HOT CEO Interviews
Nick Ford, President - IDT
A Minute by Minute Business
January 2018
Nick Ford, President of IDT, is also known as the Evel Knievel of the wholesale industry. He is not only an industry veteran, but more importantly the figure-head of one of the most successful and dynamic voice wholesalers in the industry.
Considering the current state of the voice telecom world, it is increasingly challenging to generate profitable growth, launch innovative solutions and continue stenghtening global relationships. But Nick and his team are succeeding where others are failing.He recently shared with me his views on what makes IDT so successfull and his secret recipe for wholesale happiness.
Luis Benavente, CTO - BTS
A Passion for Innovation
January 2018
Luis Benavente, CTO of BTS, is one of the most passionate technology advocates in the industry. He strongly believes that disruptive technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain, will revolutionize how wholesalers conduct their business and will significantly benefit their customers. His techno-trailblazer vision is successfully leading BTS into the new wholesale era.
In this article, you will get an insight into his views of the future of the wholesale business and the role of new technologies in its transformation.
Interview with 5 exceptional lady telecom executives
Lady Commanders
January 2018
I have conducted interviews with five exceptional telecom lady commanders, who are dancing to a different beat to lead the digital transformation in a balanced manner. Women who are influencing technology, marketing, innovation and education and therefore pivotal to the success of our industry. Read on and be inspired!
Ekrem Köylüer,Vice President Wholesal Data Services, Liberty Global
Enabling the GIGAWorld
May 2017
Ekrem is VP Wholesale at Liberty Global. He is now responsible for the strategy and delivery of national and international data and connectivity wholesale services for Liberty Global’s operations in Austria, Switzerland (CHAT), Germany and the CEE region.
Ekrem shared his vision of the wholesale world from the cableco perspective with me, and it is very exciting.
Vivek Jhamb, Senior Vice President, Connectivity, Vodafone Carrier Services
Building the hyper-connected world
April 2017
Based on the current trends impacting our industry, as shared by Vivek in this article, it is clear that enabling hyper-connectivity and the experiential and seamless customer expectations that come with it, will underpin the future success of our industry.
Having built multiple successful businesses throughout his career, Vivek is a master builder of sorts and one of the industry’s most experienced and successful executives in the connectivity world. As you will see from his outlook of our industry, the future is bright for the connectivity world and for those who have what it takes to enable the future Gigabit Society.
Pierre-Louis de Guillebon, CEO Orange International Carriers
Orange - Bigger, Faster, Bolder
April 2017
Pierre-Louis is CEO Orange International Carriers, and the inspiration behind the group’s race towards wholesale success.
As a front-runner of wholesale innovation, Orange is accelerating its transformation, not only to support voice evolution, but more importantly to enable the growing mobile data economy through pioneering services in the payment, data and security sectors.
This article will give you a glimpse into Pierre-Louis’ vision and what, from his point of view, could empower wholesalers to triumph in years to come. One step at a time, one challenge at a time, one opportunity at a time – running towards success.
Interviews with 7 of the top new telecom wholesale commanders
The New Commanders
February 2017
We are at a point of no-return in the evolution of our industry, where wholesalers need to completely re-think the way they go about their business. In addition to reviewing the services they offer, they also need to re-invent many of their business models, when it comes to their customers, partners and, maybe even more importantly, when it comes to their dealings with other wholesalers.
But whatever the next big things will be, the industry will need the right people to inspire it to push the wholesale boundaries and take risks. As at the end of the day, the industry’s success will start with the people who lead it - the wholesale entrepreneurs. Such entrepreneurs are not people who own businesses, they are individuals who make things happen. They create hope and empower people to make the extraordinary real. As you will see through this portfolio of interviews, the New Commanders who have recently joined our industry have inspiring visions and strategies to make wholesale great again!
Interviews with 5 of the top telecom lady commanders
The Five Asian Tigresses
September 2016
Having interviewed a great number of inspiring lady commanders at the top of their game, successfully leading innovation, disruption and the industry’s transformation, I am convinced that we would be sadly misguided if we would try to go through this journey without them.
As you will see, the women that have been chosen to be part of this second HOT TELECOM Lady Commanders interview portfolio, are telecom tigresses with unparalleled dynamism, intelligence and vision - all traits that are pre-requisites for our leaders of tomorrow. Keep on reading and I am sure that like me, you will be convinced that a future wholesale world without women at the top would not be as exciting, inspiring or would ever come close to achieving its full potential.
Philippe Millet, Chairman - i3forum
The new i3forum - Building on success
May 2016
For 8 years now, the i3forum has been a key enabler of wholesalers’ migration from TDM to IP and onward to IPX. Through its different working groups, recommendations and events, it was able to unify the carrier world and create the momentum necessary to accelerate this evolution.
Now the i3forum is ready to build on its success, and broaden its scope to incorporate a number of topics identified as key evolutionary streams by carriers, and to become the voice of carriers in the broader telecom industry.
I recently spent some time discussing the rebirth of the i3forum with Philippe Millet, Chairman of the i3forum, to find out exactly what we can expect from this new focus in terms of scope, activities and structure. Very exciting times ahead!
Jay Jayasimha, CEO - Cataleya
Cataleya - Defining the future
April 2016
If you inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader… I have met only a few of these natural leaders in my career and these encounters have inspired a large part of how I see the future of the telecom industry and have guided my view of success. Some of these are strong women, who are bringing something different and of great value to our business.
This portfolio is the result of my recent discussions with some of these inspiring lady commanders, during which I found out not only their future vision of our industry, but more importantly, what makes them so successful in what is still mainly a male-led business.
Interviews with 5 of the top telecom lady commanders
The Lady Commanders
January 2016
If you inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader… I have met only a few of these natural leaders in my career and these encounters have inspired a large part of how I see the future of the telecom industry and have guided my view of success. Some of these are strong women, who are bringing something different and of great value to our business.
This portfolio is the result of my recent discussions with some of these inspiring lady commanders, during which I found out not only their future vision of our industry, but more importantly, what makes them so successful in what is still mainly a male-led business.
Andrew McGrath, Senior VP - Vodafone Carrier Services
Quality, Quality, Quality - The new messaging mantra
December 2015
Vodafone is undeniably one of the world’s mobile power houses, with 26 Operating Companies and 450 million mobile customers connected on its global network. Like others in the industry, it is striving to meet its continuously evolving customer expectations, and in this day and age, it all goes back to enabling quality, not only for voice, but also for messaging and connectivity.
I had the chance to discuss Vodafone’s messaging plans with Andrew McGrath, Senior Vice President at Vodafone Carrier Services, as well as how he sees the messaging world evolving.
Interviews with 5 of the top Asian telecom executives
The 5 Asian Tigers
September 2015
We are at a point in the history of the international carrier world where we need to ask ourselves the serious questions: Is there still a need for thousands or even hundreds of carriers in a world where high quality, fast paced innovation and continued pressure on price and margin is becoming the name of the game? Are we reaching a point in our industry where carriers will need to be put on the endangered species list?
I had the opportunity to discuss the future of the carrier world with five of the industry’s leaders and this portfolio of articles gives a compendium of their key messages. Let’s see what they have to say…
Ravi Dube, CTO - IPsoft
Revolutionizing the telecom industry with intelligent machines
July 2015
IPsoft is one of the global leaders in IT and business processes automation and has more recently focused its distinct expertise in statistical and cognitive solutions to help telecom operators resolve fraud, improve quality and deploy value-add applications riding on top of their Big Data platform. I met with Ravi Dube, CTO at IPsoft, and we spent some time discussing how machine learning has become a key ingredient in telecom operators’ success and how it can help them play a key role in the IoT era.
Sethu Meenakshisundaram, President - SAP Mobile Services
Making complex things simple and simple things automatic
June 2015
SAP is at the center of today’s technology revolution. One of the market leaders in data and enterprise applications, it helps organizations fight the damaging effects of complexity, while generating new opportunities for innovation and growth. I met with Sethu Meenakshisundaram, President at SAP Mobile Services, and we spent some time discussing what makes SAP Mobile Services so successful, how it is planning to differentiate itself in an increasingly converging market and what the future holds for the telecom industry.
Brian Fitzpatrick, CEO - Vodafone Carrier Services
A Force to be reckoned with
April 2015
Vodafone is one of the more recent additions to the wholesale world, but not one to be underestimated: with a pool of 400+ million mobile customers, it has one of the largest global network footprints that carries over 10% of the international voice traffic. It is definitely a force to be reckoned with, which is likely to trigger a significant power shift in the wholesale market in coming years. I had the opportunity to discuss Vodafone’s wholesale strategy and plans with Brian Fitzpatrick, CEO at Vodafone Carrier Services, as well as what makes this new wholesaler so different.
Alexandre Pebéreau, CEO - Orange Carriers USA
Innovation through transformation
November 2014
Orange has now climbed into second position in the ranking of International Wholesale Voice providers in terms of traffic and is also a leader in mobile data roaming and signalling. I had the chance to discuss this achievement with Alexandre Pebéreau, CEO Orange International Carriers USA as well as how Orange is succeeding in differentiating itself from the pack through quality, efficiency, agility and innovation.
Simon Dodsworth, Vice President Voice and Mobile - TeliaSonera Int’l carrier
Aiming for IPX purity
October 2014
TeliaSonera International Carrier (TSIC) is one of the wholesale carriers for which network quality, availability and reach is of utmost importance. I had a chance to spend some time with Simon Dodsworth, Vice President Voice and Mobile, discussing where he thinks IPX is going, what will make it successful and how the International wholesale industry will evolve, both in terms of structure and innovation. Here are key highlights of what he had to say and how TSIC sees its role in this evolution.
Interviews with 10 of the top International wholesale executives
Find out what they have to say about IPX and innovation
July 2014
Through the course of our many consulting and research projects, we at HOT TELECOM, have had the chance to meet and exchange views with a number of visionary executives who have the exciting task of leading our industry into the age of über-innovation.
I thought it would be opportune to ask 10 of the top commanders in our industry, what in their opinion are some of the secrets for survival in this new era, how IPX fits into this picture and finally, the role of carriers in this innovation superhighway. You will find in this portfolio, some of the key messages they shared with me.
Eli Katz, CEO and Founder, XConnect
A rebel with a cause
October 2013
The question in everyone's mind at the moment is: Will IPX become the new norm or will it be a flash in the pan? In my opinion, IPX as defined by the GSMA, will most probably take off but will evolve into different flavors to meet customers' needs and expectations.
I recently had the chance to discuss this notion and much more with Eli Katz, CEO and founder of XConnect, and co- founder and Chair the UK’s IP communications industry body, the Internet Telephony Service Providers’ Association (ITSPA). This article will delve deeper into how Eli sees the IP environment evolving and how XConnect is planning to take advantage of its particular ENUM and IPX Hubbing technology to support this evolution.
Lynn Liu, CEO Aicent
Innovation is in her DNA
July 2013
IPX is on everyone's lips and is the buzzword of the day. Most International carriers are now in the midst of defining what is IPX, should they offer it, what it can do for them and if it will be the solution to support the current IP evolution sweeping the industry. One provider leading the IPX wave is Aicent. It now boasts over 116 IPX customers and states that it currently connects 4-5 new service providers a month to its IPX network.
Lynn Liu founded Aicent in 2000 with the vision of bridging the IP and wireless worlds through innovative mobile data services. I recently had the pleasure of talking with her, about what she sees as key success factors for IPX providers, where the industry is going and her secret for staying ahead of the pack.
Philippe Millet, Chairman i3Forum
The Future is IP
February 2013
IP Exchange (IPX) is ever more a subject of conversation in the industry, and is seen by many as one of the key accelerators to full IP transition. Numerous providers and customers have been delaying their decision to migrate to IP, however the advent of LTE, HD Voice and services requiring high quality, secure interoperability is triggering a more immediate need for this transition.
IPX is one solution to this challenge, however it is still misunderstood and many do not really grasp the full potential of this platform and the benefit it can bring.
Paul Taylor, CEO BTC
Rising to the Challenge
January 2013
Paul Taylor, CEO of Botswana Telecommunications Corporation is rising to the challenge of transforming the country’s telecom incumbent into a customer centric, world class operator in preparation for the next phase of its evolution: privatisation and backbone separation.
Having worked as a telecom business leader in 60 countries on 4 continents, he has led successful IPOs, privatisations, acquisitions and license bids across the world. Enriched by his extensive global experience, Paul definitely is the Man for the Challenge.
Michel Guyot, President Global Voice Services
The Passion behind the Voice
October 2012
Behind every great team is an inspirational leader. Someone that not only recognises and values dynamic and creative people, but that is able to lead them, convey his passion for the business, while constantly pushing the boundaries.
Having worked for Michel early on in my career, I can say without hesitation that Michel is one of these men: an inspirational, passionate leader who knows the meaning of hard work and who has led Tata Communications to become the world leader in international wholesale voice.
Funke Opeke, CEO Main One Cable
The Main One
September 2012
Behind every successful project, is one passionate, determined, inspirational driving force. Someone that believes in the project, won't rest until it's done and done well. In other words, the 'main one’ behind that success.
Having met with Funke Opeke in Chicago in May, I was so inspired by what she had achieved that I had to find out more about what made her so special. My first impressions of Funke can be summarised in a few simple words: a charismatic and dynamic business woman who exudes self-confidence. A business woman that means business.