Where To Learn the Ins and Outs of Broadband for Electric Cooperatives

Kicking off a broadband project can be intimidating, especially if it’s an entirely new area of business for you. Luckily, you don’t have to jump in without support. Before you even begin, sign up for our Broadband Academy—with complimentary access for both Calix customers and non-customers. In both Broadband Services Fundamentals and our course, Understanding Broadband Specifics for Electric Cooperatives, you’ll walk through all the need-to-know information to launch a successful broadband business. 

As a guide for electric cooperatives looking to expand their offerings with essential broadband services, I’ll take you through what you can expect from Broadband Academy—and the best way to get started.

Start with Broadband Services Fundamentals To Learn the Five Stages 

While we have a special course just for electric cooperatives, the best place for anyone to start is with our Broadband Services Fundamentals. We’ve outlined five stages to becoming a Broadband Service Provider (BSP) and broken them down so they’re easy-to-understand—even if you have no prior experience with broadband. 

Here are the five stages, all covered in the course:

1. Fund. Identify and secure funding to connect your community.

2. Design. Design a scalable, future-proof network.

3. Build. Plan for a smooth broadband build-out.

4. Operate. Ensure sustainable broadband operations.

5. Market. Develop critical skills to sell and market broadband internet.

To register, visit www.calix.com/bba for instructions.

Enroll in Understanding Broadband Services for Electric Cooperatives

Because we understand that electric cooperatives face unique challenges and bring a valuable, distinct perspective to running a broadband business, we created a special course just for electric cooperatives, Understanding Broadband Services for Electric Cooperatives. In this course, you’ll learn exactly what you need to know to successfully operate both sides of your business. 

Here’s a preview of the lessons in our electric cooperatives course:

1. From Electricity to Broadband—Why Co-ops are Uniquely Positioned To Offer Broadband Services

2. Methods of Owning and Operating a Broadband Network

3. How Broadband Infrastructure Can Help Improve Your Electric Operations

4. Running a Competitive Broadband Business

5. The Importance of Data Insights

As you can see, each lesson is specifically designed to help you determine the best way to integrate broadband into your existing electric business. This educational content is available only from Calix, and there’s no pressure to do anything except learn. 

With years under my belt supporting electric cooperatives, I’m excited to offer this new course and help you in any way I can. Feel free to reach out to me directly at nick.jones@calix.com if you have any questions along your journey.

Sign up now for Broadband Academy to learn the basics and how to successfully run both a broadband and electric business.