Windstream gave an update to Channel Partners in DC about how great everything was going. What spin!
Partners are back to selling WIND because all of the contracts were updated to include quota – or commissions stop!
According to comments, Paetec evergreen commissions have stopped. Any accelerators are not making it to the partners. This does not end well.
Curious how this all works out now that all the stakeholders are suing UNITI. UNITI owns the network that a majority of the customers ride on. Stop paying the lease and that network stops. 60+% of UNITI’s revenue comes from WIND’s lease. It’s a cluster.
How do you fix this mess? The lousy management that got here are still running the ship.
Here are some thoughts: bring in a new CEO. Dump the current management. They got you in this mess. They followed the David Rueberg’s playbook. Getting big isn’t a strategy.
Sell off some of the UCaaS business lines. There are too many lines of UC business: Allworx, Mitel, Shoretel, Avaya, a Broadsoft softswitch, Metaswitch business (especially from EarthLink), and Broadview. I understand this is all revenue – but what is good revenue and what is bad revenue?
Spin off Allworx. Focus on Broadview. Sell the bases of Avaya and Mitel while you can.
Publicize the lit buildings. In every lit building the second customer is profitable. The third and fourth are extra gravy.
If you are going to continue with fixed wireless, map it, publicize it, market it! Make an MVNO deal to add a 4G/5G backup plan. Don’t half-ass this stuff like you have been doing.
Data centers can be a fixed wireless POP for you. Every data center that you have fiber in should be a POP. Start getting smarter about leveraging fixed wireless with SD-WAN, fiber and 4G.
Create a retail sales SWAT team again. EarthLink was killing retail with SD-WAN and Airtight.
Then do that with Hospitality. Windstream was already trying to specialize in Hospitality UC. Go big or go home.
Define your Value Proposition. SD-WAN and UCaaS are table stakes. Every CLEC sells both plus resells network. So what makes WIND so different? It can’t be what it was: The cheapest, selling underwater.
Pay your partners. All of them.