25 Years with Optus Wholesale: A Conversation with Malcolm Adams

We sat down with Malcolm Adams, our Senior Director, Mobile & Customer Marketing, to celebrate his 25 years at Optus Wholesale, reflecting on the evolution of the telecom industry, the transformation of mobile technology, and the significance of trust and partnerships throughout his journey.

Last year, during Optus' 30th anniversary, we chatted with Malcolm Adams about the company's enduring "challenger spirit". Revisit that discussion here. Today, we dive deeper, exploring Malcolm’s individual journey and insights in the telecom realm.

How has the industry evolved during your career over 25+ years?

Well, you quickly realise that you’re in an industry of promise and constant change! Continuous planning, investment, and execution, and when you step back to reflect, it really is a wonderful environment to be in, because you are forever looking forward and weighing up new opportunities.

I’ve been in the industry for 30 years, 25 of which I’ve been lucky to have spent with Optus. With a background in marketing, my first role in the early to mid-90s was with a BT Mobile Partner in the UK. I am originally from Scotland, and I was fortunate at the time to join when we had a contract to roll out branded BT shops across the West of Scotland, Northern England, and Northern Ireland.

I got great insight and experience through this role into how Service Providers work closely with their Network Operator and Channel Partners. Building great working relationships really is the key to success. Due to regulations at the time, the Mobile telco industry was initiated with Network Operators selling in a wholesale manner to Service Providers, who then sold to customers via Retail partners or Dealers.

How has mobile technology transformed since the early days?

It was a 2G service rolled out nationally, replacing the original analogue service launched in the mid 80’s. By then Mobility had started to generate interest from Consumers (beyond the initial business take up and early adopters).

If you were lucky enough to have a phone, it was often installed in your car and the mobile phones were quite bulky back in the day.  I’m sure many of our current wholesale partners have fond memories of their first ‘brick’ phone!

Now we offer an expanded range of services and technologies across our mobile network including mobility, broadband, fixed wireless and IOT, allowing our partners to compete in many market segments.

Tell us about your transition to Australia and joining Optus

After a round-the-world backpacking trip (including Australia), I was smitten by the country. The climate, the people, the lifestyle, and the opportunities, all just felt right. I joined Optus Industry Services, now known as Optus Wholesale.

How did your role evolve at Optus?

I started in Mobile Product Management and fondly remember supporting campaigns such as ‘yes’ Time and ‘yes’ Weekend, where we were able to extend an Optus network promotion into our wholesale partnerships. For me that was an early indicator of how we could think and act differently and look for ways to differentiate our product and leverage our strengths.

Over the years, my journey broadened into Sales and partnership roles and then back full circle to Marketing. Ultimately the nature and value of the wholesale business and its intricacies fascinated me, and I’ve always tried to keep a sense of our partners at the heart of what I do. As a wholesale team, we exist because of them and for me the key has been about building trust and transparency, sharing our learnings, and working towards common goals.

How have the challenges in the industry shaped your journey?

25 years ago, there were obviously fewer customers and service providers, and in those days given relatively low market penetration, there was so much opportunity to grow and scale. Everything was geared towards acquisition. I remember one Sales Manager of our largest partner at the time mention to me that “my Senior Management team have just asked me how long it will be until we can bring on 100k new customers per month!”.

If you fast forward to now, the reality is, whilst we’ve still got some growth opportunity (e.g. Australia’s immigration is on the rise again post-COVID), we’ve had to get smarter in how we operate across the value chain in terms of our product, our systems and processes, our customer experience, and  knowledge, as well as into areas of digital and automation for operating efficiencies and cost-effectiveness – just to name a few. Keeping our partners and their customers happy and loyal is essential for them and us. As the market has matured, we’ve evolved to become multi-faceted, as have our partners, to remain competitive.

What's your perspective on the changes and advancements in the industry?

The industry is ever evolving and the technology cycles are reducing. We’ve moved into a 5G world and every technological leap presents new opportunities, for both us and our service providers. The advent of these new technologies provides opportunities for our partners to reshape their propositions, explore new customer use cases and enter new market segments.

Reflecting on these 25 years, what stands out the most?

The 3P’s! Our People, our Product and our Partnerships. I’ve worked alongside many inspiring and impressive individuals (both internally and externally!) and I’m thankful and for the tremendous IP that underpins our business to support our Product evolution. I’ve also been fortunate to see many good businesses grow and flourish and working in a specialised team within Optus. I’m proud of our purpose and the role we fulfill.  The Optus culture is all about our people, and embracing diversity and inclusion is a key strength of our Wholesale team.

In terms of partnerships some notable ones include the launch of Virgin Mobile; the impressive growth of Amaysim through their strong brand instincts and entrepreneurial flair; and former partners such as Hutchison Telecom and TPG, whose businesses have now grown to compete against us in market, but highlight that Optus Wholesale through our partnerships play an important role in stimulating and promoting competitive opportunity in our broader market. On the flip side, perhaps the biggest disappointment for me would be the unfortunate demise of the One.Tel business in the early 2000’s at a time when they had huge aspirations and were planning to expand their business internationally.

We’ve played a crucial role in industry changes and have consistently provided growth opportunities for people and businesses through accessing our world class network. The key is to not rest on our laurels, but to continue to invest, innovate and adapt to the ever-changing business landscape and the technological environment.

What do you think Optus Wholesale does well?

Trust and Partnership. The significance of the trust that customers place in Optus Wholesale. This trust has not only helped Optus grow over the years but also underpins the long-term mutual relationships that we foster. Our emphasis goes beyond the commercial transaction, it’s about cultivating lasting partnerships where partners feel genuinely supported.

Do you have any closing thoughts that you would like to share?

My journey to date has been extremely rewarding. I’ve been party to many great industry events, product and business launches, milestones and celebrations, and I’m fortunate to be able to work in this environment.

While technology and business models may change, the core principles of trust, partnership, and mutual growth remain constant for me. Here's to more growth, learning, and evolution in the years to come!

We thank Malcolm Adams for his unwavering dedication and invaluable contributions to Optus Wholesale over the last 25 years. In that time, Malcolm's enthusiasm hasn't waned. The dynamic nature of the industry, coupled with Optus' ability to forge strong ties with partners, fuels his passion, making every year as invigorating as the last. Here's to many more milestones ahead!