Pricing Desk

The Pricing Desk is a department that supports Aureon’s sales teams by providing timely quotes and pricing standards and delivering streamlined, enhanced Client experiences. The Pricing Desk backs Aureon’s speed-to-quote initiatives that play a strategic role in providing an excellent experience to the Clients, Partners, Shareholders, and Carriers that we collaborate with daily and align our efforts to rebuild and retain strong Partner relationships.

Learn more about Tara Boston and her team as she discusses her role at Aureon and the work she does.

How long have you been with Aureon and what was your journey to your current role?

I will mark five years with Aureon in July. I started as a Solutions Architect in July 2018, then, in September 2021, I was promoted to the Supervisor of the Pricing Desk and soon after to Manager of the Pricing Desk.

On a day-to-day level who are the key stakeholders that you interact with and what solutions does your team deploy?

My team supports the sales channels and our ITC members in quoting and analyzing maximum profitability in client solutions.

What do you love most about Aureon?

Aureon has an incredible Leadership Team. I have been empowered and challenged to be part of some positive changes. I love that we streamline processes to fit our creative needs.

What excites you about coming to work each day?

I have an amazing team – they work extremely hard at strategic pricing strategies with a focus on helping our sales team make more sales.

Describe the impact of your department’s work. We impact sales on opportunities by utilizing our shareholders’ partners to achieve client solution pricing needs.

What are some goals your department is focusing on?

We are continually focused on sales support, increased revenue, and EBITDA.

Is there anything additional you would like to share with the shareholders?

We focus on new processes and initiatives to streamline quoting, orders, and billing that will impact ease and accuracy for all parties. One improvement is the implementation of the Aureon Bid Request Portal that many use for ease of bidding. Another is the addition of a Vendor Relations Specialist role to my team. This position will focus on growing and fostering relationships between Aureon and our ITCs. We are excited about the updates and growth 2023 will bring for our organization and ITC partners.

CML Telephone, CRMC, and Other Local Partners Help the Community Secure $360,000 for Future Projects

On Wednesday, September 21, 2022, Bruce Johnson with CML Telephone and Gary Jordan with the Cherokee Regional Medical Center met to close a USDA Rural Economic Development loan totaling $360,000. This is a unique loan program designed to grant rural communities revolving loan fund (RLF) money after the completion of a local project. CRMC agreed to use the new Cherokee Regional Ambulance Station as the initial project, receiving the funding in the form of a loan to finance a portion of the construction. Selecting a catalyst project such as the Ambulance Station is a requirement by the USDA for the program. When the loan for the Ambulance Station is paid off, funds will not go back to the USDA. Instead, funds will remain in the community for future projects. The USDA program requires that a local utility provider sponsor the loan application process. CML Telephone volunteered staff time and effort to be the sponsoring utility, ensuring that the $360,000 was made possible for the Ambulance Station and other projects. The granted funds from the program will be added to an existing RLF that is administered by Cherokee Area Economic Development. The USDA requires a 20% cash match from local partners to complete the program. To fulfill this requirement, the following organizations pitched in to meet the $60,000 match: Central Bank ($10,000), Cherokee State Bank ($10,000), State Savings Bank ($2,500), United Bank of Iowa ($5,000), Farmers State Bank ($2,500), and the Cherokee Industrial Corp ($30,000). In 2018, CML Telephone and their telecommunications partner, Aureon contributed $30,000 each to help establish the original RLF for the community using the same USDA program and a similar project with CRMC when they built their new medical clinic on the CRMC campus. This was a major team effort that would not have been made possible without the contributions of all those involved. Once the original loan is paid off, the total funds in the RLF will be $720,000. Organizations and businesses are welcome to apply for low-interest loans from the RLF to help finance community and business projects. The interest generated from RLF projects will be deposited back into the RLF to help grow the funds. For more information about the RLF, please contact Jana Utesch, Executive Director of Cherokee Area Economic Development: director@cherokeeia.com.

KCTC, Pleasantview, and Aureon Help the Community Secure $297,899 for Future Projects

On Wednesday, September 18, 2022, KCTC and Pleasantview, a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in Kalona met to close a USDA Rural Economic Development loan totaling $297,899. This loan program is designed to grant rural communities funds after the completion of a local project. Pleasantview offers skilled nursing, assisted living and independent living services. They are expanding and remodeling their facilities and have offered a portion of their expansion costs to help secure the money for the City of Kalona and surrounding communities. Selecting a catalyst project such as the Pleasantview expansion is a requirement by the USDA for the program. Pleasantview will receive the funding in the form of a 0% loan. As loan payments are made, revenue will not go back to the USDA, instead, funds will remain in the community for future projects. The USDA program requires that a local utility provider sponsor the loan application process. KCTC volunteered staff time and effort to be the sponsoring utility, ensuring that the $297,899 was made possible for the initial project and other future projects. The USDA also requires a 20% cash match from local partners to complete the program. To fulfill this requirement, KCTC pitched in $24,824, and Aureon contributed another $24,824. Once payments are made on the original loan, organizations and businesses are eligible to apply for low interest loans from the revolving loan fund to finance community and business projects. The interest generated from the projects will be deposited back into the revolving loan fund, and the account will be held and administered by KCTC.

Ripple Effect Helps Develop a Legacy in a Small Town

On Monday, November 21, 2022, members from South Slope Cooperative Communications, Aureon, Main Street Legacy, LLC, and the Iowa Area Development Group met at Ely City Hall. A $10,000 check was presented to the City of Ely. The funds were granted through Iowa Area Development Group and Aureon’s Ripple Effect program. The Ripple Effect grant funds will be used to help cover design and architectural costs for a new two-story mixed-use commercial and residential facility with businesses and indoor parking on the first floor and condominiums on the second. The property remodel design is in conjunction with the City of Ely’s downtown revitalization project. The plan is to design the building to be consistent with Ely’s existing historic downtown and highlights architectural design from the late Victorian era. “We would really like to keep with the character of Ely,” said Mark Krob with Main Street Legacy, LLC. Krob’s family has owned the property since 1910 as a fourth-generation family-owned grain elevator business. The primary office located on the property closed permanently in 2021. Krob said that his families land seemed like a perfect fit for this kind of project. Through the Ripple Effect community development program provided by Aureon and the Iowa Area Development Group, South Slope Cooperative Communications donated $5,000 and Aureon also donated $5,000. The overall project is expected to be completed sometime in 2024.

“We really want to attract restaurants and cafes, places to eat and hang out,” said Erin Krob with Main Street Legacy, LLC. “We are a small business trying to attract other small businesses.”

- Erin Krob, Main Street Legacy, LLC.

Ripple Effect Brings the Hearts of a Community Together

Aureon and IADG’s partnership with the Ripple Effect program brings hearts and a small community together. The Friends of Sharon Center High School and Community Center applied for a Ripple Effect grant and received funds from Sharon Telephone Company and matched by Aureon. In total the non-profit organization received $7,000 through the Ripple Effect program. The funds will go towards the restoration of a historic high school located in the rural area of unincorporated Sharon Center, now a part of Iowa City. In 2020, Preservation Iowa named the school one of Iowa’s “Most Endangered Properties.” Locals joined together to create a nonprofit organization called the Friends of Sharon High School and Community Center with the goal to bring the building back into use as a community center. “Our hearts are in this community,” said a local resident. Sharon Center High School was originally built in 1899 and served the community as a school for students to continue their education after attending country school which typically only went to the eighth grade. The school was often rented by traveling magicians, entertainers, and members of the community to hold events and parties. In 1918, the Frank Pierce Masonic Lodge purchased the building for $275. The Lodge held meetings on the second floor of the building until 2021. Katie Miller, STC’s Development Manager said, “The Ripple Effect grant allows us to get this project off the ground. We’re excited to be a part of it and really pleased with everything that Ethan at IADG did to make this possible. ”STC has ties to the building as their offices used to be in an adjacent building next to the school. Ethan Pitt, Ripple Effect Program Director said, “The finance committee loved the project, especially with STC’s tie to the building and the community center aspect to it all made this a great project.” The Friends of Historic Sharon High School and Community Center has taken great strides to raise money for the restoration of this important community gathering place. Local resident, Roger Strutsman has been vigilantly helping with fundraising efforts. Strutsman says, “We have been raising money for about a year and we have a long way to go yet. Our goal was to have about $65,000 and we have about $130,000, so we are ahead of our goal,” The nonprofit group will also be applying for grant money from Riverside Casino located in Riverside, Iowa. Once the remodeling process is completed, the building will provide space for educational, entertainment, cultural and community events, as well as offer a museum to display how important the landmark is, not only to the town and surrounding communities, but to the entire State of Iowa.

Butler-Bremer Communications

Pictured l-r: Scott Havel (Sharon Telephone Company General Manager), Katie Miller (Sharon Telephone Company Customer Development Manager), Phil Winborn (Friends of Historic Sharon High School and Community Center Chairman), Cheryne Yoder (Friends of Historic Sharon High School and Community Center Vice President), Howard Pewitt (fundraiser volunteer), Cathie Strutsman (Friends of Historic Sharon High School and Community Center Board Member), Meg Nagel (Friends of Historic Sharon High School and Community Center Board Member), Gene Miller (building committee), Ethan Pitt (IADG, Ripple Effect Program Director) and Roger Strutsman (fundraiser volunteer).

Ripple Effect and Butler-Bremer Communications Donates $10,000 to the Butler-Grundy Development Alliance. Other contributors were the Butler County REC and Corn Belt Power Cooperative.

Ripple Effect Program Grants Funds to Help Local Swimming Pool

On Wednesday, November 16, 2022, members of the Butler County Alliance, Allison Swimming Pool Committee, Dumont Telephone, Aureon, and the Iowa Area Development Group met at the Butler County Development Alliance office in Allison, Iowa. Aureon and Dumont Telephone presented a twenty-thousand-dollar check to Cassie Bangasser, a member of the Allison Swimming Pool Committee. Through Iowa Area Development Group’s and Aureon’s Ripple Effect program Dumont Telephone contributed $15,000 and Aureon donated $5,000. The funds will secure quotes, renderings and design work for repairs and upgrades to the swimming pool located in Allison, Iowa. The Swimming Pool Committee is currently raising funds for the swimming pool project. “We will be doing a Christmas bake sale,” said Bangasser. “We have done the bake sale for the last couple of years.” The committee also has a round up program at J & C Grocery store located in Allison. Customers can round up their grocery bill to donate funds towards this project. “We have been doing this program with the grocery store for a couple of years and so far, have raised $25,000,” explained Bangasser. The public owned swimming pool was constructed approximately forty years ago and needs significant repairs. The bathhouse and mechanical buildings will be retained and remodeled to help with overall costs. The outdoor pool is used in the summer for recreational swimming as well as for Red Cross swimming lessons. The pool provides active summer activities for the community. The projected costs to maintain the swimming pool are one million dollars. Construction on the project will begin in 2025.

Stewart Memorial Hospital Expansion Webster-Calhoun Coop Telephone Association (WCCTA)

On Wednesday, November 9, 2022, Webster-Calhoun Cooperative Telephone Association (WCCTA) awarded the Stewart Memorial Community Hospital (SMCH) grant funds to support their Putting People First campaign. WCCTA and Aureon each granted $5,000 to the hospital, totaling $10,000, through the Ripple Effect program. The funds will cover engineering costs associated with the expansion. Once the Putting People First campaign is complete, the ER and rehab services department will be three times larger and have private treatment rooms. The new ER location will be closer to the patient wing, increasing availability for nursing staff. There will be new entrances and a dedicated helipad to increase the efficiency of emergency traffic flow. The hospital has made significant strides toward completing the project. With plans to have construction completed in late 2023, SMCH has raised over $2,000,000 in local funds.

Network Updates

2022 is in the rearview mirror, and it is hard to believe it passed by that quickly. With that being said, even though it went by so fast many accomplishments were made in the network.

We continued to add fiber plant. Two hundred and fifteen total construction miles were tallied for transport fiber additions. Some of the projects were to replace small-count fiber that was originally placed in the late eighties and early nineties. The other was placed to close rings. Overall, the OSP projects for 2022 were a success.

Scott Johnson Senior VIce President –Engineering Operations

We also continued to invest in our existing PoP sites. We had fifteen sites that required upgrades to the transport or IP network equipment. Many of these upgrades continue to be driven by the number of bandwidth increase requests we continue to receive. We also added five new PoP sites in the state. This is part of our effort to continue to drive our services closer to our shareholders and deliver reliable large pipes.

One of our larger projects, as mentioned in past updates and round table meetings, is our migration out of our downtown PoP site, Merchants, to our new 616 data center. 2022 was year one of a two-year project. This included turning up a new voice tandem switch so we could then start moving voice traffic from the DMS at Merchants to 616. There were countless hours spent in meetings planning that conversion as we worked closely with a few early adopters that were willing to take the first step. This process assisted greatly in finding those “secrets” that were hidden. By the end of 2022, we were migrating three to four telcos a day. Thank you all that have made that move already!

Looking forward to our goals in 2023 with the largest being the final year of the Merchants to 616 migration. Our goal is to turn the lights off and lock the door for good no later than December 31, 2023. This year will focus on finishing the voice migrations along with getting DET and transport services moved completely out. We are also upgrading more PoP sites to continue to stay ahead of the bandwidth curve along with a few more PoP site additions.

The most important goal we have at Aureon is our continued effort to improve and maintain network reliability. All of our projects are designed to do that and to help Aureon grow. I am looking forward to seeing you all at our future round tables across the state.