Telecom services are the backbone of most businesses, working hard behind the scenes. The ideal is to have effective telecom services that help your business run seamlessly and efficiently. However, not every telecom solution is right for every business, and it’s possible to have the wrong services for your company. Paying for excessive or inappropriate telecom services can be a huge and unnecessary waste of money. Here are 9 ways that working with a telecom consulting service can help you to identify the right solutions and eliminate waste.
Telecom Audit
Let an experienced and knowledgeable consultant perform a thorough audit of your telecom services. Telecom services are a very high line item expense for most businesses and nearly 80 percent of bills contain errors. Telecom bills can be very complicated and difficult to read and interpret, so it can be difficult to spot billing errors. An effective telecom audit is non-intrusive and the auditing services can be done from the office.
Contract Negotiation
You don’t have to settle for whatever terms are offered in a telecom contract. Very often, you can leverage a better deal if you have inside knowledge of what kind of terms are being offered elsewhere in the industry. Few people understand the complicated pricing structures, tariffs and service guides, and rate comparisons are hard to find. A telecom consulting service has the deeper understanding of these issues and can help you negotiate a more favorable contract.
Procurement Policy
Many companies are not in sync when it comes to procurement and payables, and ever-changing technologies increase the chances for billing errors. Telecom consultants work with your IT and Procurement teams to identify possible areas of error and make sure your vendors stick to your policies.
Project Management
Large IT projects often go far over budget in terms of both cost and time, and many companies experience project failure or completely abandon projects due to poor implementation. Projects include changing vendors, tracking your wireless devices, and migrating to the Cloud or SaaS. When telecom consultants take charge, your large IT projects are more likely to meet implementation goals.
RFP Administration
You’re always in a better position to negotiate rates when you do so with an RFP. When you conduct a formal RFP process you get services at a more competitive rate.
Service Optimization
Telecom rates and promotions change all the time, but many companies are stuck wasting money on outdated plans, being billed for service overages or unused usage, and even disconnected services. Telecom consultants can review your current bills and make sure you’re in the right plan for your business needs.
Sourcing
Sourcing solutions evaluate your current plans and compare them to benchmarked data and your future goals. Many sourcing solutions can work with a company of any size to cover voice, data, wireless, conferencing and expense management. A 20 percent reduction in total telecom costs is completely attainable.
Technology Review
A technology review looks at where you are now with technology and where you want to be in the future, and helps you develop a strategy for your business’ technology management. A technology review can also identify the most appropriate service providers and plans.
Telecom Expense Management
Since telecom services are such a major part of your budget, they’re not something you can just think about once and forget. Whether you do it on your own, or work with a consulting service you need to review your services and invoices on a regular basis, so you can adapt and change as necessary.
[author_bio username=”Ken” name=”yes”]
