2025 Telecommunications Industry Excellence Awards Winners Announced
Chris Hancock – 2025 Communications Ambassador
Winners in 2025 include Vocus, Speedcast, TPG Telecom, Optus, Leaptel, NBN Co, NetVault, Telstra and Ventia
Sydney, 24 July 2025: Former AARNet CEO Chris Hancock has been awarded the telecommunications industry’s most prestigious accolade, being named Communications Ambassador at this year’s Telecommunications Industry Excellence Awards.
The winners across 10 categories were announced at the 19th Annual TIE Awards Dinner in Sydney, where Communications Alliance unveiled its new company name and branding as the Australian Telecommunications Alliance (ATA).
“Chris Hancock is one of the telecommunications industry’s enduring figures, having spent more than two decades at the helm of AARNet – Australia’s national research and education network,” said Luke Coleman, CEO of the Australian Telecommunications Alliance.
“Mr. Hancock’s leadership saw AARNet substantially grow the size and capacity of its network and operations. From AARNet’s beginnings in 1989 as a pioneer of the internet in Australia, AARNet today is firmly established as one of the world’s leading academic and research networks.”
Prior to taking on the CEO role at AARNet in 2004, Chris Hancock was Managing Director of Optus Business and Optus Wholesale from 1998-2004, and prior to that held senior executive positions at Vodafone Australia and the Seven Network. Mr. Hancock has also held a number of Board roles including as a Director of the Institute for Broadband Enabled Society, the Internet Industry Association, Smart Services CRC, the Starlight Foundation of NSW, and the Technology & Innovation Panel of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).
“Chris Hancock has been a figure of great substance in our industry for thirty years, and following his recent departure from AARNet he is a fitting winner of this year’s Communications Ambassador award,” Mr. Coleman said.
The full list of winners at the 2025 TIE Awards includes:
- COMMUNICATIONS AMBASSADOR – Chris Hancock
- Innovation – Large Company – Vocus: For their Private 4G/5G network solutions
- Innovation – SME – Speedcast: For Speedcast’s Patented Network Optimisation Technologies
- Innovation in Mobile – TPG Telecom & Optus: For their Regional Sharing Agreement
- Consumer Champion Award: Chris Dodds, Telstra
- Commitment to Customer Service – Leaptel: Redesigning the customer service journey
- Contribution to Society – NBN Co: For the School Student Broadband Initiative
- Innovation in Infrastructure Security and Resilience – Vocus: For their resilient digital infrastructure
- Innovation in Satellite Services – NetVault: For their Project Halo
- Innovation in Vendor Technology – Ventia and Telstra: For their State-of-the-Art Mobile Connectivity at the Iconic Sydney Opera House
