Network of Networks

?? Welcome to the Inaugural Edition of Telco Wars! ??

?? Telco Wars is a blog dedicated to diving deep into the intricacies of the challenging telecommunications industry. Whether you're a starting a new ISP, working for one of the big boys, or looking to stand out from the competition (theres plenty of it), we are here to shed light on the dynamic landscape of starting, scaling, and operating an Internet Service Provider Company.

"Telco Wars" delves beyond the headlines to bring you real world advice, expert interviews, and the stories that define the telecom world. Join us as we decode the signals of today to bring clarity for tomorrow."

?? Today's Spotlight: Me!

My name is Alex and I have been in the telecom industry for almost 20 years (i guess i am old). I went from wanting to fix computers for the rest of my life, to giving up, and finally finding my calling in the telecom industry.

It all started when I was a young fool and my Gateway computer broke down and would not boot. After taking it to the local Gateway store, I was advised that my warranty had expired the week prior (how convenient). The quote to reinstall the OS was a whopping $500 dollars. I didn't even have $5 dollars.

I told myself "cant be that hard to fix this damn thing" and off i went researching. After reading "fix your own computer for dummies", I was able to successfully reinstall windows 98' and i was back in the game (don't ask where i got the install disc)

I was so amazed that I saved $500 and that I was back online (aol of course). Right than and there i told myself "I will fix computers for the rest of my life" (damn fool i know).

Shortly after I dedicated myself to my craft and soon I obtained my A+ certification. I recall my mom buying me the DVD training set that helped prep me (love you mom)

?I now had a cert and I was ready to take over the world. Sadly I had zero experience and could not find a job using my new skillet.

After my parents threatening me to get a job or get out, I had to do something. I saw an online ad for a call center job with Time Warner Cable. The job was to sell cables packages to inbound leads. Glorified CSR!

Obviously I took the job and now I was in training on how to become a phone salesman. Basic Cable, HBO, Cinemax, I was selling to everyone I talked to. I was a beast on the phones!

The glory was short lived, and I started to hate my job. One day I woke up and told myself I'm getting out of this damn job. Screw this. I "no call no show" multiple days in the hope that I would get fired. Never happened though.

One day I am in the break room and I strike up a convo with some random dude about how I have A+ cert, but it was a complete waste of time due to the fact that I could not find a job using that skillet.

I don't know why, but I did not shut up and I talked his ear off for almost an hour about how good I was but the world isn't fair. (being a baby for sure). After listening to my nonsense, the guy said "it will all work out" and away he went. He was a super cool dude who had no reason to listen to me nag, but he did.

Fast forward a week or so, my supervisor tells me that I am scheduled for an interview in a new department called "RoadRunner Technical Support"

RoadRunner? What the hell is that? Well thats back in the day when Time Warner Cable just rolled out their internet offering and they were looking for Tier3 technicians to handle customer support over the phone.

Without having any idea how I even got the interview, I walk into an office and await the guy who is going to interview me. Who walks in? Its the freaken guy from the conference room!

He sits down, tells me about the new position and than says "This position does require that you have your A+ certification. Do you have yours"? I could of hugged the SOB. One day later I'm no longer selling cable, and now im doing tech support. Oh how the world works !

I knew this was my chance for success and I was 100% dedicated to my craft. Soon I got my Network+, than my Server+ cert. I literally locked myself up for years and just honed in on my skillset. After a while I was able to obtain my CCNA and shortly after my CCNP. All before ever having a real networking job.

At this point I felt tapped out at my current position and I knew I needed to make the next move in my career. Luckily I am a likable guy and I made friends with the guy who was managing the RoadRunner ISP network for my area.

This guy took me under his wing and showed me how the internet really works and what I need to do in order to move into this industry. It was a whole new world! The guy was awesome and till this day I am beyond grateful (Ruben G. if your reading this, you the F man!)

One day I get a call from him and he tells me that is moving out of town. While sad for me, he says "Well I cant move until I find my replacement". At first im a little lost, than he says "Alex I can get you the interview, but you have to win the job"

BOOM! I already had my CCNP so I should be a shoe-in. Sadly though, I didn't have much experience managing any real networks. Luckily I killed the interview and landed the F job! Since I had no experience though, I came in as a "Associate Network Engineer". From the ground up baby!

I am now in the Telco Game! Young and dumb and full of piss and vinegar. I went from setting up customer home routers to managing CMTS routers which had tens of thousands of customers. It was the best time of my life. I was learning network 12 hours a day 7 days a week! TWC provided me an amazing environment to learn the ISP industry and become a next generation Engineer. This is where i got my chops from.

I went from Associate NE, to Network Engineer, to Senior NE, to being in charge of the entire TWC network for Texas. From Cisco to Juniper and beyond! At this point I have been working for these cats for almost 12 years. They invested in me heavily with consistent vendor trainings. This is where I really learned my craft and I will forever be grateful for that. I truly believe everyone should work for a big company early in their career to learn the ropes of the industry before going out on your own.

But, like with everything else, I knew I was capable of much more. I was tired of working for "the man". I wanted to write my own destiny. Play by my rules. So what do I do? I quit my $125K salary job, and decide to start my own ISP company. 0 customers, 0 revenue, but I knew I had the skillset to make it happen.

And in 2016, Gigabit Communications was born! This new ISP was aimed at taking the skillsets that I learned in my previous decade and build something that was better than what was out there.

At TWC, it was a 100% fiber backbone. I understood that topology and knew how to scale it. Problem was, I am now on my own and I can barely even afford a damn router. No way in hell could I own any OSP on my non existent budget.

One day Im reading up on different delivery types and come across wireless technologies. Light bulb! Ok so if I just replace the fiber infra with wireless, then I can continue doing what i knew best.

I focused heavily on building carrier class wireless networks with Juniper routing devices at the edge and core. The next hurdle was affording tower leases, so I came up with the idea to install wood poles all around town and deliver wireless services that way.

Thats really when stuff started to blow up! I went out, bought me a digger derrick, bucket truck, and surrounded myself with superstars who had the same vision and hunger as me. Soon we were installing small cells all over the area and building high capacity microwave networks delivering gigabit services on a budget. Customers loved the service.

Than... COVID hits. The world stops. I let go some of my team thinking we were going to lay low for a while. Boy was I wrong!

Customer demanded exploded. We went from 100 customers, to 300 customers, to 600+ customers all within months. The growth was insane!

Soon, we started to get some visibility and making a brand for ourselves.

I re-hired my team, and we went balls to the wall. My guys are literally the best in the game. Without them, I would not be writing this.

We made such a splash, I started to get approached for an acquisition. We had a few term sheets to decide from. Great spot to be in! You sell when your business is peaking, not during its downfall.

in 2021, we ultimately got acquired by a Dallas based firm named "InnerCity Fibernet" for multiple 7 figures. Out of the all the potential buyers, I felt they had the best team and we shared a lot of the same mindset and visions. The leadership team there is amazing and I knew I picked the right organization.

I was able to start, scale, and exit my ISP business all within 5 years. Not bad for a small guy from South Texas.

The company rebranded to "Gigabit Fiber" and I stayed onboard as CTO. We continue to build high capacity fiber and wireless networks across Texas. The executive team is amazing and we are making some major traction.

Thats where things are at today. Apologies for the long read, but I thought it would be important to talk about my history in the industry that shows my skillset and challenges that I have overcome that got me here. I still have a long ways to go, but I hope this newsletter and future editions helps the next telco entrepreneur who has a desire to shake up the telecom industry. If i can help in anyway, please dont hesitate to reach out. I love this game.

?Signing off for now, but remember - in the world of telecommunications, the only constant is change! See you in the next edition.