Opportunities in Broadband: Why the Future is Bright for Calix Customers

An abstract image of two hands holding a glowing blue globe

When I reflect on Calix's 25th anniversary, I think of how dramatically we have evolved. Our founding vision was to enable the success of rural broadband service providers (BSPs).

In the very early days, we focused solely on network hardware. We offered a great solution, but it didn't empower our customers to grow their business or improve efficiency. We had to find ways to help BSPs innovate to serve their subscribers and communities better—and win in the long term.

To do so, we invested 12 years and more than $1.2 billion to transform from a network hardware provider to a software and cloud platform company. It took several challenging years running two companies simultaneously, selling the old while creating the new. But the hard work paid off.

Calix is now uniquely positioned to enable BSPs of all sizes to own their markets—just as the U.S. government announced the $60 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program to transform rural America with broadband connectivity.

Now, with the Calix Broadband Platform and SmartLife™ managed services, we help customers run operationally efficient business models that spur growth. For example, Norvado recently saw a 33-point increase in their Net Promoter® Score (NPS®), an incredible 206 percent jump!

In the UK, Calix SmartBiz™ was “highly commended” at the UK Fibre Awards for “Best Business Services to the Fibre Community,” a notion underscored by Connexin CEO Furqan Alamgir, who called the launch a “game changer.”

This transformation extends beyond BSPs to their communities. After MidSouth Fiber developed a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network in rural Texas with our broadband platform, they added Calix SmartTown™ to help provide vital connectivity to keep their communities safer during hurricane season.

Tombigbee Fiber LLC leveraged the community-wide network they created to provide more than 68 first responder organizations in Mississippi with free access to ubiquitous coverage.

Our partnerships with our customers are genuinely unique in the industry. It’s energizing to see BSPs embrace innovation to grow value for their business and communities. That’s the real win.

Learn more about how we’re celebrating 25 years of serving our customers and connecting communities.

Net Promoter®, NPS®, NPS Prism®, and the NPS-related emoticons are registered trademarks of Bain & Company, Inc., Satmetrix Systems, Inc., and Fred Reichheld. Net Promoter Score℠ and Net Promoter System℠ are service marks of Bain & Company, Inc., Satmetrix Systems, Inc., and Fred Reichheld.

By Mark Dressler

Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)

Mark is the chief revenue officer (CRO) at Calix. Mark is responsible for all sales activities at Calix and leads a team working to transform our customers’ business and service models. Mark has over 30 years of experience in the communications service provider industry. Before joining Calix, Mark held a variety of executive roles at Nortel, and various senior engineering and management positions in the communications industry. Mark has a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University.