CRA Co-Founder Retires, Bernstein Assumes Ownership

By Khali Henderson

CRA Telecom President Laura Bernstein is now the sole owner the company she co-founded with Robert Varady in 1999. Varady retired in November.

CRA Telecom began as Cost Recovery Associates Inc., a telecom agency and auditing firm. In 2010 CRA packaged its customer support services to sell to other agents, enabling them to either white label or sell as a standalone product, thereby turning a cost center into a profit center. Berstein said this enables them to focus on sales, while CRA takes care of “the headaches” of customer support.

In 2014, CRA Telecom plans to launch an initiative that will be focused on measuring customer experience and performance of agents, carriers and master agents.

Bernstein reflects on the past decade working with Varady, who was at times a mentor as much as a partner. “He would always have my back,” she said, citing his unfailing support of her role as president of CRA.

She calls Varaday “a walking miracle” for surviving multiple bouts of cancer. She reports that today he is doing well and is in good health.

In addition to CRA, Bernstein serves on the board of Women in the Channel and is the organizations committee chair of mentorship. She also serves on CompTIAs Telecom Advisory Council and was on the Technology Channel Association 2013 board of directors. She is a former member of the Channel Partners Advisory Board.