Our headline sponsor of the Sussex Business Show and sponsor for the Tigers Pen is none other than Rubix VT. We catch up with two of the driving forces behind the business, Nick Poyner, Managing Director, and Ian Trevett, Marketing Director, covering myths, advice and legacy that they can impart on other businesses.
The Brighton based telecoms provider is a fast-growing, independent business but at the heart of their business, like the heart of the Sussex Business Show itself, is connection. Keeping people connected via telecoms.
Their mantra is ‘Telecoms Simplified’.
Which as it turns out, is simpler than it may sound.
Whilst Ian acknowledges the most common myth in their field “is that telecoms is complicated and complex.”
He says, “If you’re an engineer or you’re a support person, then yes, you need to have a great telecoms experience to actually solve any problems. But from a user point of view, from a business point of view, telecoms actually is very, very simple.
All you actually need to worry about really is when somebody calls your company, what service do they get? Do they get to the right person? Do they get the information they need, and basically do they get a good experience when they call your company? And that’s what a telecoms company does, it gives the user or caller a good experience.”
Ian came into the industry just two and half years ago and has been working on the demystification of the lingo with its acronyms (VoIP, FTTC, FTTP, ISTN, etc.) and of the industry itself since.
“it’s all really about making telecoms simple. And Rubix’s VT’s tagline is telecoms simplified and we really believe that that’s how it should be. “
But Rubix VT wasn’t always so simplified…
Nick found the speed of growth initially alarming, “We very quickly, overnight, completed on our first acquisition of another telecoms company. And that’s not something that I set out to do… It meant that we had to increase the infrastructure in terms of employees. We had to move offices, and we really ramped the operation up.
It was coping with how those strains on the business affected us, which ultimately led us to realise that we grew a bit too quickly, if I’m honest, in those early months. And then we had to have a bit of a restructure to take those sorts of steps back to enable us, as a business, to move forward.”
Taking those learnings forward meant that the successful business has grown beyond initial expectations. But that’s not to say the company doesn’t face challenges today.
Nick opens up about the reality of business today, “For Rubix VT at the moment, our biggest challenge is finding further funding for acquisitions as that’s certainly how we are growing as an organisation. Whilst we have a bit of sort of organic growth, lots of our business is now coming from the acquisition, the asset purchases that we’re doing of telecoms companies. So for us it’s looking at how we fund further projects like that to help us grow as an organisation.”
Growth can come with growing pains. And it’s this wisdom they want to share in the Tigers Pen.
As sponsors for the Tigers Pen, they mentioned how much they were looking forward to being part of the entrepreneurial circle, looking at some of the startups coming through from the university and how they could invest in those companies and give them an opportunity on the first rung of their career ladder.
But we want to know more about advice they can impart for other business leaders, start ups, and the next generation.
When pushed for the most important nugget of guidance, Nick said the one piece of advice he’d give to someone starting out in their career would be “100% to go and get a mentor. Somebody that you can really take your challenges to and there will be many, but having somebody that you can just sound those off to even if you choose to go down your own road is vital.
I personally have a couple of very strong individuals that I go to with different challenges. They’re different personalities and they’ve guided me over these last few years as to what the best decisions could be that I could make.”
What about if money was no object?
Sound advice from a man who is constantly seeking to improve and make better decisions. So we were intrigued, what decisions would he make if money were no object?
Nick said that if he were to win £10 million tomorrow, he’d use part of it for growing the business through further acquisitions. “But equally part of that money would be spent on the charitable side of our business. Charity is very big to me, it’s very important to me. It’s part of my DNA. And we already work with a number of charitable organisations as Rubix’s, and that would just enable us to really do more for those at those charitable arms.”
Ian adds that one of the best things about working for Rubix is “the culture and the philosophy and the community based aspects of Rubix. The owner, Nick Poyner, has been very, very generous in both his time and also with his money, in terms of supporting charities such as the Chestnut Tree House,Together co, Starr Trust and many other charities.
It’s not just something we do to tick a box. It’s something we all passionately believe in, and we really want to try and make a difference. Rubix VT, I think, has been very good at that, and it’s something I’m very proud of.”
The legacy to leave behind
With such glowing words behind the company, we ask Nick what legacy he wants to be remembered for.
Without hesitation, Nick answered “That would be as charitable. I am a strong believer in giving back. And as I said, charity is part of my DNA.”
For Ian, we asked if he wasn’t with Rubix VT, what he’d be doing instead. His answer tied back to legacy, and unsurprisingly, the power of connection.
“I think eventually when I slow down and maybe retire, I’d probably revert back to a job that I’ve actually been doing for the last 20 odd years on the side, anyway which is writing biographies for people.
I sit down with somebody and basically just drink lots of tea and coffee and we just talk about their life. I started doing this some time ago, actually. My Dad sadly had Alzheimer’s some time ago and I thought I must sit down with my dad and listen to his stories, his childhood and his life experiences. But at the time I was busy. I had a young family. I never actually got around to doing that.
And eventually the illness progressed and he died. At the funeral myself and my sisters wrote my Dad’s eulogy. And as close as we were to our Dad, we didn’t really know much about his life, his childhood and the things he went through. And I thought, that’s a big shame.
So I sat down with my Mum and I said, okay, it’s all about your whole life story, all your experiences, all your memories, all your stories and we put them together into a book, which is fantastic. And at the time, a colleague at a company I was working for said, well, actually, can you do that same for my Dad? And from there it became a little business where I’d write people’s life stories that are preserved for future generations.”
Communication today and for tomorrow
Taking stories and immortalising them for future generations is the ultimate connection for the future. It reminds us why Sussex Business Show and Rubix VT are the perfect match.
As it turns out Nick is a lover of stories himself, and he generously gave us the top three books he’d recommend:
- The Chimp Paradox by Steve Peters
“It’s a book that absolutely changed my life. It changed my outlook, it changed how I look at things, how I question some of my decisions, and I have trained my chimp. And I highly recommend that everybody grab that book, read it. It will do you a world of good.
- Start with Why by Simon Sinek
“For me, it’s just asking those probing sort of questions. Why is it like that? Why should we do that? And that will give you different answers.”
- Outliers by Steve Peters
“This is the follow-up to The Chimp Paradox . And all I can say is I recommend that book as far as I’ve read it so far. It enhances your education beyond what the Chimp Paradox will give you.
September Show
But beyond the business advice, book recommendations and ideas for what it means to leave a good legacy, our headline sponsors at the Sussex Business Show are looking forward to meeting guests and exhibitors alike on the big day.
“We’re looking forward to the event. The Sussex Business Show is always a great day in a calendar, and this year, Rubix VT are the headline sponsors, but we’re also taking the opportunity to highlight some of our other businesses in the group.
We have Go Giraffe, which is a telecoms company for sole traders and small businesses, and also Rubix Recruitment, which we started last year. So at the event, we have quite a presence with the Rubix’s companies, and it’s going to be quite spectacular, and we can’t wait to see people there”
They’d love to say hello, talk about telecoms, recruitment or anything else. And we can’t wait to have them at the show.