LilaConnect, the UK fiber broadband provider and retail arm of The Freedom Fibre Group, completed a 16-week migration to gaiia to align its OSS/BSS with rapid growth plans and improve customer experience.
Based in the northwest, LilaConnect faced a legacy in-house system that had hit performance limits and a previous migration that stalled progress. The switch to gaiia was designed to modernize operations, simplify onboarding, and create a more seamless journey for customers from online checkout to activation.
Why gaiia? The project centered on an API-first OSS/BSS that could real‑time provision and activate services, support an expanding product catalog, automate workflows, and deliver a branded, frictionless checkout and subscriber portal for customers across multiple towns.
After evaluating several vendors, LilaConnect selected gaiia for its open, modular architecture, clear delivery timelines, and a collaborative implementation approach tailored to complex integrations with network and billing systems. “We needed a partner who could move fast while giving us the structure to build the right foundation,” said a LilaConnect executive close to the project.
Delivering value in 16 weeks, LilaConnect focused on a complete onboarding flow that links availability checks to activation. The new branded online checkout connects LilaConnect’s website directly with network serviceability, enabling real-time order processing. Since go-live, manual tasks across teams have dropped significantly, accelerating onboarding and easing in-life service changes.
The implementation includes the “fab 5” workflows—activation, suspension, reactivation, speed change, and deactivation—built in gaiia’s Workflow editor to run end-to-end without custom code. Integrations span LilaConnect’s network provisioning API, Stripe and GoCardless for payments, Sonalake PivOTS for one-touch switching, and CRM/communications tools including HubSpot, M365, and Twilio, creating a single source of truth for operations.
Implementation principles focused on speed-to-value: start with a minimum viable process for the five core journeys; standardize data models (including UPIRNs and canonical product structures); connect systems via direct APIs rather than ad hoc workarounds; treat workflows as the single source of truth; and maintain tight alignment through weekly cross-functional reviews. In Matt Ogden’s words, the project achieved a four-minute activation from checkout, compared with a 19-minute peak pace prior to gaiia.
Ultimately, LilaConnect now runs orders, provisioning, billing, and service changes through a single, API-driven platform. The result is faster onboarding, increased transparency, and a scalable model that supports future growth while delivering a smoother subscriber experience. This update comes in partnership with gaiia and Broadband Communities as part of a case-study series.
