What’s Mike Quigley going to do with his time when he’s no longer the head of NBN Co? Trawl Whirlpool Forums, it seems.
Image: Getty
Update: Calm down, you lot. I originally wrote “troll” but meant “trawl”. Honest mistake, as Quigley clearly isn’t trolling.
Whirlpool Forum members have been keen watchers of the National Broadband Network roll-out, acting almost as the nation’s watercooler for chatting about the massive fibre deployment.
A thread exploded when Quigley announced his impending resignation from NBN Co, and he has kindly taken the time to address the masses.
In it, he says he still chats to Stephen Conroy about what he finds on the forums, while pledging to still read all of the comments and feedback about the house he helped build.
Here’s his post in full:
My thanks to the Whirlpool community members for the many kind words of support over the last few days. I would also like to express my sincere thanks for the ongoing contribution you have all made in informing the commentary around the subject of broadband in Australia. I know from personal experience that this can sometimes be an uphill task.
I have watched the discussions on Whirlpool for quite some time and have asked members of the NBN Co team to follow up on some of your comments and observations. I could not quite keep up with our former Minister, Stephen Conroy, who frequently called me to refer to a Whirlpool post.
You will understand, I am sure, that I could not enter the online debate as I would likely have had little time left to try to design and build the network. But I do want you all to know that I believe it is very important that you continue to debate the topic as I am convinced that a first-class broadband fixed line network is critical to Australia’s future.
It has been both a privilege and a pleasure to have lead the NBN project for the first 4 years but I would like to stress that this has been a team effort by many people both within and outside NBN Co. The job has also had its challenges and I do hope that you will continue to support the new CEO as she/he continues the efforts.
I will be putting all my energy into moving the NBN forward while I am still with the company so I will continue to rely on my online team to respond to your many queries.
However, I can assure you that I will still be taking a very active interest in your comments, criticisms and suggestions.
All the best.
Mike.