ISP Quickline has hired a new COO and CTO to strengthen its Executive Board following a £50m investment from Northleaf earlier this year.
Lee Allison will step in as COO in January 2022, joining from KCOM, where he served as Head of Engineering Operations and oversaw the company’s £100m FTTP network expansion investment.
Ian Smith will become CTO in February 2022, replacing founder Steve Jagger, who will step down from his executive duties at the end of the year whilst remaining a shareholder and non-executive director.
Smith brings 25 years of experience in designing, building and operating both fixed and mobile networks and previously held senior roles at Ericsson, EE and T-Mobile. He has spent the last four years as Programme Director for the Government’s 5G Testbeds and Trials Programme.
CEO Sean Royce said: “These appointments underline our focus and commitment to bringing full fibre and market leading 5G technology to 500k homes and businesses across the North of England and beyond.
“Lee and Ian will play key roles in the development and implementation of our growth strategy, leading the design and build of our gigabit-capable hybrid network as we fulfil our plans to scale-up and expand the business.”