Surging Pivotel wins innovation award

Written on the 5 October 2021 by Marshall Hall

Internationally expanding telecommunications company Pivotel has claimed another award as it continues to enjoy success.

Southport-headquartered Pivotel, which is one of just four licensed mobile telecommunications carriers in Australia, has been named the winner of the Mayor’s Innovation Award at the Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards for September.

The company was founded in 2002 by industry veterans Peter Bolger and Robert Sakker after the acquisition of Vodafone’s mobile satellite business.

Mr Bolger said while the company’s headquarters were on the Gold Coast where it employs 60 people, its other 80 employees work from offices in New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, the United States of America, Brazil, Colombia, the Netherlands, Greece and Cyprus.

He said the growing company had a strong focus on delivering communication solutions for people and communities in rural, remote, critical, and maritime environments.

“Pivotel’s point of difference is its focus,’’ said Mr Bolger. “The company’s services allow users to stay in touch, so they can confidently and safely live, work, or play, no matter where they are located.”

Pivotel supports a wide range of customers across local, state, and federal governments, including government departments in Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Columbia and a number of Pacific Island Nations. The organisation also provides services to blue-chip businesses like BHP and Rio Tinto, agricultural operators, small businesses that operate in regional areas, and individuals in rural and remote environments.

The business continues to see growth, despite the unpredictable nature of the last two years,’’ said Mr Bolger.

“In the past 12 months Pivotel’s customer numbers have increased by 12.2% globally as the company adds new products and services to meet the growing demand for worker safety, data, Internet and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions.

“At the same time, Pivotel continues to explore new business growth opportunities, both domestically and overseas, through internal expansion and strategic acquisitions.”

The September winners in the other Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards categories were:

• Student Engagement Award: Barefoot Barista
• Family Business Award: Usher Group
• Health and Wellbeing Award: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat
• Professions and Services Award: Protest Engineering
• Retail, Wholesale and Distribution Award: FIST Handwear
• Construction and Trades Award: Rivercity Environmental
• Manufacturing Award: Gourmet Meals
• IT and Digital Business Award: onPlatinum ICT
• Tourism, Hospitality and Events Award: dnata catering
• Emerging and Micro Business Award: The Edit Suite

The awards, now in their 26th year, aim to foster pride in the city’s business community and highlight its importance as a business hub. Some of the city’s best-known companies can claim to have been winners.