Lit Fibre is a relatively young full-fibre broadband company that is bringing a once-in-a-generation infrastructure upgrade to communities across the UK.
We have a strong belief in doing things properly so when it comes to an internet connection, our fibre optic cables go all the way into homes, rather than stop at the cabinet on the street. It’s because of the fibre optic cabling into the home, also known as fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP), that we are able to offer ultrafast 1 Gigabit symmetrical internet speeds that can support the ever growing demands for bandwidth in our homes for many years to come.
Right now, on a typical day, homes across the UK are relying on their broadband connection to run multiple apps and devices, streaming services, video calls and conferencing, always-on smart home devices, gaming and more. The legacy copper-based telephone cabling infrastructure simply is unable to cope with the growth and demands placed on it by the modern household. Full-fibre is a virtually limitless technology, and is an upgrade all homes in the UK need.
As I mentioned earlier, we want to do things properly so we put local communities firmly at the heart of what we do. We’ve launched some fantastic community projects such as a refurbishment of FC Clacton with repainting and repair works as well as installing a new kitchen which provides children’s meals through a charitable arm.
Other ventures include providing a free fibre connection to a Scout Hut in Bishops Stortford and community buildings in Somerset. I’m really pleased to hear about the positive impact our teams have had within our communities.
Internally, we want our team to feel empowered and part of our success to date. It was really important to both Ben (co-founder) and I that our team culture becomes as synonymous as our service. Lit Fibre is where we place a lot of emphasis on supporting an environment where everyone can succeed in achieving their personal and professional goals.
How did you come up with the idea for the company?
I’ve worked in the telecoms industry for nearly 20 years; starting, growing and scaling innovative broadband companies that were (back then) ahead of their time. Prior to Lit Fibre, I was part of the founding team at another full-fibre company where I was the Chief Operations Officer (COO).
After a bit of time out to enjoy some needed family time, and just as the pandemic was starting in 2020, I began thinking about starting my own full-fibre company ISP with a focus on towns that were being left behind by the big players.
The evolution of technologies in our industry is constant and I knew we could really make an positive difference to areas that were previously neglected. Together with Ben Bresler, a friend and colleague from the industry, we brought our simple idea to “do internet properly” to life.
We secured institutional funding and started building our awesome team, systems and processes to support our mission to not just connect communities to ultrafast full-fibre broadband but to empower them.
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How has the company evolved over the last couple of years?
Our build started in Chippenham in March 2021 and we connected our very first customers shortly afterwards, in July that year. It’s quite remarkable looking back now and see how quickly we’ve grown since.
We’re now building in 23 communities across the UK which means we’re well on the way to deliver our goal to reach 500k homes by 2026. Our approach is to use the best technology to deliver a rock solid, high quality network that customers can rely on now and long into the future.
I think the biggest challenge for any company is building the right team and ensuring a good fit so I’m delighted with the exceptional talent we’ve hired. We’ve strived for collaboration and recognise the importance of personal values aligning with those of the company to cultivate an innovative but happy environment. On a day-to-day basis, we’ve invested heavily in training and development to create the strong foundations needed for our company’s ethos to thrive.
What can we hope to see from Lit Fibre in the future?
We are going to continue to focus on building out our coverage in our towns, growing our customer base and supporting local communities as much as we can. Full-fibre, done properly, can deliver great benefits to people through increased freedom to do more online. Reliable internet is vital for that.
The post A Chat with Tom Williams, CEO & Co-Founder at Full-Fibre Broadband Company: Lit Fibre appeared first on TechRound.