Telecoms firm eyes further growth after ‘record’ 2018

● Aims for sales of £20m+ after inking largest-ever deal

Telecoms provider Commsworld expects to reach turnover of more than £20 million and grow staff to at least 100 in 2018 after agreeing its largest-ever contract and experiencing its “bestever” financial year. The Edinburgh-based company has reported record revenues for 2017, reaching more than £15m, representing a year-on-year jump of 15 per cent.

The business, which was founded in 1994, said its growth follows various large public sector contract wins.

It added that projections for this year are showing even stronger growth after landing its largest-ever deal, a “milestone” seven-year £30m agreement to become the key provider in Glasgow City Council’s information and communication technology (ICT) contract. Commsworld has also grown headcount to more than 80 in locations including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, and is hoping to reach 100 in coming months.

The company’s chief executive Ricky Nicol hailed a “terrific” year, adding: “We’re all delighted that 2017 has been the best year in our history… we’ve seen more and more clients join us or choose to renew their contracts with us.

“But the real step up for us as a business has been proving that we can deliver excellence on the biggest public sector ICT contracts in Scotland.”

Commsworld landed deals with both City of Edinburgh Council and Scottish Borders Council, enabling those in the regions to access ultrafast broadband that will transform both areas’ wider infrastructure.

In Edinburgh, this has resulted in 400 sites to be serviced by the Pure Fibre Wide Area Network.

The firm also says it works with many top private sector firms, from small SMES to some of the largest organisations in the country, delivering “mission critical” internet, data, cloud and voice communications.

Its work on Glasgow City Council’s ICT contract, announced in early 2018, will see it now play a major role in transforming Glasgow into one of the world’s most digitally advanced cities.

Nicol added: “The new contract with Glasgow City Council represents a major step forward not only for us as a business, but also Glasgow as a city.” It will also see the firm roll out an IP telephony solution for more than 16,000 council users and a 550-plus call centre, and boost existing connection speeds to 100 times the UK average. Blackadders Wealth Management has grown the total value of assets under management by more than a third in the last year as a result of ongoing investment in its team. During the period, five new recruits were taken on and a dedicated graduate trainee scheme was launched. The firm is a sister company of legal practice Blackadders. The investment team operates out of Edinburgh and Dundee with the office network also spanning Glasgow, Perth and Aberdeen.