Summit Spotlight:
First Time Attendees
If you haven’t attended the Summit before, it might be a little daunting. We get it and we have you covered! We provide talking points for the meetings, assign a person who can lead the discussion, and pair first-time attendees with seasoned veterans. We also will be having a pre-Summit webinar to answer all questions and concerns regarding the congressional appointments. Plus, our staff stands ready to help you with whatever it is you need!
But don’t take it from us! We’ve asked two first-time attendees (one operator member and one vendor), to talk about their experience at #Summit2024! Hear directly from your colleagues about their takeaways from the show and how they would recommend it to others! Read the testimonials below from Chad Governale from LUS Fiber and Steve Blazenko from GSS Inc.
First-Time Operator Attendee
Chad Governale
LUS Fiber
Regulatory Compliance & Government Affairs
Why do you think it’s important to attend the Summit?
First and foremost, to have your company’s voice heard by the only people who can help make a difference in your operations—the people in Congress and or the Senate. They can help remove current legislation that hinders growth and expansion as well as ease existing regulatory burdens. At the same time, they can help add legislation to help promote growth and remove barriers that currently prevent it as well.
The second reason to attend is the discussion panels allow you to gain insight from policymakers because the people on these panels usually have their pulse on what’s taking place on Capitol Hill.
And last but not least, for the valuable networking opportunities that present themselves with people just like you in the cable, telecom and broadband industries.
Since this year’s Summit was your first, what factors played into your decision to attend?
Well, the question itself is almost the answer in a way. I’ve been in a Regulatory Compliance/Government Affairs role for almost 16 years now and for the most part, it was not my decision not to attend, but primarily a company-wide travel expense constraint. This year we were allotted more travel and training expenses in our budget, so I decided to give the ACA Summit a try. During a busy network expansion election cycle, I wanted to make sure LUS Fiber’s voice was heard with our area congressmen and congresswomen.
Did you meet someone new or build stronger relationships with anyone at the Summit? If so, tell us about it.
As a result of attending the Summit and taking personal time to do a White House Tour, I was greeted in person at the White House tour entrance by Congressman Clay Higgins Chief of Staff Andrew David. We got along very well as I found out he was from Lake Charles, LA which is only a little more than an hour’s drive from where I lived in Lafayette, LA. We exchanged phone numbers and he told me that if there was anything pressing that we wanted to get in front of Congressman Higgins, he would be glad to assist. Outside of that, we agreed to get together next time he was back down in the Louisiana area.
Other than that, I met a few people that I haven’t routinely seen at the TIS and many who I already knew. I already have pretty strong relationships with the people that I already knew but was able to gain the trust and knowledge of the others that I didn’t know.
What advice would you give to broadband/cable operators who are considering attending for Summit2025 for first time?
The first thing I would tell them is if they have never been to Washington, D.C., then take a few personal days before or after the Summit like I did and immerse themselves into the museums, monuments, and war memorials. Go visit Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, and the fairly new District Wharf area. Set up an appointment in advance through your local congressman to tour the White House. And make sure you have an adequate amount of money for Ubers or Taxi’s in the process. The Summit also is a great networking opportunity with other fellow ACA members and vendors that are present. The guest speakers that they invite are some of the best you can get in their respective professions.
About LUS Fiber
LUS Fiber is a prominent municipal broadband service provider headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana and delivers high-speed internet, television, and telephone services to residential and business customers in the Lafayette Parish area and beyond. The company operates a state-of-the-art fiber optic network that offers gigabit internet speeds, ensuring reliable and fast connectivity for its customers.
LUS Fiber serves the city of Lafayette and extends its services to surrounding communities, aiming to provide broad coverage and bridge the digital divide in underserved areas. LUS Fiber is also involved in community initiatives, supporting local schools, businesses, and organizations.
Current expansion projects, funded by federal and state broadband infrastructure grants, include Vermilion, Acadia, Iberia, and Evangeline parishes, enhancing connectivity and contributing to regional development.
LUS Fiber employs approximately 63 staff members across various departments including Administration and Support, Operations, Warehouse, Business and Customer Support Services, and Engineering. LUS Fiber is actively expanding its team to support its growing operations and improve service delivery.
LUS Fiber recently appointed Michael Soileau on May 7, 2024 as its new Director. Michael brings extensive experience from Comcast NBC Universal, where he worked for over 20 years, and most recently served as CEO of O3, a digital experience consultancy. Michael is committed to driving LUS Fiber’s mission to deliver cost-effective, high-speed communications services while enhancing its offerings to meet evolving customer needs.
Overall, LUS Fiber is a key player in the telecommunications industry, providing essential services and fostering community growth through its robust and reliable fiber optic network.
First-Time Vendor Attendee
Steve Blazenko
GSS Inc.
CEO
Since this year’s Summit was your first, what factors played into your decision to attend?
The major factor in deciding to attend was the opportunity to meet and network with leaders in the cable and fiber industries. Also, the pre-event publications gave the impression that the Summit was very well organized, which turned out to be true. There are very few industry events that provide such a strong overall program and willingness of the attendees to collaborate on solutions. Our firm has spent more than 29 years deploying fiber and telecom projects and the Summit looked (and turned out to be) a great addition to our marketing efforts. In addition, the cost was reasonable given the networking and educational opportunities.
What advice would you give to other vendors who are considering attending for Summit2025 for first time?
I would strongly suggest that prospective vendors make the decision to attend future Summits. The overall program is fantastic and the networking opportunities are plentiful. One aspect that separates the Summit from other conventions/meetings I have attended is that the cable-provider members are accessible, friendly, and eager to meet with vendors that can provide proven and cost-effective solutions to their objectives. So often the end users of the services we provide are unavailable or unwilling to sit down with new vendors but this was not the case at the Summit. The overall program was well designed and addressed many aspects of various industry topics and challenges.
Why do you think that hearing from policymakers and legislative speakers is important to you as a vendor?
With the impending implementation of BEAD, having the opportunity to hear from folks such as multiple FCC commissioners and a sitting United States Senator was extremely pertinent. Other shows/conventions might highlight one such official but I have never seen this many on the same day. Each official has a different opinion and outlook on pending fiber deployment so having the opportunity to hear multiple perspectives was very informative. It allowed the attendees to gain a well-rounded view of upcoming challenges rather than the narrower perspective gained by hearing from a single commissioner or elected official. Panel speakers at the Summit were totally relevant to the industry which is both unusual and refreshing.
How would you rate the ROI on money spent to attend Summit2024?
The ROI has proven to be outstanding. It is always a daunting task to evaluate potential ROI and benefits when assessing whether or not to attend an event for the first time. The Summit was no different in that we did not have the benefit of having attended previous Summits nor did we have close relationships with vendors that historically attend. That said, the contacts and business generated from the Summit was outstanding. We would have spent several times more money attempting to meet the plethora of industry representatives that were all at the Summit. The single trip to DC would have become a dozen or more trips to various locations across the USA in order to meet and get to know the Summit attendees. In addition, the cable providers that attended the Summit are all actively seeking deployment solutions; thus they sent decision makers to the event.
Can you describe why networking experiences at the Summit are valuable?
The simplest way to describe this is to say that there is simply no similar event (that we have encountered) that provides top-notch networking opportunities for the vendor attendees. We all attend shows covering various industries and in most cases the number of decision makers is few or the ones who are there are reluctant to meet with new vendors. The Summit was a totally different culture than other events in that the end-users were very open to dialog and exploring solutions provided by vendors that they had not worked with previously. The overall Summit schedule is a great mix of education and networking opportunities. The networking events were well scattered in the program which hopefully helps the provider members to not feel inundated or that they do not get a break from those of us looking for a few minutes of their time. There is a camaraderie at the Summit between vendors and end-users that we have not experienced at other events.
About GSS
GSS is a full-service and multi-disciplined firm that has been providing comprehensive regulatory and site development services since 1988. The GSS team maintains close working relationships with local, State and Federal regulatory agencies which allows GSS to achieve success where others fail. GSS has successfully sited tens of thousands of wireless facilities and fiber deployments across the USA.
GSS serves multiple industries with site development needs and site development tasks with team members located in multiple GSS offices and remote locations Nationwide. All GSS services are performed by highly experienced in-house personnel and our staff excels at real estate and ROW acquisition, permitting, FCC and NTIA compliance including Section 106 surveys, NEPA compliance, wetlands delineations and tribal consultation. GSS can provide both turn-key and a-la-carte solutions to fiber and telecom deployment.
Join Us in DC!
You’re invited to connect with colleagues, gain insight from policymakers and engage with vendors from across the industry during our Summit 2025.
