gtt-ceo-rick-calder-talks-company-growth-for-2017It’s been a busy few weeks lately for Rick Calder, president and CEO of GTT Communications, Inc (NYSE: GTT). In early November, GTT announced its acquisition of Hibernia Networks, continuing the company’s growth trajectory and further solidifying its dedication to meeting the needs of multinational clients. Rick recently spoke with Don Witt, ‎a writer and commentator at Telecom Reseller. The conversation focused on the GTT’s strategy moving forward in 2017.

As Rick explained during the interview, market opportunities continue to grow for GTT, as applications move to the cloud. Corporate networks need increased bandwidth and capacity, as well as secure private access to cloud-based services and to connect to cloud service providers (CSPs). For a company with multiple locations and a wide area network (WAN), it’s extremely important to ensure that employees and partners have secure network connectivity to any location and to any app in the cloud.  GTT owns and operates a Tier 1 IP network that is ranked in the top five in the world. The network is characterized by extreme diversity in backbone and core, using multiple technologies including Ethernet and MPLS, and redundant fiber paths connecting its 250-plus global Points of Presence (PoPs).

Security will continue to be a critical issue for GTT’s multinational customers. Fortunately, GTT can mitigate such threats as dedicated denial of service (DDoS) attacks via secure management, remote access and other services.

As Rick noted, “There is an enormous opportunity in the market for secure network connectivity. GTT offers a series of multi-tier solutions for firewalls, unified threat management and intrusion prevention for customers that need to maintain tight levels of access to content and to protect their network from unauthorized users.”

In addition to its strong network coverage, capacity and associated service offerings, Calder believes customers turn to GTT because of its continuing growth and customer commitment. Since he joined the company in 2007, it has grown quickly from $50 million to $500 million in revenue. On this point, he commented, “Multinational corporations trust GTT as we grow with them. We are publicly traded on New York Stock Exchange big board and we are also very public about our company with respect to sharing and meeting financial goals. The goal is to grow to $1 billion in five years or sooner. The company is well positioned for this growth with our strong portfolio of channel partners and our growing product set.”

While many carriers are moving away from their core businesses, as evidenced by the recent AT&T acquisition of Time Warner Cable and Verizon’s purchase of AOL and Yahoo, GTT is acquiring Hibernia Networks to add dark fiber assets, subsea cables and cable landing stations, adding breadth and depth to GTT’s global Tier I IP network, and expanding its cloud networking portfolio. While competitors are moving away from their core focus, GTT is continuing to deliver exceptional services that are reinforced by outstanding client experiences.

Rick Calder