CTIA president and CEO Meredith Attwell Baker (pictured) will head the industry group for another five years under a contract extension signed this week.

Baker, a former member of the Federal Communications Commission who joined CTIA in 2014, will continue to oversee the group’s political advocacy efforts and other industry initiatives. CTIA chairman and Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure said the association is “extremely fortunate” to have Baker as a representative in Washington.

“Given Meredith’s outstanding leadership, her strong track record of success with policymakers and her clear vision for our industry’s future, the wireless industry is lucky she has agreed to extend her tenure.”

Under Baker’s leadership, CTIA reported it had been able to reach new members, add much needed technical and policy expertise and develop programmes to push the industry forward. CTIA initiatives include the development of voluntary best practice guidelines for things including wireless network resiliency, location-based services, messaging interoperability, mobile financial services and anti-theft. The group also runs a number of certification programmes covering mobile devices spanning areas including batteries, hardware reliability and Bluetooth compatibility.

In September, CTIA also partnered with GSMA to launch the inaugural Mobile World Congress Americas event. At the time, Baker told Mobile World Live CTIA members were pushing hard to maintain a first mover advantage on 5G.

“5G will bring jobs, investment, and innovation to the countries and everyone wants to be first so that their country benefits from it the most,” she explained.

In the US, Baker said changes to rules for infrastructure siting and the release of additional spectrum will be key to making 5G a reality.