internal
Charles W. Ergen
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Executive
0 yr
32 reports
EchoStar Corporation ·SATS
Founder-CEO with dual role controls EchoStar and EchoStar Capital
Telecommunications · Fortune #273 · Holding structure · 14K employees · Englewood, Colorado
View as of:
7
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 9)
2.6
Avg span
moderate
4
Max depth
4 levels
2.3 yr
Avg tenure
↓ 1.5yr from FY2024
57%
Internal hires
near industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2025-12-31 · 10-K
Revenue
$15.0B
Operating income
$-17723146000
Net income
$-14497180000
Total assets
$43.0B
Sourced from EchoStar Corporation 10-K · filed 2026-03-02 ↗ View on SEC
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EchoStar Corporation organizational chart
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Founder Charles Ergen simultaneously serves as Chairman, President, and CEO while appointing a separate CEO to run EchoStar Capital. This page maps EchoStar’s hybrid holding-company structure, executive team, recent leadership changes, and how its centralized control compares with telecom peers.
What to model
Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines
Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.
Latest signal EchoStar Capital changed role as New division
Created EchoStar Capital as a standalone division on 2025-11-06.
Source · See change logScenario views in the chart
- Add Chief AI Officer Create a Chief AI Officer role reporting to the CEO to centralize AI-driven network optimization and customer analytics.
- Move EchoStar Capital under CFO Shift EchoStar Capital to report to the CFO, consolidating capital allocation with finance.
Atlas work this supports
- Connect Workday or UKG Get these analytics for YOUR org — tenure, span of control, headcount, automatically from your HRIS.
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- Plan a Reorg Use this as a starting point. Model scenarios, compare structures, present options to your board.
The people
Who's running this
8 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.
internal
John W. Swieringa
President, Technology and Chief Operating Officer
Technology & Operations
4 yr
10 reports
Hamid Akhavan
Chief Executive Officer, EchoStar Capital
EchoStar Capital
0 yr
6 reports
internal
Paul W. Orban
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Finance
3 yr
7 reports
Open Role
President, Sales & Marketing
Sales & Marketing
1 yr
6 reports
internal
Dean A. Manson
Chief Legal Officer and Secretary
Legal
6 yr
4 reports
Open Role
Chief Human Resources Officer
Human Resources
1 yr
4 reports
Open Role
Chief Strategy Officer
Strategy
1 yr
3 reports
The pay
Executive compensation
From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 5 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.
Charles W. Ergen $4.1M
- Base salary
- $1.00M
- Other
- $3.10M
- Fiscal year
- FY2024
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Hamid Akhavan $8.9M
- Base salary
- $2.47M
- Stock awards
- $4.36M
- Non-equity incentive
- $2.00M
- Other
- $96K
- Fiscal year
- FY2024
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
John W. Swieringa $5.0M
- Base salary
- $1.00M
- Stock awards
- $1.16M
- Option awards
- $1.81M
- Non-equity incentive
- $1.00M
- Other
- $5K
- Fiscal year
- FY2024
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Paul W. Orban $2.3M
- Base salary
- $650K
- Stock awards
- $1.01M
- Non-equity incentive
- $650K
- Other
- $6K
- Fiscal year
- FY2024
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Dean A. Manson $1.6M
- Base salary
- $667K
- Stock awards
- $348K
- Option awards
- $484K
- Non-equity incentive
- $69K
- Other
- $10K
- Fiscal year
- FY2024
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
The businesses
How EchoStar Corporation divides the work
4 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.
EchoStar Capital
200 employees
CEO, EchoStar Capital (Hamid Akhavan)
Manages strategic investments, spectrum assets, and external transactions.
Technology & Operations
7K employees
President, Technology and COO (John W. Swieringa)
Oversees satellite engineering, network operations, IT, and service delivery.
Finance
800 employees
EVP & CFO (Paul W. Orban)
Handles financial reporting, treasury, planning, and capital structure.
Legal & Compliance
300 employees
Chief Legal Officer (Dean A. Manson)
Responsible for legal affairs, regulatory compliance, and governance.
The thesis
Why this org is unusual
Founder Charles Ergen simultaneously serves as Chairman, President, and CEO, while also directly appointing a separate CEO for EchoStar Capital, creating a dual-center of power.
The CEO has an unusually broad span with eight direct reports, covering both operating functions and a standalone capital-investment arm. EchoStar Capital is structurally parallel to core operations rather than embedded within finance, signaling its strategic importance in spectrum, satellite, and external investments.
Operationally, the company maintains a traditional functional structure under the COO, while finance, legal, HR, and strategy remain centralized. The result is a hybrid holding-company model where capital allocation and strategic transactions are elevated to near-equal footing with operations.
- Founder retains combined Chair/CEO role
- Separate CEO for EchoStar Capital
- High CEO span of control
The comparison
How EchoStar Corporation stacks up
Compared with peers like Comcast and Charter, EchoStar exhibits far more concentrated control, with its founder holding overwhelming voting power and combining board chair and CEO roles. Unlike AT&T or Verizon, which separate capital allocation into finance or strategy committees, EchoStar has formalized EchoStar …
Reporting depth
Avg C-suite tenure
Current signals
What changed recently
EchoStar created EchoStar Capital in November 2025 and elevated founder Charles Ergen back into the combined Chairman, President and CEO role.
- reorg
- newCharles W. Ergen Chairman, President and CEO
Assumed combined Chairman, President and CEO roles effective 2025-11-06.
Source - new
Leadership Timeline
Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.
FY2025
10-K filed 2026-03-02
- CEO
- Charles W. Ergen
- CEO span
- 7
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 2.3 yr
Founder reassumed CEO role and created EchoStar Capital.
Named executive officers (5)
- Charles W. Ergen - Chairman, President and CEO since 2025
- Hamid Akhavan - CEO, EchoStar Capital since 2025
- John W. Swieringa - President, Technology and COO since 2021
- Paul W. Orban - EVP and CFO since 2022
- Dean A. Manson - Chief Legal Officer since 2019
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-03-21
- CEO
- Hamid Akhavan
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 3.8 yr
Professional CEO model with Ergen as executive chairman.
Named executive officers (5)
- Hamid Akhavan - President and CEO since 2023
- Charles W. Ergen - Executive Chairman since 2009
- John W. Swieringa - COO since 2021
- Paul W. Orban - CFO since 2022
- Dean A. Manson - Chief Legal Officer since 2019
FY2023
10-K filed 2024-02-29
- CEO
- Hamid Akhavan
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 3.5 yr
Stable leadership following merger with DISH.
Named executive officers (5)
- Hamid Akhavan - President and CEO since 2023
- Charles W. Ergen - Executive Chairman since 2009
- John W. Swieringa - COO since 2021
- Paul W. Orban - CFO since 2022
- Dean A. Manson - Chief Legal Officer since 2019
Year-over-year changes
Leadership remained stable with no major structural changes.
- CEO span: 5 → 5
- C-suite size: 5 → 5
- Avg tenure: 3.5 → 3.8 yr
- retitled Hamid Akhavan - President and CEO (DEF 14A 2025-03-21)
Founder returned as CEO and expanded CEO span with creation of EchoStar Capital.
- CEO span: 5 → 7
- C-suite size: 5 → 5
- Avg tenure: 3.8 → 2.3 yr
- reorg EchoStar Capital - New division (8-K 2025-11-06)
- promoted Charles W. Ergen - Chairman, President and CEO (was Executive Chairman) (8-K 2025-11-06)
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the CEO of EchoStar?
Charles W. Ergen is Chairman, President, and CEO of EchoStar as of November 2025.
What type of organizational structure does EchoStar use?
EchoStar operates a hybrid holding-company structure with centralized functions and a standalone capital division.
How many direct reports does EchoStar's CEO have?
The CEO has seven direct reports, including a separate CEO for EchoStar Capital.
How has EchoStar's leadership changed recently?
In November 2025, EchoStar created EchoStar Capital and appointed Hamid Akhavan as its CEO while Charles Ergen resumed the CEO role.
Who reports directly to EchoStar's CEO?
Direct reports include the COO, CFO, Chief Legal Officer, and the CEO of EchoStar Capital.
Sources
- 8-K Filing, Nov 2025
- SEC EDGAR: EchoStar Corporation DEF 14A Proxy Statement
- SEC EDGAR: EchoStar Corporation 10-K Annual Report
Reference
Cite this page
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APA 7th
Creately. (2026). EchoStar Corporation organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/echostar/MLA 9th
"EchoStar Corporation Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/echostar/. Accessed .Chicago 17
Creately. "EchoStar Corporation Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/echostar/.Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
EchoStar Corporation. 10-K. Filed 2026-03-02. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1415404/000110465926021817/tmb-20251231x10k.htmPermanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/echostar/ · last updated 2026-04-01