The shift from assets to services

For decades, telecom operators have run their networks by tracking physical infrastructure—ducts, cables, routers, fibre. Yet customers never interact with these components in isolation. What they actually experience is the service quality delivered through that infrastructure.

Jean-Francois Allard, Director Pre-Sales Utilities & Communications EMIA at Octave, argues that operators need a different lens on their networks. Rather than viewing assets as separate entities, they should understand how services travel through the network and which infrastructure elements each service depends on. This perspective, he suggests, could unlock more automated and intelligent network operations.

Octave, which officially launched in 2026 after spinning off from Hexagon, brings decades of experience building software for major infrastructure operators. Allard emphasises that the company is not a startup, despite its recent formation.

Connecting assets to services

The transition does not mean abandoning asset management. Operators still need precise records of their cables, routers, fibre and other equipment. The next layer is linking those records to data about the services running across them.

The value is no longer the single or the individual component. The value is in the service delivered end-to-end.

Jean-Francois Allard

This becomes especially critical when failures occur. A network operator might know that a cable or router has failed, but that knowledge is incomplete without understanding which services depend on that equipment, which customers are affected and what restoration options exist.

Allard calls this broader perspective flow intelligence. It weaves together network topology, dependency mapping and service information, giving operators visibility into how services move across their infrastructure.

Building flow intelligence without replacing systems

Operators do not need to rip out their existing technology to adopt this approach. They can begin with a solid network inventory, then layer in data from planning, construction, operations, assurance and service management systems.

The payoff is a sharper understanding of how network changes or outages ripple through the business. Operators can pinpoint which customers face disruption, identify at-risk services and make smarter decisions about how to restore service.

Flow intelligence and AI-driven networks

Allard also sees flow intelligence as essential for networks that rely on AI and automation. Artificial intelligence systems require context to make sound operational decisions. A database entry might confirm that an asset exists, but that data becomes far more valuable when the system also knows what that asset connects to and which services rely on it.

Looking ahead, Allard envisions telecom network management combining both perspectives. Operators will continue to need accurate asset records, but understanding service impacts will become increasingly vital as networks grow more complex and more decisions shift to automated systems.