Comms Vision 2021 Highlights

After a two-year break due to the pandemic, Comms Vision returned to the incredible Gleneagles Hotel for one of the most highly anticipated events in the channel. Comms Vision brings 150 leading experts together from the Telco industry for a jam-packed three days, full of expert-led content, industry insights, networking and more.

Comms Vision provides the opportunity to catch up with our Partners and share our thoughts and ideas with some of the best experts in the channel. We’d like to thank the organisers at Comms Dealer for producing such an insightful event, and a special thank you to all our Partners who took the time to meet with us in 121 sessions.

Comms Vision theme: Capitalising on customer value shifts and charting the rise of Big Button Comms

This year’s theme explored the impacts of trends and trajectories driving industry change and customer value creation, and how you can prepare your business for sustainable long-term growth.

Throughout the two days of the conference agenda, it was remarkable how our industry is currently navigating through the shift in technology and how businesses are looking at what the future has in store as we move towards cognitive technologies such as Big Data Analytics, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Robotic Automation. The spotlight was focused on full fibre and the channel must work together as we make this transition.

As a platinum sponsor of the event, TalkTalk Wholesale Services took part in the super session panel, held a keynote, fireside session as well as holding three boardroom sessions and two hospitality events pre-dinner, where guests had the chance at winning an exciting Palmer Sports Experience for the fastest lap at our car simulator challenge.

Super-session panel                              

On day one, Comms Vision kicked off with the super-session panel debate, which looked at ‘Defining Value Creation in Disruptive Times’. Richard Thompson, Managing Director of Wholesale, joined the panel along with Zen Internet, Virgin Media, Gamma, CityFibre and BT Wholesale, where experts unravelled the implications of trends as we move to a full fibre future and identified where the value of tech companies will reside in the future.

Richard advised that the channel needs to come together and collaborate as we pivot from copper to fibre and unite new and disruptive technologies that are driving the digital transformation in businesses. He also advised that there is a continued demand for more data and insight to help end customers understand the changing landscape, which we’re helping Partners to capitalise on and leverage our information. The role of the Carrier and how we Partner and surface this information is key to supporting this and how we jointly go to market will be the point of differentiation.

Keynote and Fireside

On day two of Comms Vision, Sir Charles Dunstone, Executive Chairman of TalkTalk, delivered a rousing keynote where he shared insights into why TalkTalk Business rebranded to TalkTalk Wholesale Services and the move to private ownership comes at a critical juncture not just in the comms sector’s theatre of transformation, but also as we ‘double down on wholesale’.

Charles also discussed how TalkTalk Wholesale Services will become the ‘Challenger's Champion’

This was then followed by a fireside chat where Charles Dunstone was joined by Nick Gunga, MD Fibre and Wholesale Services TalkTalk Wholesale Services, for a fireside discussion on disruption and opportunity in the connectivity space where they discussed the key themes driving full fibre roll outs, our partnership strategy with alternative network providers – and why platforms that deliver these services will become a priority for all businesses.

Boardroom sessions

As well as all the above, TalkTalk Wholesale Services held three boardroom sessions on both days. Our first session was on ‘10Gb Access Future-Proof Ethernet’ and wasled by Simon Leather, Head of Connectivity at TalkTalk Wholesale Services, and Dan Richardson, Chief Operating Officer at TalkTalk Wholesale Services. In this session, Simon and Dan examined the findings from our 10Gb whitepaper preview, discussed the forces driving 10Gb access, delved into market insights, as well as showcasing TalkTalk’s offering now and in the future.

Our next session was ‘Fibre First and Future Ready;’ and was led by Simon Leather and Ruth Kennedy, Group Fibre Development Director at TalkTalk Wholesale Services. In this session, Simon and Ruth discussed the market dynamics, driving full fibre roll outs, and how we’re becoming the ultimate enabler by our partnership strategy with alternative network providers.

Our final boardroom session was led by Simon where he introduced our Wholesale Services Platform, walked through the changing landscape, and how we aim to support our Partners with expertise to maximise value, through our Platform, giving access better insights and understanding of their customer as they transition to a full fibre future.

After speaking to other guests at Comms Vision, it is clear that the Partner channel is brilliantly placed to serve UK businesses and help them navigate through a range of opportunities allowing solid businesses to drive rapid and exciting growth plans. A full fibre future is still the key focus – we need to work together as make the transition and go-to market.

We had a fantastic time at Comms Vision 2021 and want to thank everyone who took the time to attend the boardroom sessions and the 121 meetings. We hope you enjoyed the weekend as much as we did.