At Fiber Connect 2025 in Nashville, I had the pleasure of reconnecting with many of our existing customers and colleagues while also creating many new connections. These interactions may generate business now, later, or never. No matter the outcome, the goal is always to get connected and be ready to create fruitful partnerships when the time is right.
“Partnership” is a nuanced and often overused term in the business world. It can refer to anything from a one-time purchasing transaction to a long-standing, multi-faceted relationship between companies who have worked together for years.
I view partnerships from two perspectives: customer partnerships and solutions partnerships.
In construction and deployment, we partner with trusted vendors to help our customers accelerate their projects and make the process as seamless as possible. Working with firms like Calix, Adtran and Nokia, we focus on understanding our customers’ needs and aligning our complementary products to deliver best-in-class solutions. That means we need to fully understand our partners' latest equipment so we can design and build the best cabinets and enclosures for their technology, ensuring optimal power and environmental protection.
By integrating their gear into our equipment, we add value and help win the customer’s trust, because we’ve already done the design and engineering legwork. Even if we don’t resell each other’s products, our collaboration delivers mutual value by making the customer’s decision easier and more turnkey.
With our closest customers, we take it a step further, working with them on specific use cases. These customer partnerships help validate our products and innovations while giving customers exactly what they want in a product. Johnny Hill, our COO, and our engineering teams are actively involved in this process, listening closely and ensuring we deliver what’s needed.
From a solutions perspective, we seek partnerships in areas where we may not have deep in-depth expertise but know our products can add value. These are often outside our comfort zone. That’s why we look for collaborators with strategic insight and technical depth in those fields.
We recognize there’s a learning curve in these cases. So, we aim to contribute meaningfully while also introducing a better solution than what currently exists in the market. Power distribution is a good example. It’s a hot topic for many customers. While we understand power in the outside plant, inside plant power distribution isn't our core competency, so we look to work with partners who can help us fill that gap.
You’ll be hearing more about Clearfield’s evolving solutions partnerships in the months ahead as we refine and announce them. In the meantime, I’m always open to discussing how Clearfield works with partners to deliver the best outcomes possible for our customers.
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Clearfield’s Chief Marketing Officer, Anis Khemakhem, is deeply passionate about technology, particularly in advancing fiber optics and telecommunications solutions. Throughout his career, he has consistently focused on leveraging cutting-edge technology to improve connectivity and enhance digital access across various sectors. His executive experience - including leadership positions at Clearfield, Amphenol and Carlisle Interconnect Technologies - demonstrates his executive engagement capabilities and capacity to handle complex, multi-stakeholder projects.