Integra, Electric Lightwave Splitting, 'Small Percentage' of Job Cuts Planned

Electric Lightwave is splitting from Integra, becoming a standalone, fiber-based network services company.

Electric Lightwave is the largest regional fiber-based provider in the western United States, serving more than 5,400 large enterprise customers, wholesale carriers, web content providers, government organizations and educational institutions. Its footprint includes more than 8,000 miles of long-haul fiber, connecting 23 markets in which it has more than 4,000 miles of metro fiber, serving more than 3,000 commercial buildings, 125 cellular towers and 100 data centers.

Scott Forbush, Electric Lightwave’s vice president of indirect sales, tells Channel Partners the split creates new opportunities for both Electric Lightwave and Integra partners.

“Electric Lightwave intends to extend and grow with the partner community that has made Electric Lightwave and its network infrastructure so successful,” he said. “And Integra partners will also see a great deal of opportunity, as they will be the exclusive outside sales channel in these markets.”

Ani Vattano, Electric Lightwave’s director of communications, tells Channel Partners the company will cut its workforce “by a small percentage over a period of time as we focus on aligning the right resources with customer demand.”

“While this resource alignment will result in a short-term reduction, as our work is less transactional and more focused on the fiber business, we believe the long-term outcome will result in the growth of our organization,” she said. “We are not sharing the specifics around staff reduction, but approximately 83 percent of our resources will be focused on Electric Lightwave and 17 percent on Integra, as that is what aligns with our customer base and the market.”{ad}

The “overwhelming” response from both Electric Lightwave and Integra partners has been positive, Forbush said. They see the focus as a “necessary and welcome change in our evolution,” he said.

“There is no immediate change planned for Integra’s partner program,” he said. “I continue to lead the indirect organization, and all partners, both Electric Lightwave and Integra, will continue to operate under their current partner agreements.”

The separation creates …

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… dedicated personnel, customers and infrastructure for Electric Lightwave and Integra, and each business will have separate operating and financial metrics going forward.

Integra will maintain competitive and incumbent operations in Minnesota, North Dakota and Colorado, as well as manage all small business customers throughout all Electric Lightwave markets.

In early 2015, Integra formed two new business units: Electric Lightwave, to serve enterprise customers, as well as the company’s government, education and wholesale carrier customers; and Integra Business, to target midmarket customers.

“Through operational and financial separation, we are focusing our capital investments and aligning human resources toward the attractive growth opportunities at Electric Lightwave, including the continued investment in high-return, success-based capital projects,” said Jesse Selnick, Electric Lightwave’s CFO.