2019 CEO Survey: Stephen Rue, NBN Co

NBN CO chief Stephen Rue says he’s focussed on improving the customer experience and lifting our digital capability.

Our purpose is to lift the digital capability of Australia, says Stephen Rue, CEO of NBN Picture: Aaron Francis

Every year The Australian’s John Durie asks some of the biggest names in Australian business five key questions about what’s coming in the year ahead.

READ MORE: John Durie’s 2019 CEO Survey.

How is your company affected by low-interest rates and what is needed to boost the economy?

We know that discretionary spending remains constrained due to a multitude of factors. Telecommunications and broadband are considered essential services, and we see a clear correlation between the delivery of secure, reliable, high-speed broadband and the proliferation and acceleration of the digital economy. Our purpose is to lift the digital capability of Australia and, in addition to completing construction of the volume rollout by June 2020, we’re introducing significant discounts and additional data capacity inclusions across most of our wholesale discount bundles to make it more affordable for residential and business customers to upgrade to higher-speed services.

What is the impact of government regulations on your company, including those applying to the financial sector?

The telecommunications sector is regulated by the ACCC and the ACMA. NBN maintains a constructive dialogue with both regulators across a wide range of issues. As a general principle, we believe that commercially negotiated outcomes between NBN Co and retail service providers are the most effective way to improve standards and customer experience.

What percentage of company revenues are spent on research and development, and how is your company using technology to improve performance?

Construction of the NBN access network is one of the largest infrastructure projects ever undertaken in Australia and in FY20, we will spend approximately $4.3bn to complete the volume rollout to make 11.5 million premises ready to connect.

At the same time, we’re collaborating with universities and research partners to develop new technologies that will improve the customer experience of the network. We have established formal innovation partnerships with the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and the University of Melbourne, and our key network of systems suppliers. These partnerships enable NBN Co to leverage our assets in systems, network and operational domains such as Software Defined Networking, Machine Learning and AI, and evolutions in access network technologies.

What are the three major policy issues facing the country and what should be done about them?

It won’t surprise you that I am completely focused on the social and economic enablement of this wonderful country through the power of digital connectivity. We are, for example, seeing small and medium businesses that are making the most of NBN connections to grow their value proposition and significantly increase their efficiency. This has the added benefit of helping to sustain regional communities which is a policy priority I know every Australian would support. We are also working collaboratively with state and territory governments to look at how we might further invest in the services we provide to critical infrastructure such as hospitals and schools and to further enhance our dedicated commitment to regional Australia. In doing so, we create better outcomes that touch a wide range of community needs and therefore, these issues are top of mind for me.

What are the major impediments to long-term growth facing your company, and what can or is being done about them?

The next few years will be critical for NBN Co, and we’ll be working harder than ever to help ensure all Australians who connect to services over the NBN have a positive experience.

One of our key target areas is addressing and serving unconnected Australians. NBN Co continues to consult with industry on a new range of wholesale products and prices that will appeal to price-sensitive customers while other discounts and new data inclusions are aimed at supporting residential and business customers interested in upgrading to higher speed broadband plans. NBN Co has also identified in-home wiring and Wi-Fi modem upgrades as two potential areas for further collaboration and co-investment with retail service providers to deliver significant improvements to the customer experience.