Edwards to lead TAK’s operational and strategic growth to $1B+

Sioux Falls, SD – August 13, 2024 – TAK Communications, a leading provider of full turnkey solutions for broadband network installation, fulfillment, and support services, announced today it has appointed Trent Edwards as Chief Executive Officer.

Edwards succeeds Micah Mauney, who is transitioning to the strategic board position of Executive Chairman.

Edwards boasts almost 30 years of telecommunications experience as an executive and leader in the broadband industry. Prior to joining TAK as President of Broadband Solutions in early 2024, Edwards served as President of Mears Broadband, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mears Group and Quanta Service companies, building it into an industry leader during his time there.  As CEO of TAK, Edwards will partner with Mauney and the existing team to build and execute TAK’s future growth strategies.

“We are extremely excited to have Trent as our CEO, especially as we enter the next phase of TAK’s growth,” said Mauney. “Trent’s track record in the industry speaks for itself and we are honored to have his CEO leadership and vision to guide us in our continued mission to be America’s Best communication services provider for our existing and new customers.”

“TAK has built an impressive broadband services business with national scale that today provides full end-to-end capabilities across the full network deployment value chain. I am thrilled to assume the CEO role and lead TAK’s immediate and long-term growth plans,” said Edwards. “Fiber is the backbone of all key technologies used to deliver broadband internet and wireless connectivity and we believe that demand for bandwidth will only continue to grow as TAK targets $1+ billion in annual broadband and networks services revenue by 2028. I am delighted for the opportunity to lead our management team in building TAK’s future success.”

About TAK Communications
TAK Communications is a leading telecommunications and broadband service provider that offers full value chain communications services and solutions to its customers across the U.S., from project management and construction to drops, fulfillment, and door-to-door sales. TAK Communications prides itself on being a trusted business partner for its customers in the telecommunications sector, providing solutions that exceed their expectations. For more information, visit takcommunications.com.

Media Contact:
Ashley Schulte
Connect2 Communications for TAK Communications
TAK@connect2comm.com

Even with billions in broadband funding, rural service providers are still challenged to serve the unserved and underserved. Rural communities require more miles of fiber to connect fewer subscribers, making them more expensive. Additionally, navigating funding requirements can be complex, especially for newer service providers or municipalities that are new to the broadband market.

On this week’s episode of Fiber for Breakfast, Kevin Sheehan, Ciena’s CTO of the Americas and VP of Sales Engineering, explored how service providers can overcome some of these challenges with a flexible modular approach to broadband network solutions that make deployments simpler.

“A modular, open approach really makes it a lot more feasible to serve these [rural] locations. It is easier to get started. You can plug it all together and it works. You can have a management platform, but if you do want to mix and match other proven solutions together, you can. You have a viable solution that best meets your needs, whatever kind of service provider you are,” Sheehan said.

This approach enables service providers to convert SFP receiver devices (routers, hosting platforms, etc.) into OLTs using coherent pluggables. Service providers realize improved flexibility to scale using whatever type of host platform they’d like to use. It also adds a new level of cost savings and energy efficiency to the network.

Sheehan explained, “If you look at a traditional router OLT and then a disaggregated and virtualized, modular solution, the latter provides more than 50% reduction in energy and almost a 70% footprint reduction as well. You know, service providers don’t often need a very large platform to get started serving these rural areas. They’d like to get started as small as they can and even in a pay-as-you-go modular format as well. So, this disaggregated modular approach is really making that real for the service provider.” He also said the modular approach uses less power and provides greater density per rack unit compared to the traditional approach, providing shocking cost savings.

Ciena is an experienced leader in data center interconnect, giving the company a deep understanding of how to support hyperscale-level capacity needs with efficiency in terms of space, energy, and cost. “[Data centers] introduced us to the concept of aggregation and openness because that’s the name of the game in their world. The amount growth that they see in terms of bandwidth is unimaginable in any other aspect of our business, honestly. And then, of course, energy is very important. So, we’ve learned how to significantly reduce energy usage through density and miniaturization. I have one module in my hand here that can do 1.6 terabytes of data, which is just crazy.” Not too long ago, that amount of data would require racks of equipment in a central office and now it’s a pluggable module.

The company realized its experience with data centers and transport networks could be leveraged for residential access networks. “We had a lot of the synergy, related to that miniaturization of components, the optimization of bandwidth, the optimization of power, and we saw, you know, I think we could really bring something to the party here,” Sheehan added.

This modular approach can be critical in allowing service providers to initiate their fiber broadband deployments. It can also help them scale as they look to increase bandwidth—which might be sooner than later. Sheehan anticipates that service providers will start offering 25G speeds in the next calendar year.

Fiber for Breakfast is brought to you by Platinum Sponsor Wesco. To learn more about modular approaches to broadband deployments, tune into the latest Fiber for Breakfast podcast.

The fiber broadband industry is experiencing a historic moment. According to Joseph Wender, Director of Capital Projects Fund at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, never before (and likely never again) have multiple government agencies provided tens of billions of dollars in funding to provide affordable, reliable, high-speed internet for all Americans and close the digital divide once and for all.

“We are living in a historic moment and it is exciting, which makes our jobs much more important. We have to get it right this time,” Wender said on this week’s Fiber for Breakfast episode.

High-speed internet is essential for the economy, for work, education, healthcare, and more. The pandemic put that into sharp focus very fast, and there was finally enough pressure and enough focus on broadband. The Capital Project Fund (CPF) was created before BEAD; it was one of the few COVID Relief Bills that Congress passed as part of the American Rescue Plan during the height of the pandemic and the reason why Congress specifically put $10 billion in the rescue plan. “It was a down payment on making high-speed internet affordable and reliable for all Americans,” Wender noted.

The $10 billion CPF program has been critical to keeping broadband deployments progressing while larger programs, like BEAD, will take longer to disperse. The fund is distributed to states, territories, freely associated states, and Tribal governments to support critical capital projects.

There are two key requirements for CPF recipients. First, it is the first federal agency to require 100/100 Mbps symmetrical speeds. “Some people say, ‘well, does that mean you’re favoring fiber?’ The standard is technology neutral. However, we know this will result in a large amount of fiber deployment and that is good and I’m not just saying that because I’m on Fiber for Breakfast,” Wender said.

He added that his agency wants to make investments that don’t just last years, but last decades. Future-proofing is important because this level of investment in broadband infrastructure won’t happen again. A re-do or upgrade isn’t possible. Fiber is the broadband technology that can support capacity needs now and moving forward.

The second key requirement for CPF is the projects must be completed by December 31, 2026. “We have a tight timeline, but the result is that we are seeing construction underway and complete in many states around the country, which is just terrific. That’s the ultimate goal of what we’re attempting,” noted Wender.

To date, CPF has awarded approximately $9 billion for broadband, digital technology and equity, and multi-purpose community center projects in all states and the District of Columbia. States estimate this funding will reach over two million locations–that’s two million locations that will get affordable reliable, high-speed internet before 2026. In addition to the hundreds of thousands of individuals who will be served annually by multi-purpose community facilities.

For service providers and other stakeholders looking to leverage federal funds, Wender offers, “the states that prepared early, states where the state broadband offices were talking with the providers, vendors, associations, those are the states that are going to be the most successful and those are the states that are moving the quickest. It’s not a surprise that Louisiana was first to be awarded by BEAD. It was the first to be awarded by us, along with Virginia, West Virginia, and New Hampshire. The star students remained the star students and there’s a reason for that.”

To learn more about CPF and its mission to advance affordable, reliable, high-speed internet to all Americans, listen to the entire episode on the Fiber for Breakfast podcast.

Fiber-optic cables are the gold standard for broadband infrastructure. With its unparalleled data transmission speed and reliability, fiber is poised to become even more critical. It will not only cater to escalating data consumption, but also enable innovations in artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and smart cities, fundamentally reshaping our interaction with technology and each other.

With fiber becoming critically important to consumers, BroadbandNow has launched a new tool that leverages machine learning algorithms to identify the availability and penetration of fiber broadband. BroadbandNow Editor-in-Chief Tyler Cooper highlighted this innovative approach on this week’s Fiber for Breakfast episode.

BroadbandNow operates a massive database of internet plans and pricing from across the nation, with 1.5 billion rows of data and over 8 million visitors every year. The company recently set out to track fiber adoption (actual subscription vs. availability) rates across the U.S. broadband market to provide valuable insight into the status of the digital divide, how it impacts all Americans, and what the industry can do better to close it. However, tracking adoption is difficult because data on the adoption of specific types of technology is often not publicly available.

“We have developed a machine learning algorithm capable of analyzing vast amounts of raw speed test data to identify which tests were conducted over fiber connections. This is based on the unique performance benchmarks of fiber technology, like symmetrical upload/download, latency, and round-trip time. We’ve found that the algorithm has an accuracy of 95% and we’re actively working to improve it every day,” Cooper noted.

BroadbandNow researchers leveraged their internal fabric of nationwide broadband availability data to create four snapshots of fiber availability ranging from December 2021 to June 2023. This data was analyzed using nearly 300 million speed tests to determine which demonstrated the unique characteristics of fiber technology.

The initial study confirms that fiber access now reaches over 50% of consumers, but the algorithm suggests fiber penetration rates remain flat, which conflicts with public data and FBA’s recent research. FBA’s studies have leveraged consumer surveys, service provider surveys, and public data to create a model that shows fiber penetration rates are much closer to access rates.

To learn more about the state of fiber in the U.S. and differing research techniques, listen to the full episode on the Fiber for Breakfast podcast.

To view BroadbandNow’s research, visit https://broadbandnow.com/research/fiber-penetration-trends.

Mickesh told a story about an employee that met a new acquaintance at a restaurant while waiting for drinks. “Our employee asked her, ‘what do you do for work?’ She said, ‘I’m a grant writer, but I just lost my job.’ They exchanged contact information. A week later, we hired her. We are all recruiters and talent is everywhere,” Mickesh said.

With an unprecedented influx of broadband funding sweeping across the U.S., the industry finds itself amid a wealth of opportunities. The flip side of this reveals challenges in sourcing, recruiting, and retaining the right workforce. Of course, a well-developed talent strategy is the best way to overcome workforce challenges.

Mickesh stated that, “In order for us all to take advantage of funding, we need to be sure that we’re prepared. We have to get more creative and more proactive, and really engage people in different ways to get different results.”

At the foundation, Mickesh suggests that a talent strategy should not only align with your business strategy and objectives, but it needs to play an integral role in the overall strategy. She underscored that while recruitment is a big part of any talent strategy, there are other elements that are crucial to successfully building and retaining a workforce, including equity, employee engagement, career growth and development, and organizational culture.

For the fiber broadband industry specifically, Mickesh offered that talent acquisition could be boosted by both internal and external incentives. She explained, “People know good people. We incentivize our employees to help us find great talent.” Externally, being creative in how a business structures its hiring offers can be helpful. “First and foremost, get good market data and make sure that you’re paying in a way that is attractive, but there are lots of ways to structure offers by understanding what is most important to candidates,” she added. This could include PTO packages or bonuses attached to hiring and/or performance.

It is also important to consider key partners, Mickesh added. “It might be industry or professional organizations, academic institutions, or other types of organizations that might be great resources of talent or great sources to provide deployment to your employees.”

The Fiber Broadband Association is a key partner in fiber technician workforce development, helping train technicians with its Optical Telecom Installer Certification (OpTIC Path) program and working with partners to fill open positions. FBA is currently engaged with 39 U.S. states, 40 service providers, and 67 community colleges and training institutions to deliver OpTIC Path.

To learn more about these workforce development tips, tune into the latest Fiber for Breakfast podcast.

https://soundcloud.com/user-491717682/ffb-episode-147-the-broadband-boom-meeting-talent-challenges-with-success?si=92a467d3913442fbba8f69592d1b1d6f&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

“To some, fiber has an unfounded reputation for being expensive to deploy. However, the bulk of the expense lies in the installation and restoration. The Fiber Broadband Association wants to help broadband network builders understand every deployment option and adopt best practices for maximizing efficiency, speed of deployment, and to minimize cost,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association. “Given the unprecedented level of fiber that is required to connect all Americans to reliable internet, innovative methods of fiber deployment are paramount. This white paper is the latest research in our extensive library of resources to help operators, service providers, utilities, cooperatives, and more deliver high-speed broadband quickly and to more households.”

The new Fiber Broadband Association white paper explores multiple fiber deployment styles, including microtrenching, horizontal directional drilling, plowing, conventional trenching, and missile boring. In terms of cost, conventional trenching can be roughly five times the cost of microtrenching. From a time perspective, microtrenching reduces one-third of the time it takes for a fiber installation using traditional methods, in some cases, moving from days to hours.

Installing new utilities, like fiber, brings concerns about damage to previously installed utilities infrastructure (such as gas lines and water pipes). The white paper features a risk profile between the different deployment styles by investigating the average strikes (damage to an existing utility that causes a service failure) per mile. The profile reveals that microtrenching had the lowest (0.03) strikes per mile, compared to conventional trenching with the highest (13.97) strikes per mile. So, while damage and risk are unavoidable, microtrenching can be regarded as a deployment style with relatively high output and low utility damage risk.

“While the white paper does address the benefits and capabilities of microtrenching, we encourage every network builder to consider all installation factors to determine its best path forward,” said Deborah Kish, Vice President of Research and Workforce Development at Fiber Broadband Association. “We wanted to highlight in this white paper that microtrenching is a viable option for fiber deployment due to its lower cost per foot and reduced impact on the public domain in dense areas. However, it remains critical that pros and cons are weighed for any network construction because no singular deployment style is perfect. For example, plowing is one of the fastest means of installation but creates considerably more spoil than microtrenching. So, priorities must be considered.”

The microtrenching white paper was created by a subset of subject matter experts from the Fiber Broadband Association’s Deployment Specialists Committee.

About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

“The 2022 Proof of Concept program was a highlight in the Expo Hall as companies showcased a variety of innovative concepts, partnerships, and possibilities. Companies showcased big ideas that will be transformational to our industry as we move forward,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO at Fiber Broadband Association. “The Fiber Connect 2023 PoC Showcase is set to explore how fiber is the only enabling infrastructure with the capacity to disrupt any market – from agriculture to gaming to manufacturing. The PoC demonstrations serve as a stimulating exercise to see just how far fiber can take us in supporting next-generation services and applications.”

Fiber Connect 2023 PoCs will be collaborative projects that can involve up to three companies (one must be a Fiber Broadband Association member). Each PoC must demonstrate the benefits fiber brings to markets, industries, and/or communities as a fundamental enabler of disruption, growth, and potential.

To submit a PoC, please download the complete PoC Showcase instructions here and the PoC Submission Form & Agreement here. PoC submissions are due April 30, 2023.

PoC submissions will be reviewed by the Fiber Broadband Association’s Technical and Conference Committees prior to approval for inclusion in the Fiber Connect 2023 PoC Showcase. PoCs will be evaluated during the Fiber Connect 2023 event by leading industry analysts and awards will be presented in the following categories: Most Innovative PoC, Best Community Impact, and Game Changer.

About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

“The fiber broadband industry is at the beginning of its largest investment cycle ever, thanks to federal funding from the BEAD program. Time is of the essence for providers and communities to fully understand available broadband funding options and develop personalized strategies that will close the digital equity gap,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association. “Working with Broadband.Money ensures the webinar series will offer the industry’s top financing experts that will provide key insights and strategies for funding.”

“We’re dedicated to providing the industry with tools and resources to more easily navigate the complexity of funding. Our guides, kits, and directories help local providers and community partnerships win, and this webinar series will take education even further,” said Jase Wilson, Founder of Ready.net and Broadband.Money. “Our organization shares many common goals with the Fiber Broadband Association—one being to provide valuable resources that help broadband providers and communities deploy affordable, reliable connectivity. The webinar series allows us to join efforts and offer experts from across the broadband industry to ensure we are delivering essential content to help communities advance connectivity to every household.”

The 12-episode “Where’s the Funding” webinar series launches Wednesday, January 18, at 11:00am ET, and will recur monthly on the third Wednesday of each month. The first episode, titled “Intro to BEAD Matching Funds,” will feature Ready.net co-founders Jase Wilson and Mike Faloon. The Ready.net team built Broadband.Money tools to help smaller and non-traditional broadband grant applicants build complete applications – including matching funds from many providers. The episode will provide an overview of the rules, look at the year ahead, and include tips for grant applicants on lining up their matching contributions.

To register for the January 18 “Intro to BEAD Matching Funds” webinar and others, please visit: https://discuss.broadband.money/c/broadband-grant-events/intro-to-bead-matching-funds.

About Broadband.Money

Broadband.Money is the fastest way to discover and win broadband grants in your area. Apply to many programs at once, get expert help, line up matching capital, team up with community partners, and much more. Get your share of the more than $75 billion of federal, state and local broadband grants issuing over the next few years. Get started today: pre-enroll at broadband.money.

About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

“Fiber broadband is the agent of change, a catalyst for innovation, and fundamental to any market disruption that leverages our capacity to create, connect, and engage,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association. “This year will be transformational for our industry as we enter the largest investment cycle in history. Fiber Connect 2023 is where the industry will gather to discuss the key topics of the day, debate challenges and opportunities, and reinforce its commitment to closing the digital equity gap for everyone, everywhere.”

Each year, Fiber Connect attracts thousands of attendees from network operators, integrators, utilities, local government, digital infrastructure investors, infrastructure providers, broadband providers, and more. Fiber Connect 2023 will continue to feature the important topics the fiber broadband industry cares about most, like innovation, deployment best practices, workforce development, funding, and marketing. This year’s conference program will also feature new themes, including sustainability, cybersecurity, in-home experience, tower/middle mile, The C-Suite Forum, The State Broadband Summit, and technology deep dives.

Speakers and/or companies interested in submitting proposals for Fiber Connect 2023 pre-conference workshops and breakout sessions can find more details on the Speaker Submission Portal here. All submissions are due Tuesday, February 28.

Pre-Conference Workshop panels are moderated and explore emerging topics impacting the industry or topics that are new to Fiber Connect. Speakers should submit topics that fit within the following themes:

• The Ecology of Fiber Broadband: Forging a Sustainable Future – sustainable options and approaches involved in fiber deployment, supply chain and manufacturing, and how fiber enables other industries to be greener.
• Tower Talks: Middle Mile and Fiber – Now We’re Talking – in-depth information about the opportunities, needs, and challenges faced by tower operators and the companies that work with them as they look to advance broadband services more broadly.
• Chief Cybersecurity Sessions – insights, best practices, and challenges operators face as fiber broadband service connects more households and operators look to implement in-network cybersecurity services.

Breakout Session panels are moderated and intended to focus on the issues driving the fiber broadband industry forward. Speakers should submit topics that fit within the following themes:

• Network Perspective: 50,000 Foot View – higher-level market trends, challenges, and opportunities ahead for the fiber broadband industry and how they can be addressed and/or overcome.
• Case Study Central: Creating Opportunities, Changing Lives – real-world examples of successful deployments of fiber broadband networks and services. Inclusion of customer recommended.
• Innovation: What Comes Next – technology developments required to create opportunity and drive market growth.
• Marketing Bootcamp: Strategies to Take Fiber to Main Street – best practices for successful fiber broadband service introduction and adoption.
• Fiber Financials: The Economics of Fiber Broadband – considerations and opportunities for operators deploying fiber broadband services in greenfield or existing network environments.
• In The Dirt: Deployment Challenges & Opportunities – best practices and lessons learned that operators could use to take fiber further, especially to unserved markets.
• Supply Chain & Manufacturing – strategies to help companies overcome supply chain challenges and stressors and complete successful and timely fiber network deployments.
• 5G & Fiber: Any Device, Anywhere – middle mile opportunities for fiber broadband operators and the role fiber broadband can play in expanding 5G and fixed wireless access services to better serve rural communities.
• In-Home Experience: The Fully-Networked Home – highlighting fiber broadband’s ability to support current and emerging residential broadband services, as well as underscore fiber’s unique ability to deliver the scalable capacity required to ensure the integrity of the customer experience.

All Fiber Connect 2023 speaking submissions will be reviewed by the Fiber Broadband Association’s conference committee. No submissions featuring or focused on specific company products or solutions will be considered. To learn more about product presentations in the Expo Hall Showcase Theater and other Fiber Connect 2023 sponsorship opportunities, contact Lucy Green at lgreen@fiberbroadband.org.

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About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

According to the survey, there are now a total of 68 million fiber broadband passings in the U.S., up 13% over the past 12 months and up 27% over the past 24 months. Excluding homes with two or more fiber passings, 63 million unique homes have now been passed. Fiber has passed nearly half of primary homes and over 10% of second homes. Fiber broadband buildout continues to expand in Canada as well, according to the report, with about 66% of homes passed as 2022 comes to a close.

All this growth precedes the expected higher levels of annual fiber-to-the-home deployments anticipated for the next five years based on Federal funding programs such as BEAD, RDOF, ReConnect, and other programs focused on specific markets and demographics. RVA notes that although deployment expectations from individual companies are in constant flux based on many factors, many service providers have announced network builds exceeding the fiber footprint they have built to-date with private funding.

“High-quality broadband has become more important to consumers every year. Fiber broadband exceeds all other types of delivery in every single measurement of broadband quality, including speeds, uptime, latency, jitter, and power consumption,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association. “For the consumer this has real-world impacts, like more productivity, better access to health care and education, more entrepreneurism, and the option of more rural living. For society, this means more sustainability and, ultimately, digital equity.”

Mike Render, Founder and CEO of RVA, will present the findings of the 2022 Fiber Provider Survey on Fiber for Breakfast, Wednesday, December 28, 2022, at 10:00am ET. Click here to register for the episode.

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About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

“2023 will be one of the most exciting years for both the Fiber Broadband Association and our industry,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO at the Fiber Broadband Association. “Our membership is working hard to accelerate the deployment of fiber broadband networks and enable every community to leverage the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. Our 2023 Board of Directors is an impressive, diverse group of leaders that will guide us through this journey and accelerate our vision to advance quality-of-life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere.”

Joseph Jones “JJ,” President at On Trac, Inc., was elected as the new Chair of the Board for a one-year term beginning January 1, 2023. He has provided dedicated leadership to the Fiber Broadband Association for many years, serving as Chair of the Conference Committee for a decade and was Vice Chair of the Board in 2022.

The full 2023 Board of Directors includes the following leaders that have demonstrated a continued commitment to the Fiber Broadband Association and its mission to create a better broadband future in North America:

• Chair: Joseph Jones “JJ,” President at On Trac, Inc.
• Vice Chair: Jimmy Todd, CEO and General Manager, Nex-Tech
• Secretary: Kimberly McKinley, Deputy Director and Chief Marketing Officer, UTOPIA Fiber
• Treasurer: Joe Jensen, Director, Americas Market Development, Corning
• Mark Boxer, Technical Manager – Solutions and Applications Engineering, OFS
• Katie Espeseth, Vice President of New Products, EPB
• Scott Jackson, National Market Manager – Broadband, Graybar
• Gregg Logan, Vice President of Engineering, Telapex, Inc.
• Ariane Schaffer, Government Affairs & Public Policy, Google Fiber

Kimberly McKinley and Ariane Schaffer are newly elected Board members and will each serve three-year terms starting in 2023. Each of these individuals have demonstrated long-term commitments to the Fiber Broadband Association. McKinley was a co-creator and co-chair of the Fiber Broadband Association’s Public Officials Roundtable. Schaffer served as co-chair of the Fiber Broadband Association’s Public Policy Committee.

Mark Boxer was re-elected to a second, three-year term and will continue to provide exceptional leadership for the Association’s Optical Telecom Installer Certification (OpTIC PathTM) workforce development initiatives. Gregg Logan, from C Spire’s parent company Telapex, will fulfill the remainder of C Spire’s vacant board seat term. He has served as secretary on the Fiber Broadband Association’s Board of Directors in previous years and most recently on the Association’s Senior Council Committee.

As of December 31, 2022, Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, and Joanne Hovis, President of CTC Technology & Energy, will term out of their tenure on the Board of Directors. Morgan has contributed over twelve years of service on the Board, serving as Chair in 2015, 2019, and 2022. He will now serve on the Fiber Broadband Association’s Senior Council Committee alongside Mike Hill and John George. Hovis has provided her leadership and expertise to the Board for six years and will continue to serve the Association on the Executive Advisory Committee.

The 2023 Board of Director elections were held at the Fiber Broadband Association’s 2022 Premier Members Meeting, held December 5-6, in Clearwater, Fla.

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About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.

“It is an exciting time across the communications industry, and especially in fiber broadband with incredible opportunity created from the NTIA Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment infrastructure funding program. The Fiber Broadband Association continues to work diligently to create awareness about the critical capabilities that only fiber can deliver and educate policy makers to support fiber deployments so that every community can take advantage of the benefits of high-quality internet,” said Bolton. “We are honored to receive these awards and recognition. I also congratulate the entire Fiber Broadband Association ecosystem on its accomplishments. Our leadership, members, and partners have collaborated to advance fiber broadband infrastructure, funding, and training. I applaud our industry’s cohesive efforts and look forward to our continued progress toward closing the digital equity gap.”

The Light Reading MVP award recognizes communications industry individuals who made an unmistakable difference in their company, community, and/or culture. For years, Bolton has led an organized effort to connect North America to high-quality, fiber-based broadband services. His impact on the fiber broadband industry intensified when joining the Fiber Broadband Association as president and CEO in 2020. Under Bolton’s leadership, the association has driven bipartisan support for broadband infrastructure investment, resulting in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), driven critical workforce development efforts, expanded the association’s research, and published the widely-adopted Broadband Infrastructure Playbook to help state broadband offices, policy makers, and community leaders make broadband decisions that will impact their communities for decades. During the past year, the association increased company membership by 50%, grew its annual Fiber Connect event attendance by 41%, and launched several new programs including its OpTIC Path fiber technician training program, the Regional Fiber Connect Workshop series, and the quarterly Fiber Forward member magazine.

The Leading Lights award for Best Public-Private Partnership recognizes organizations working together to expand broadband access and narrow the digital divide for municipalities and community institutions including school districts, nonprofits, and other public sector organizations. The Fiber Broadband Association created the OpTIC Path course to fill the skilled fiber technician workforce gap, build long lasting careers, and support the significant increase in fiber network builds expected across North America due to the more than $42 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program funding.

“There is more demand today than ever before to build broadband networks, but a serious workforce gap exists that threatens the success of these networks to get built safely, correctly, and efficiently. The OpTIC Path program was created to train the fiber technicians who will be essential to fulfilling the NTIA’s BEAD initiative,” said Mark Boxer, Technical Manager, Solutions and Applications Engineering at OFS; Fiber Broadband Association Board Member; and Lead for Fiber Broadband Association’s Training and Certification Program. “We have partnered with industry associations, service providers, veteran organizations, and community and technical colleges to create a valuable course instilling fiber knowledge, hands-on skills, and work-related values to train the next generation of capable fiber technicians.”

Since its inception, the OpTIC Path program continues to expand to more schools and attract more service providers to get involved. The Fiber Broadband Association is currently engaged with 38 states to roll out the program with their community college systems and fiber optic broadband service providers and it continues to gain momentum in reaching all 50 states and the U.S. territories.

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About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.