Telecommunications Expense Management

Telesoft Publishes White Paper: The New Rules Of Telecom Expense Management

Telesoft Publishes White Paper: The New Rules Of Telecom Expense Management

Reduce Telecom Spend

Phoenix, Ariz. (PRWEB) March 24, 2010

Telesoft, trusted experts in fixed and mobile telecom expense management (TEM) software and services, today published a new white paper entitled “The New Rules of Telecom Expense Management,” which focuses on three ways to effectively manage and control telecommunications spending while increasing savings. The paper is the third in a series Telesoft has published to inform enterprise managers on how to develop an efficient telecom expense management (TEM) strategy.

As a leader in the TEM market, Telesoft has spent more than 25 years helping enterprises optimize all aspects of their telecom usage. With the increase in network traffic and wireless communication, it’s no surprise that enterprises are seeing their telecom expenses grow exponentially. In order to reduce this expense, Telesoft advises enterprises to: proactively manage telecom spend, manage fixed and mobile telecom together, and extend the value of TEM with intuitive solutions for multiple users.

“Over the past decade, network traffic for data and wireless communications have eclipsed the costs for fixed voice traffic,” said Thierry Zerbib, chief executive officer and co-founder. “We wrote ‘The New Rules of Telecom Expense Management’ to help enterprise managers understand the dramatic costs savings that come with effectively managing the telecom lifecycle, reigning in wireless expenses, and using the right tools for the job.”

To download the whitepaper, go to “The New Rules of Telecom Expense Management.”

About Telesoft

Trusted experts in Telecom Expense Management (TEM) software and services for over 25 years, Telesoft reduces fixed and mobile telecom spend to improve an organization’s bottom-line. Telesoft automates the telecom expense management lifecycle – from management of telecom invoices, usage and cost allocation, through provisioning and inventory – to lower telecom expenses and improve efficiencies. Offered as hosted, licensed or outsourced solutions, Telesoft provides an integrated management platform for centralized inventory, common data sharing and unified reporting. Telesoft solutions are used by hundreds of commercial and government organizations including the largest and most complex telecom environments in the world.

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Telecom Expense Management Event Focuses on Fixed & Mobile Communications Life Cycle Management

Telecom Expense Management Event Focuses on Fixed & Mobile Communications Life Cycle Management

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Vocus/PRWEB) February 17, 2011

CCMI, the Center for Communications Management Information, and Voice Report announced that the 7th annual Telecom Expense Management National Summit will be held on May 23-24, 2011 at The Madison hotel in Washington, D.C. The Summit attracts communications technology professionals from Fortune 1000 companies across the country to hear the latest developments in fixed and mobile communications expense management.

“Telecom expense management, or TEM, solutions have grown to encompass the entire procurement-to-payment process, or the ‘communications life cycle.’ And with communications services – especially mobile services – now ingrained in virtually every facet of today’s modern enterprise, the ability to manage the communication life cycle has become a strategic necessity and a competitive differentiator.” said George David, president of CCMI and publisher of Voice Report. He added, “The TEM National Summit is a unique opportunity for enterprises to discover, craft and implement an expense management strategy tailored to their specific mix of services and expense streams.”

The Summit has three key themes in 2011 – contracts, expense management core functions and transformative technologies, like SIP trunking. Each theme is addressed by leading attorneys, key industry analysts and communications professionals from Fortune 1000 companies. In addition, the program includes a unique panel discussion that features senior-level officials from the leading expense management solution providers. Current panelists include C-level executives from Invoice Insight, Rivermine Software and MDSL.

“The agenda is largely the work of our Advisory Panel, and I am especially grateful for the contributions made by Dave Orth, director of voice & data communications at Gannett Co., Inc., Steve Martin, IT chief financial officer at Liberty Mutual Insurance, Dan Coulter, telecommunications manager at FIS and Justin Castillo, partner at Levine, Blaszak, Block & Boothby, LLP.” said Mr. David. The Summit also features an exhibit area, the TEM Expo, where enterprise attendees can see and compare the latest expense management solution from top tier providers.

For more information about the Telecom Expense Management National Summit visit http://www.TEMNationalSummit.com.

About CCMI

CCMI is the industry’s leading provider of telecom rate and data information and applications. We are dedicated to delivering highly specialized and strategically focused information in a timely fashion. For a complete listing of our events, visit http://www.ccmi.com/Events.

About Voice Report

Voice Report is a free, online information service for enterprise communications technology professionals. Though a combination of articles, webinars, white papers, special reports, podcasts and conferences, Voice Report helps managers address mobility, UC, expense management, contract compliance and negotiation, networking, legal and regulatory issues that enterprises face daily. For more information, visit http://www.TheVoiceReport.com.

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

Hosted PBX – Simplifies Phone Management

Hosted PBX phone system is a highly sophisticated and reliable communication option that can simplify the entire telecommunication process of your small business office. Besides effectively managing your business calls, this phone system helps to build better customer relationships without making capital investments.

Simplify Business Communication through a Sophisticated PBX Phone System

With a hosted PBX phone system, you can communicate with your international clients as well as workforce operating at different sites using a single telephone number. To simplify business communications, this phone system is incorporated with an assortment of call management features including auto attendant, find me follow me call forwarding, call conferencing, call waiting, voicemail, voice to email, fax, fax to email, and more.

Enhances Workforce Efficiency and Business Productivity

The unique communication features incorporated in hosted PBX phone systems enhances workforce efficiency and business productivity. Calls to your business office are answered by the built-in auto attendant with professionally recorded greeting messages. Callers can select from menu options such as dial by name, dial by extension and more for getting connected to the exact departments or employees. Calls remaining unanswered are transferred to the voicemail box, allowing the callers to leave voice messages. Thereby any chance of missing vital business calls during busy business hours is eliminated by the system. There is also the facility to forward voice messages to your email account as audio file attachments, so you can check the messages even from remote locations and provide timely responses to your customers.

The features of hosted PBX phone system can be utilized without buying or maintaining expensive on-site PBX hardware. The service providers offer services through a hosted server using broadband Internet or telephone networks at reasonable monthly charges.

Lease Management For Humanitarian & Relief Flights Kenya/South Sudan/Somalia/DR Congo/Darfur/Chad

Lease Management for Humanitarian & Relief Supplies for Cargo & Passengers in Kenya/South Sudan/Somalia & DR Congo.

Some Organizations spend huge amount of money on taking adhoc charter flights other than engaging a consultant to carry out feasibility study of the activities including movement of passengers & cargo to ascertain the viable way to carry out these project. It is important as an organization to have a feasibility study on all your projects on transport and logistics and you may even realize you have saved a quarter of your allocated budget on the project proposed.

Lease Management Of Aircrafts for Relief Supplies.

It is easier when you have volume of work especially in war torn areas like South Sudan, Somalia, Darfur, Chad, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Kosovo to have aircrafts on wet lease. The advantage of leasing aircrafts is that the more hours you fly in a month the lesser the rate per hour drops. Though in leasing you need to commit a certain amount of hours in a month of which you will pay whether you utilize them or not but you can form consortium with other organizations so that you can allocate each a number of hours and if it exceeds the guaranteed hours then you will get the rate per hour dropped. The advantage of leasing is that you will have exclusive use of the crew and aircraft and easy to handle emergencies especially when operating in remote areas and war torn countries. When leasing you has to carefully select the best aircrafts with the performance in the area you are operating and the work involved. For humanitarian & Relief Supplies the aircraft should to convertible into both cargo and passengers configuration within a short time. If the area of operation is inaccessible you can use aircrafts to do air-drops and ensure the aircraft has a bigger tonnage so that you can do a few trips in a day. All types of aircrafts are available for both wet and dry lease in different tonnage or seating capacity of 1 tone to 45 tones.

Humanitarian & Relief Flights in Mogadishu/Bosaso/Galgayo/K50/Kismayu/Marere/Guriel/Garowe (Somalia).

We have United Nations, European Union, on-Governmental Organizations, Africa Union; International Organizations provide humanitarian relief aid in terms of food, medicine, experts like doctors, engineers, consultants, teachers, community social workers to assist the citizen of Somalia to be able to leave like any other human being. These organizations have spend billions in transport, food ,education,medicine,textiles,mosquito nets to prevent malaria, seedlings for agriculture in ensuring that there is stability. They also organize for their personnel emergency evacuations to safer places when awar breaks or there is an attack.Unhcr which handles refugees do organize expatriation flights to refugee camps in Kenya namely, Kakuma, Daadab in Tanzania Ngara among others and ensure these citizens are given refugee status. European Union, United Nations have leased aircrafts that are stationed in areas where there is tidy security ready to monitor situations. Due to high insecurity in Somalia due to civil war the organizations operating there have put emergency preparedness plans in place incase of emergency evacuation, medical evacuations and air ambulance and the aircrafts used are jets or turbo prop which can fly at high attitude.

Humanitarian flights in Kenya.

Kenya is the host of many International, United Nations and Non-Governmental Organizations headquarters and regional offices and being the hub for all flights into/out with also Mombasa port serving Eastern & Central Africa region. United Nations and Non-Governmental Organizations had put Lokichogio in Northern Kenya as the hub to war torn countries like South Sudan, Darfur, Chad,DR Congo but with the signing of the CPA 2005 between the Southerners and Northerners which brought to an end of the 21 years of civil war in Sudan the hub was moved to Juba the capital city of the Government of South Sudan. In North Eastern Kenya Unicef,Wfp,NGOs have set up  stations to assist the people living their as it is semi-arid land and they have explored ways of assisting them in farming, diary farming, irrigations and introducing ways of reducing diseases in animals and people. The areas in Northern Kenya are Loyengalani,Lokichar,Lokitaung,Kaikor,Lokimariang,Lokichogio,Lodwar,Lokori and many others and North Eastern areas are Marsabit,Moyale,Sololo,Iliret,Laisamis,Kalacha,Korr,Wajir,Garissa,Modogashe,Hola,Bura,Takaba,Banisa,Elwak,Mandera,Rhamu and many others. Most of these airstrips need aircrafts with short take off and landing performance as they have a lot of potholes and some have been unserviceable for years as they are government airstrips. Only airstrips used by Amref and WFP, UNICEF, UNHCR are repaired and that is because they provide humanitarian aid. To these areas you can only get private charter flights and it is only Lokichogio and Lodwar where scheduled flights are operated to Lokichogio twice daily and Lodwar three times a week. In these areas also insurance companies are issuing medical cover for medical evacuation and air ambulance using both fixed wing and helicopters.

Humanitarian & Relief Supplies for Cargo & Passengers South Sudan.

After the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement 2005 this opened the entire South Sudan with United Nations, International Organizations, on-Governmental Organizations moving to Juba as it was made the capital city. Whenever there was need for a private charter to airlift cargo or passengers it was to come from Lokichogio or Nairobi which was very expensive, but all this became history as air charter companies opened their base in Juba making the connectivity easier and cheaper to the interior of South Sudan. The airlines also started scheduled services to/from Juba which made air travel cheaper and affordable as competition was stiff and everyone trying to outsmart the other by price tag of war and this benefitted the travelers. There are scheduled flights for cargo and passengers from Juba to Rumbek,Malakal,Wau,Yei,Bentiu,Aweil,Yambio and for those with programs that can not meet scheduled flights can take charter flights as they are aircrafts ranging from 12.17,37 seater for cargo charter and passenger charter. You can get a scheduled flight from Nairobi, Wilson Airport via Lokichogio to Rumbek four times per week. You can charter flights from Rumbek or Juba to Darfur, Chad, Entebbe, Goma, Kigali, Bujumbura, for cargo or passenger aircraft. There flights from Entebbe (Uganda) to Yei, Rumbek, Juba, Nyal, Yambio, Akobo on scheduled and private charter flights. International organizations have also went as far as issuing covers for political and patient air ambulance & Emergency Medical Evacuation and these does not matter where you are as the logistics are all in place for air transport. In South Sudan everything is available from  motorvechicle manufacturing for Peugeot,Mazda,Toyota,Trucks,Mitsubishi,mobile phone companies, telecommunication software,banks,security firms, construction companies, clearing& forwarding firms,footwear,textile,bookshops ,hoteliers, and many others.Infact in South Sudan you can do filming safaris of the Nile and even do cultural safaris and for one to take photos of the people you need their consent. There wild animals to like, snakes, monkeys, crocodile, hippos, lions which you can do scenic safari. South Sudan is a tourist attraction country with many activities happening just like any other tourists destination.

Humanitarian & Relief Flights DR Congo.

This country has been in war for many years and its one of the richest mineral country in Central Africa.It has its capital city in Kinshasha.Many Non-Governmental Organizations and United Nations have their base in Lubumbashi, Goma, Mbuji Mayi when the provide humanitarian aid from and United Nations has deployed peace-keeping forces in DR Congo due heavy fighting by the government and the rebels group. The International fraternity including Africa Union always do organize dialogue conferences between the rebels and government .Children are suffering and Unicef, World Vision, Care International, Save the children among others have stepped in to ensure there is no child abuse for labour that is the rebels using children as soldiers and also they get aproper diet to stop them from suffering from nutrition. Many organizations have leased aircrafts to provide relief supplies to various regions withing DR Congo. Some take adhoc charter flights for cargo or passenger flights. We have airlines operating schedule services to Lubumbashi, Kinshasha and Goma. There are tourists flights into DR Congo for gorilla safaris as the monkey species, Chimpanze, Baboon are found in the Congo forest. Other services available in DR Congo are air ambulance, emergency evacuation flights, medical evacuation flights, private executive jet flights, aerial survey & photography, helicopter flights, scheduled and non-scheduled flights for cargo & passengers among other aviation related activities.

You can get humanitarian & Relief flights from anywhere in the world and with the specifications of the aircraft you require which will be determined with the airport/airstrip lenghth, width and surface of the runway and the attitude.

China Tel Group Inc. – management profiles

In China Tel’s 10k filed with the SEC on 04-15-2010, it states,

“Our success will depend largely on the expertise and reputation of George Alvarez, our Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and the other members of our senior management team, including Tay Yong Lee, our President, and Mario Alvarez, our Chief Operations Officer, none of whom are party to an employment agreement.”

            Since China Tel Group Inc. has put the “expertise and reputation” of George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez at issue, below is a analysis and background the Alvarez brothers and of the individuals associated with them, essentially an evaluation of the people who are responsible for and  controlling/using China Tel investors money.  As referenced in China Tel’s SEC filings, China Tel operates or contracts with a variety of entities under the “Trussnet” name, which at the time of the formation of all the Trussnets and China Tel, all had the same physical address, employees, etc.

             Let us take a look into the expertise and reputation” of George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez and several of the associates that they have surrounded themselves with along with their success in business ventures, all over the last 15 years. Where ever possible, this researcher has provided websites where the information provided can be accessed and verified.  Where ever an opinion is stated by this researcher, this researcher has stated as such.

Background:

            George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez have been intimately connected to the following individuals/companies through the formation of a multitude of entities (wherein the parties referenced below are all owners, directors and/or officers, along with multiple transactions in connection with these individuals/companies).

California Cove Communities Inc. (out of business)

Foton Motors Inc. (unable find any record of active business; Delaware indicates out of business)

Mobile Truss Inc. (out of business)

Capital Truss Inc. (out of business)

Trussnet USA Development Co. (out of business)

Trussnet USA Inc. (a Delaware corp.) (out of business)

Westmoore Securities (currently under SEC litigation for Ponzi scheme)

MKA Capital Group Advisors

MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund LLC

Greenleaf Home Loans (out of business)

Matthew Jennings (currently under SEC litigation for Ponzi scheme)

Jason Sugarman

Luis Trujillo (currently under Chapter 7 bankruptcy)

Chris Young

Ken Waggoner

            The above referenced individuals/entities will help clarify the many lawsuits against these same individuals/entities as referenced below. 

            Below are records of lawsuits, businesses and, where possible, backgrounds on the businesses and associates of George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez. Be advised that most of these lawsuits were resolved via settled with undisclosed settlement agreements.  Further, the complaints contain allegations, not findings of fact.

Riverside County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed November 15, 1995-Case no 273669

Cynthia Kendall v. Luis Trujillo, et. al.

(Background-Alvarez and Trujillo are named in several lawsuits together and sat on the board of California Cove Communities Inc. together. At one point, Luis Trujillo was listed on Trussgroup  Ltd.aka Trussnet’s website as it’s CEO)

Complaint filed by Cynthia Kendall alleges, among other causes of action, Retaliatory Discharge, against Luis Trujillo for her refusal to participate in and complaining of  “an unethical practice of Trujillo accepting what plaintiff believed amounted to bribes in return for awarding subcontracts”.  Allegations contained therein also accuse Luis Trujillo of accepting bribes on public work contracts.

 This case can be viewed at Riverside County Superior Court website

Los Angeles Superior Court

Lawsuit filed June 12, 2002- Case no. BC 274660

Mar Vista Homes v. Luis Trujillo, George Alvarez and California Cove Communities Inc.

Complaint filed against Luis Trujillo, George Alvarez and California Cove Communities Inc. alleging, among other things, Breach Of Fiduciary Duty, Misappropriation of Corporate Opportunity, Conspiracy, Fraud, etc.  Complaint alleges repeated instances of embezzlement and the acceptance of kickbacks by Luis Trujillo.  Complaint further alleges Fraud and Conspiracy to cover up aforesaid conduct by George Alvarez and Luis Trujillo, both of whom were owners and directors of California Cove Communities Inc.  Complaint also alleges misuse of Mar Vista corporate credit cards by Trujillo to provide helicopters rides, limousine rides, thousands of dollars in alcohol purchases and thousands of dollars of other goods and trinkets for Trujillo, Alvarez and  Christopher Young (who is described as a “longstanding personal friend of Trujillo and Alvarez”).

 This case can be viewed at Riverside County Superior Court website 

Between 2002 and 2008, George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez, Luis Trujillo and Chris Young owned and operated a development company called California Cove Communities Inc.  This company had the same mailing and physical address as Trussnet USA Inc. (Delaware), Trussnet USA Inc. (Neveda), Trussgroup Ltd., Mobile Truss, Capital Truss, Trussnet USA Development Co. Inc. and China Tel Group Inc. (when China Tel was originally formed). 

 California Cove Communities Inc. went out of business in December of 2007. 

During 2007, California Cove Communities Inc. failed to pay vendors on its various construction projects while at the same time using Cal Cove monies to pay for their vehicles (Porsche, Mercedes Benz, and various other “company” vehicles for family members), personal residences at Crosby Estates in San Diego (multi-million dollar homes, average monthly mortgage payment ,000.00), thousands of  dollars in jewelry, limo rides, alcohol and first class seating on flights for Trujillo, Alvarez, Young and all their family members to Peru, China, Hawaii, San Francisco, etc.  Please note that Cal. Cove has represented much of these expenses were “loans” or repayment of “loans” to Trussnet(s) although no accounting evidencing as such has ever been produced.

As a result of the failure to pay vendors, there have been over 50 lawsuits filed against California Cove Communities Inc. in the San Diego, Riverside and Orange County Superior courts. 

Further, as evidenced in detail in the lawsuits below, millions of dollars was forwarded from MKA Capital Group Advisors and MKA Real Estate Qualified Fund and Opportunity Fund, to California Cove Communities Inc.  Subsequently much of this money, instead of being used for the operations of California Cove Communities Inc., was transferred to Trussnet USA Inc., Mobile Truss and Capital Truss.

[Please note that a web site will be formed within the next few weeks wherein access to credit card statements and bank account records of Cal. Cove will be accessible for viewing]

Orange County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed June 2, 2008-Case no. 07CC 11310

James Piper v. George Alvarez, Luis Trujillo, MKA Capital Group, MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund, Netgate Consulting (owned by Mario Alvarez), et. al.

 Complaint filed by James Piper, a former business partner, of George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez. Mr. Piper sues George Alvarez for, among other causes of action, Fraud, Constructive Fraud, Beach of Fiduciary Duty and Abuse of Process. 

The complaint further alleges the George Alvarez and Luis Trujillo forged James Piper’s name to multiple documents in order to illegally convey millions of dollars worth of Mr. Piper’s property to themselves, which Alvarez and Trujillo subsequently used to secure deeds of trust on loans from MKA Capital.

The complaint further alleges that, in conjunction with forging Mr. Piper’s name to Deed Of Trust conveying property, Alvarez and Trujillo subsequently “evicted” Mr. Piper from his own properties.

 The complaint further alleges that Alvarez and Trujillo engaged in the aforesaid conduct in order to “gain the ability to use Piper’s commercial credit to obtain misbegotten financing on projects”.  It is unclear whether or not Trussnet aka Trussgroup aka China Tel Group is one of those “misbegotten projects”.

This case can be viewed at the Orange County Superior Court website 

Orange County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed December 9, 2008-Case no. 30-2008-00115855

San Marco-105 LLC v. George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez, Luis Trujillo, Chris Young, Jason Sugarman, MKA Capital Group, MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund,  et. al.

Complaint alleges causes of action for, among others, Breach of Fiduciary Duty, Conversion and Embezzlement and Civil Conspiracy.  Essentially more of the same as allegations in the lawsuits contained above.

This case can be viewed at the Orange County Superior Court website 

San Diego County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed March 10, 2010-Case no. 37-2010-00087536-CU-EN-CTL

VRT Square LP v. China Tel Group, Mario Alvarez, Kenneth Waggoner, Ken Hobbs, et. al.

Complaint alleges causes of action for, among others, Fraudulent Conveyance, Fraud, Conspiracy Unjust Enrichment and Constructive Trust.  Allegations state that a legitimate judgment was obtained by VRT Square against Mario Alvarez and his failed company, Greenleaf Home Loans.  Complaint further alleges that after obtaining judgment, Mario Alvarez transferred essentially all his assets and all his stock in China Tel Group Inc. to various friends and family members.

This case can be viewed at the San Diego Superior Court website 

Orange County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed September 22, 2008-Case no. 30-2008-00112284

SA CALIFORNIA GROUP, INC VS. George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez and Luis Trujillo

Complaint itself is not extraordinary, except for the fact that the Plaintiff therein obtained a judgment in excess of 7,000,000.00 against George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez and Luis Trujillo based upon personal guarantees.

What is extraordinary was an expert witness report prepared on behalf of Plaintiff, which George and Mario Alvarez’s attorney attempted strenuously to keep from being admissible at trial.  This expert witness report was prepared by Robert Cunnane,  a CPA and former FBI agent with the FBI’s financial investigations unit for 21 years.  Mr. Cunnane report concluded that there was check fraud/check kiting being performed by the companies Trussnet, Westmoore, California Cove Communities Inc., Foton Motors, Trussnet USA Development co. Inc., the Weal Group (another entity associated with and/or owned by George Alvarez), Mobile Truss and California Cove Development Co. Inc. 

The expert further references that all of the aforesaid entities had the same address and all checks for aforesaid entities were signed by the same two individuals.

This expert witness report was filed with the court on this case on June 2, 2010.

This case can be viewed at the Orange County Superior Court website

Trussnet USA Inc. (a Delaware corp.) went out of business in approximately December of 2009 (Although it should be noted that attorney Ken Waggoner represented to collection agents at 4:46 PM on 10-26-10, that  Trussnet that it had been out of business for two years, which would put the date mysteriously at 10-26-08).  Mr. Waggoner even went so far as to threaten to sue one of the agents for a former employee, whose sole offense appears to have been to attempt to collect employee wages owed on an employee of Trussnet USA Inc. (Delaware) from China Tel Group Inc. Trussnet USA Inc. and China Tel Group Inc. had the same offices in the same suite at the time.

When Trussnet went out of business, it failed to pay its employees.  At the time of “going out of business” the president of Trussnet USA Inc. was Chris Young, and the directors were Jose Arana and Richard Guiterrez (names you may recognize from China Tel’s SEC filings).

The following employees of Trussent USA Inc. were not paid for several months and ended up obtaining judgments against Trussnet USA Inc. (Delaware) in April of 2010.  To date, these employees have not been paid:

Danielle Mann v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00363999-CL-EN-HLH

Archimedes Cruz v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00347375CL-EN-HLH

Benito Cruz v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00347324-CL-EN-HLH

Juan L. Orellano v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00347386-CL-EN-HLH

Genaro Cruz v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00347368-CL-EN-HLH

Jose Rodriguez v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-003-CL-EN-HLH

Hoshiar Haghani v. Trussnet

Orange County Superior Court Case No. 30-2010-00363999-CU-BC-CJC

These cases can be viewed at the Orange County Superior Court website, Further, according to China Tel Group Inc.’s SEC filings, China Tel Group Inc.,  “issued to Trussnet Delaware 90,890,639 shares of the Company’s Series A Common Stock in lieu of a million cash payment.”. These share were issued to Trussnet USA Inc. even though, according to Ken Waggoner (Trussnet and China Tel Group’s  general counsel), Trussnet was already out of business at the times the shares were issued.

Further, China Tel Group SEC filing on September 10, 2010, states, “On October 1, 2009, Trussnet Nevada and Trussnet Delaware entered into a First Amendment of the Agreement for Professional Services (“First Amendment to Professional Services Agreement”)”. 

Why would Trussnet USA Inc. Nevada enter into an agreement with a company that, according to Ken Waggoner, had been out of business for a year?

Even more important, where did these 90,890,639 shares go to after they issued to Trussnet USA Inc. (Del.)?  This researcher has been unable to find any record that Trussnet USA Inc. has paid any of the judgments against it by various creditors, or has Trussnet paid any of its employees that sued for unpaid wages and obtained judgments, or has it paid any of the dozens of IRS liens against it.  In truth, over 38,000,000 of the aforesaid shares were issued to Trussnet after aforesaid employees had obtained judgments, yet not a single one of them have benefitted to date.

Where did these shares go to?

Putting things in perspective on the “reputation” of George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez, this researcher would suggest contacting former employees and business associates of George and Mario Alvarez to get an idea of what their “reputation” is and how it would possibly benefit China Tel Group Inc..  In April of 2010, these Trussnet USA employees were fighting for wages owed to them and were obviously not millionaires or world travelers.  During this same time period, in July of 2010, Mario Alvarez was relaxing in Hawaii and George Alvarez was doing the same in Europe. They returned to the mainland/USA at the end of July for a couple days and then they both spent the next month on a Mediterranean Cruise and vacationing in the mideast.  This researcher will leave it up to the reader to evaluate whether or not they should be allowed to hide  behind the difference between Trussnet USA Inc. (a Delaware corp.) and Trussnet USA Inc. (a Nevada corp.), especially when both entities were located at the same address and phone number (which is also where these employees went to work).

For verification of the above referenced stock issuances to Trussnet USA Inc. (Delaware) by China Tel Group Inc., see  THE CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS filed by China Tel Group with the SEC, dated September 30, 2010 (UNAUDITED) under NOTE 17 – RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS and under heading “Professional Services Agreement Between Trussnet Nevada and Trussnet Delaware” and ITEM 2.UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS.

All China Tel Group Inc. SEC filings can be viewed at the SEC website, www.sec.gov

And finally, while not directly applicable to the “expertise and reputation” issue, the next lawsuit should draw serious questions and concern from both MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund investors and China Tel Group investors:

Orange County Superior Court

Lawsuit filed September 22, 2008-Case no. 30-2008-00116368 (lead case)

MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund v. George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez, Luis Trujillo, Chris Young, et. al.

Complaint that consolidated 10 other complaints file by MKA REOF against the above referenced defendants, for a total of ,236,733.00.  Complaints were for monies loaned to real estate developer California Cove Communities Inc., wherein George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez, Luis Trujillo and Chris Young (and all their spouses) had personally guaranteed said loans  All complaints were inexplicably filed by MKA long after monies were owed, in some cases years after monies were owed, and only after all the assets of California Cove Communities Inc. had been bled off or transferred.

After the cases were consolidated, a stipulated judgment was entered wherein all the parties with personal guarantees were dismissed except one, Luis Trujillo, who agreed to have a ,236,733.00 judgment entered against him.  Almost immediately thereafter, Luis Trujillo filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

The question is-Why would MKA (or the attorney for MKA) waive personal guarantees against six other individuals (who had money to go after) and enter into a stipulated judgment against the one person who did not have money? Now… there could have been a settlement with the other parties that does not reflect on the court’s docket, but this would normally require some kind of application to the court to approve a “good faith settlement”.  Based upon the record, there does not appear to be any consideration for the dropping by MKA of all personal guarantees against George Alvarez, Mario Alvarez or Chris Young (and their spouses) in this consolidated lawsuit.

Please note:

Jason Sugarman is the president/managing member of MKA Capital Group and MKA Real Estate Opportunity Fund.

Jason Sugarman’s Dad was on the board of directors for China Tel Group Inc. when it was initially formed.  His Dad is a medical doctor in Fullerton, CA, not a telecommunications expert.

MKA’s attorney on the above referenced consolidated lawsuits was Dan White.

MKA’s attorney, Dan White, is the authorized agent for service of process for Gulfstream Capital LLC.

Gulfstream Capital Partners LTD., are partners/investors in China Tel Group’s Peru operations (Perusat).

These consolidated cases can be viewed at the Orange County Superior Court website, www.occourts.org

Additional sites that will assist readers/researchers in evaluating the “expertise and reputation” of George Alvarez and Mario Alvarez are listed below. Many of these websites do charge for access, thus in two to three weeks, this researcher will be forming a website wherein all the foregoing documents will be accessible free of charge.

 Also available on the website will be internal documents and statements provided by former MKA employees and former Trussnet USA Inc. (Delaware) and Mobile Truss employees, regarding the ethics (or the lack thereof) of individuals associated with these entities. 

Also available will be the expert witness report referenced hereinabove, and letters, emails and communications related to various court proceedings from Ken Waggoner and other attorneys associated for both Plaintiffs and Defendants on the above referenced lawsuits.

Also available will be updates and documents on the SEC Westmoore “Ponzi scheme” lawsuit along with other private party lawsuit filed against Westmoore Holdings, et. al., in various federal courts making similar allegations of a Ponzi scheme (These lawsuits are relevant only in that George Alvarez was on the board of Westmoore at the time of the subject matter of these lawsuits, and also that China Tel Group is mentioned prominently in aforesaid lawsuits. It should be noted that, to date,  neither George Alvarez nor China Tel Group Inc. have been accused of any wrong doing in these lawsuits.

The website will also allow any potential or previous investors with The Alvarezs’, MKA, California Cove, China Tel Group, etc., to upload documents and post statements without fear of reprisal.

PBX Phone System – Manages Telephone Calls within a Business

With the support of various sophisticated features, a PBX phone system manages telephone calls within a business organization with great competency. Equip your business office with this innovative telecommunication system to provide excellent customer support services.

Communication System with Unbeatable Features

Highly advanced PBX phone systems are helpful to meet the communication needs of small and medium business organizations and home office professionals. To manage your business calls efficiently, this phone system is incorporated with user-friendly call handling features such as:

• Automatic call distribution
• Find me follow me call forwarding
• Auto attendant
• Call conferencing
• Voice to email
• Fax to email service
• Call waiting
• Caller ID

Incoming calls are professionally handled by the auto attendant functioning as a virtual receptionist. It receives all callers with appropriate welcome messages and offers menu options such as dial by name, dial by extension, zero out to live operator and more for connecting calls to the exact destinations. It can manage numerous calls coming together without sending conventional busy signals to the callers.

Maintain Uninterrupted Communication

Calls to your official numbers can be forwarded to your alternate land phone numbers and cell phones assigned as extension lines. Thus you can maintain constant communication with your clients and workforce in distant locations right through working hours and non-working hours. The calls that remain unanswered in the extensions are directed to the voicemail system, allowing the callers to leave voice messages for the concerned person. Thus PBX phone systems eliminate any chance of missing calls from your potential customers.

Voice to email feature forwards the voice messages to your email account as audio file attachments. Hence you can stay connected with your customers and business office even while traveling.

On-site Equipment Not Required

PBX equipments are maintained by the service providers at their site; they also perform on time maintenance services and upgrades. Therefore you can focus more on your business without worrying about the expenses required for buying, installing and maintaining PBX equipment.

Contract Mobile Phones Make it Manageable for Your Pocket

For some individuals, buying a mobile phone can be a confusing affair. With so many mobile phone manufacturers in the telecommunication market, it has become extremely hard. In addition to this, most of the users are worried about their hefty monthly mobile phone bills. In such a scenario, contract deals can prove to be a pocket friendly affair for you. It is put forward by a large number of network service providers, including Orange, Vodafone, T Mobile, Three and BT amid others. Apart from nominal mobile phone expense, contract mobile phones also cater you with very many additional benefits. You can team up the contract deals with handset from any of the leading mobile phone manufacturer. You can find your desirable handset from Nokia, Samsung, LG, Motorola, Siemens, Sony Ericsson and many more. Here is all you need to know about contract mobile phones and how you can make most of it.

For maximum utilisation of the contract deals for your mobile phones, you have to first keep a close adherence to your calling patterns. You can start off by knowing how many minutes and text messages you use in one month. This can be easily done by checking your mobile phone bills. This will help you to find out what are the most appropriate deals, according to your needs and calling patterns.

There are very many choices for the mobile phone users including pay monthly deals, pay as you go deals and contract deals. As per contract deals, the users need to sign a contract with the network service provider for a specific period like 6 months, 18 months or so. In this term, the user is likely to find very many beneficial deals like lower calling rates, free texts, free messages, free accessories and many more. A search through World Wide Web can help you to find the most lucrative deals of the contract mobile phones and thus enjoy mobile telephony at manageable expense.

Cut Your Hefty Mobile Expense With Samsung D900 Contract Mobile

In the present expensive environment, most of the mobile phone users feel anguished with their soaring mobile phone bills. Some of the network service providers have worked hard to come up with some manageable mobile phone deals. One such pocket friendly way of tackling this issue is with the help of contract deals. Contract deals are offered by various network providers. Some of these are O2, Orange, Vodafone, Three and many more. Samsung is a big name in the telecommunication industry. This proud mobile phone manufacturer has managed to come up with the smallest mobile phones, just in size. It means that you can enjoy wonderful functionality that too in petite size. One such amazing mobile phone handset is Samsung D900 mobile phone. For the most ostensible deals of the Samsung D900 contract mobile phone, search through World Wide Web.

The Samsung D900 mobile phone is an attractive handset, embellished with plenty of wonderful features. It measures just 103.5 mm by 51 mm. some of its wonderful features include 3 mega pixel camera with pixels resolution that offers quality images. It comes with LED flash and a number of options like 8 preset colour effects. It can also record video at a resolution of CIF 352 by 288.

Samsung D900 mobile phone has got impressive functionality. It comes with uGO, which is one of the various ultimate features of this handset. The connectivity includes GPRS, EDGE and it supports Pictbridge through Bluetooth wireless connectivity and USB. You can find the most lucrative deals of the Samsung D900 contract phones by exploring World Wide Web. Latest by this manufacturer is Samsung Soul mobile phones.

The Battery Management System

Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG is one of the world leaders in the manufacture of Battery Management Systems. To some, BMS may simply mean a battery monitoring system that checks and controls the important operational parameters and also protects the battery by disconnecting it from charger or load, if the parameters exceed prescribed limits. To power or plant engineers, the BMS serves as a defense against outages in power or telecommunications networks and has to be kept in readiness to deliver power whenever the need arises.

What Is Battery Management System?

A Battery Management is an electronic system that monitors, manages and provides data on a rechargeable battery. From a simple passive regulator across cells, which can bypass charging current when the cell voltage reaches a certain level, to active regulators that can turn on a load when required so that the battery achieves a balance in both cases, BMS technology offers a wide range in complexity and performance.

Categories Of BMS Topology

Modern BMS technology by and large, falls in 3 categories – centralized distributed and modular. In centralized, a single controller is connected to the battery cells through a series of wires. The distributed type has a BMS board attached to each cell, while the modular type consists of a few controllers, each managing a group of cells. The centralized BMSs are the cheapest; they are also the least expandable; and have a multitude of wires, producing what is referred to as the spaghetti effect. Distributed BMSs, on the other hand, are easiest to install with no spaghetti effect, but are also the most expensive. The desirable features of the other two BMS topologies are combined in the modular BMS.

The Major Functions Of The BMS

Monitoring, reporting data and protection are the key objectives of BMS. It monitors the state of the battery with respect to operational parameters like voltage, temperature, charge level, air and current flow as well as overall condition of the battery. Further, the BMS can also calculate and report data such as Charge Current Limit (CCL), Discharge Current Limit (DCL), total energy delivered from date of manufacture, and also the total operating time since manufacture.  

Typically, a battery has a safe operating limit. The BMS protects the battery by ensuring that it works within its safe operating area which includes factors like over-current, over-voltage during charging, under-voltage during discharging, over or under-temperature and over-pressure. The BMS has an internal switch which opens if the battery begins to operate outside its safe mode. The BMS may also instruct the devices attached to the battery to reduce or terminate use if the battery exceeds its safety limits. In addition to these, the BMS also has the facility to control the environment with devices such as heaters, fans or air conditioning.

Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG also manufactures a whole range of resistors including Current and Electrical SMD Resistors, High Precision Resistors, Hybrid Mounting Resistors, and Low Ohm Resistors. They are pioneers in SMD-mOhm current-measuring shunt and have set high standards in this technology. Their product series in low-impedance precision resistors have set international standards and satisfies the highest demands.

Virtual Pbx System – No Expensive Or Bulky Hardware

With no expensive or bulky hardware to be maintained in your office premises, a virtual PBX phone system is an excellent and affordable telecommunication alternative for your small business organization. Whatever hardware required is maintained at the site of the service provider and the PBX functions are offered to the users through a hosted server using high speed Internet connection or dedicated telephone networks. The PBX services are shared among several users and therefore the services can be utilized at affordable monthly charges.

Adaptable Call Management Functions

Virtual PBX telephone system is preferred by many of the small business owners and home based professionals as it offers them flexibility and credibility. The advanced call management features in the system include auto attendant, find me follow me call forwarding, call waiting, call conferencing, voicemail, fax mail, voice to email, automatic call distribution and more. The various call handling functions can be customized according to your specific business communication needs. Besides, all the functionalities can be integrated into your existing telephone connection.

No Line Busy Signals—Create the Impression that You Care for Each Customer

With a virtual PBX system the calls to your business office can be managed effectively without sending line busy signals. Calls are attended by the built-in auto attendant with professionally created welcome messages and the callers will be provided with a set of menu options. Based on the preference of the caller, calls are transferred to the correct destinations.

A virtual PBX phone system can efficiently route calls to your alternate phone numbers including cell phone numbers through the superior find me follow me call forwarding option. Calls that are not answered within a specific number of rings are routed to the voicemail box, where the callers can place voice messages. Thus all business functions can be performed without any fear of missing calls; besides, you can construct a positive business image among your callers.

Virtual Pbx Voip Phone – Reduced Telecom Expenses

Virtual PBX VoIP phone systems ensure reduced telecom expenses for small and mid-sized business firms. Through virtual PBX VoIP phone system, business calls to long distances and international locations can be made at reduced rates. You can establish your business presence in any place through virtual telephone numbers. Moreover, you can shift your business location without changing the current business phone numbers. Based on your requirements, a number of extension lines can be added to your existing telephone number. Thus your telecom expenses can be further reduced.

Besides, the various features of this VoIP system can be utilized without maintaining separate telephone connections and onsite PBX equipments in your office. The required equipments are maintained by the service providers at their sites and the functions are offered through a hosted server using high speed Internet or telephone connection.

Feature-rich Telecommunication System

Virtual PBX VoIP phone systems come with high-tech call management functions identical to those in costly phone systems owned by established business organizations. They include call conferencing, call waiting, automated attendant, voicemail, find me follow me call forwarding, voice to email, fax to email, music on hold, caller ID and many more.

Calls to your business numbers are managed by the auto attendant feature. To get connected to the right department or person, the callers can select the appropriate option from the menu which includes dial by extension, dial by name and zero out to live operator. Calls are directed to the exact destinations without sending busy signals to the caller.

Augments Business Productivity

With a virtual PBX VoIP phone service, calls can be routed to your alternate phone numbers including cell numbers and residential phone numbers. Through this flexible feature your workforce can even work from their home or any other convenient sites, which noticeably increases their efficiency and business productivity. Calls that remain unattended in the extension lines are routed to the voice mail box where the callers are allowed to place voice messages. Thereby you can represent your small business organization as a big company that offers outstanding customer support.

Managed Dedicated Server Vs Colocation Hosting

Web hosting can be done in a variety of ways, offering different levels of control and expense for the end user. For users who are well versed in web hosting theory and require a good deal of control, the choices finally get narrowed down to managed dedicated servers, and colocation hosting.

Managed dedicated servers allow a client to lease out an entire server for himself. The client gets full control over this server, and is responsible for every change made to it – administrative, pertaining to security, hardware, software, OS and so on. Some dedicated server hosting providers offer support for the operating system and applications, but this is rare.

Colocation services, on the other hand, provide external maintenance and upkeep for a server, but the server has to be bought by the client. The hardware and software configurations are decided by the client, and the colocation host merely provides the space to keep it, a steady Internet connection, power and cooling supplies, fire protection and such facilities. Clearly, this gives the client total control over the server. However, it is also the most expensive.

Here is a point-by-point comparison of the relative merits and disadvantages of dedicated servers and colocation hosting:

1. Control. A dedicated server is owned by the hosting company, and the entirety of the hardware is controlled by them. By contrast, the server in colocation hosting is owned by the client. This gives the client full control over hardware and software, leaving only maintenance and upkeep in the hands of the colocation host.

2. Initial investment. A colocation server needs to be bought. This is a much larger upfront cost than the down payment made to a dedicated server host.

3. Recurring cost. A colocation server can be left as it is for a few years after purchase. However, upgrading the colocation server will automatically raise its cost far above that of any dedicated server lease.

4. Availability of hosting. These days, colocation hosts are increasingly switching to dedicated servers, as these are much more profitable for them.

Colocation hosting, thanks to its high installation cost but relatively low upkeep, is most popular among companies who need huge databases.

Telecommunication companies, corporate giants and eCommerce enterprises are the most likely to avail of these services. For them, the dollars in rent saved add up to a substantial sum.

For most home users and small business owners, dedicated servers become the route of choice in web hosting. Dedicated servers come with the added advantage that the hosting company is in charge of maintaining the hardware. Yet, one gets to have the complete machine to oneself – which prevents virus or malware attacks on other users from impacting the system. This is one of the biggest advantages a dedicated server has over shared hosting or Virtual Private Servers.

From here, it is clear that managed dedicated servers and colocation hosting both have advantages and disadvantages – there is no winner or loser between the two. The choices should be made based on requirements and budgets – whichever you choose, you cannot go too far wrong.

Fleet Management

Vehicle Tracking

The most basic function in all fleet management systems, is the vehicle tracking component. This component is usually GPS based, but sometimes it can be based on a Cellular triangulation platform. Once vehicle location, direction and speed are determined from the GPS components, additional tracking capabilities transmit this information to a Fleet Management software application. Methods for data transmission include both terrestrial and satellite. Satellite communications, while more expensive, are critical if vehicle tracking is to work in remote environments without interruption.

Principle of geolocation based on the GPS for the position determination and the GSM/GPRS or telecommunication satellites network for the data transmission.

Mechanical Diagnostics

Advanced fleet management systems can connect to the vehicle’s onboard computer, and gather data for the user. Details such as mileage and fuel consumption are gathered into a global statistics scheme.

Driver Behavior

By combining received data from the Vehicle Tracking system and the onboard computer, it is possible to form a profile for any given driver.

Fleet Management Software

Fleet management software enables people to accomplish a series of specific tasks in the management of any or all aspects relating to a company’s fleet of vehicles. These specific tasks encompass all operations from vehicle acquisition to disposal. Software, depending on its capabilities, allows function such as driver/vehicle profiling, trip profiling, dispatch, vehicle efficiency, etc. It can provide remote control features, such as Geo-fencing and active disabling. Current vehicle diagnostic information can also be related to a management site, depending on the type of hardware installed in the vehicles. New platform, based on Fleet management software, is Fleet controlling with higher amount of information available for both drivers and dispatchers of a fleet.

Management of ships

Fleet management also refers to the management of ships while at sea. Ships are normally given to fleet management companies that handle aspects like crewing, maintenance, and day-to-day operations. This gives the ship owner time to concentrate on cargo booking.

Fleet Security and Control

Recent advances in fleet management allow for the addition of over-the-air (OTA) security and control of fleet vehicles. Fleet Security and Control includes security of the vehicle while stopped or not in operation and the ability to safely disable a vehicle while in operation. This allows the fleet manager to recover stolen or rogue vehicles while reducing the chance of lost or stolen cargo. The additional of Fleet Security and Control to a fleet management system gives a fleet card manager preventative measures to address cargo damage and loss.

Remote Vehicle Disabling Systems

Remote vehicle disabling systems provide authorized users at remote locations the ability to prevent an engine from starting, prevent movement of a vehicle, and to stop or slow an operating vehicle. Remote disabling allows a dispatcher or other authorized personnel to gradually decelerate a vehicle by downshifting, limiting the throttle capability, or bleeding air from the braking system from a remote location. Some of these systems provide advance notification to the driver that the vehicle disabling is about to occur. After stopping a vehicle, some systems will lock the vehicle’s brakes or will not allow the vehicle’s engine to be restarted within a certain timeframe. Wow!!

Remote disabling systems can also be integrated into a remote panic and emergency notification system. In an emergency, a driver can send an emergency alert by pressing a panic button on the dashboard, or by using a key-fob panic button if the driver is within close proximity of the truck. Then, the carrier or other approved organization can be remotely alerted to allow a dispatcher or other authorized personnel to evaluate the situation, communicate with the driver, and/or potentially disable the vehicle.

Fleet Management Replacement and Lifecycle Management

The timely replacement of vehicles and equipment is a process that requires the ability to predict asset lifecycles based on costing information, utilization, and asset age. The industry standards for asset lifecycles are produced annually by Mercury Associates, Inc. which are calculated using the CARCAP modeling resource. These numbers are used to establish the expected date for a type or class of equipment, which can then be used to identify replacement dates and funding requirements.

Funding requirements are also an issue, because many organizations, especially government, purchase vehicles with cash. The ad hoc nature and traditional low funding levels with cash has put many operations in an aged fleet. This lack of adequate funding for replacement can also result in higher maintenance costs due to aged vehicles.

Duty of Care

In the UK, in April 2008, the Corporate Manslaughter Act was strengthened to target company directors as well as their drivers in cases of road deaths involving vehicles used on business. The Police have said they now treat every road death as n unlawful killing and have the power to seize company records and computers during their investigations. They will bring prosecutions against company directors who fail to provide clear policies and guidance for their employees driving at work. Directors and business owners may not be aware that privately owned vehicles used for business journeys are treated exactly the same as company owned vehicles. Directors have an equal responsibility under the law to ensure these vehicles are also roadworthy and correctly insured. It is vital that every company has a riving at Work policy in place covering every element of their business vehicle operation, no matter how few vehicles are involved and who owns them. Every employee driving for business be required to sign up to the policy. In this way the directors can reduce the risk of being prosecuted and a possible custodial sentence.

See also

Fleet telematics

GPS tracking

Telematics

National Association of Fleet Administrators

Vehicle remarketing

References

^ Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Vehicle Disabling Systems.

Categories: Road transport | ManagementHidden categories: Articles lacking sources from March 2007 | All articles lacking sources

Small Business Phone Systems – Less Expensive, More Efficient

Small business phone systems ensure smooth business communication in all small and medium businesses. They are less expensive than traditional phone systems and come with several features that facilitate efficient telecommunication.

Cost Saving Features

While expanding your small business, you might have to install additional phone lines in your office. With the IP PBX phone system you can add or remove extensions through a single phone line, as these are entirely web-based. You can therefore add as many phone lines as you want at no additional cost.

Small Business Phone Systems with Efficient Functionalities

Small business PBX systems offer great efficiency with their advanced communication features.

Get Efficient Call Routing – The interactive auto attendant manages all incoming calls efficiently. Callers never get line busy signals as calls are automatically greeted and directed to the desired extensions without delay. Callers can dial directly to up to 100 different personal extensions or departments making use of capabilities like dial-by-extension, dial-by-name, and full call transfer/forwarding.

Work from Anywhere: These phone systems are the best solutions if you have a small business as you work from anywhere without missing a call, while giving callers the impression that you are in a corporate office. Even if your employees are in different global locations, the phone system with its dedicated local or toll-free business phone number makes it seem that they are in one office.

Sophisticated Call Management: The wide selection of advanced call management features of the small business phone system helps you serve your customers better. Unattended calls are sent to voicemail boxes, where the callers can leave voice messages. These can be retrieved later. You can also receive encrypted business faxes via email.

Expensive Hardware not required

As these phone systems are hosted, they are managed from the service provider’s site. The small business office does not have to install any expensive hardware to set it up. The small business PBX phone systems function mainly through a web-based interface. Small offices just need a phone line and an Internet connection to set it up.

Tips for Managing Cash Flow in a Small Business

Cash flow is one of the biggest challenges that small business owners face. One of the reasons is because usually not enough attention is paid to managing it, until a crisis hits. Small business owners are often so focused on growing their businesses and making sales that they fail to see how their operational costs are eating into their profits. Suddenly, there are bills to pay and clients haven’t paid yet; as the business owner, you have to figure out a way to get cash in fast. However, if you are diligent about managing your cash flow, you can foresee and set up contingencies for situations like that. Here are a few tips that can help you to stay ahead of the game.

Know Your Operational Costs

Right from the start you should know what it costs to run your business on a monthly basis. Certainly, there will be some variable costs that change on a monthly basis but you should still have a rough idea of what they are so you can form a budget. If you do not capture all your expenses then you are quite likely to forget about some of them. A few hundred dollars here and there can quickly add up. The easiest way to do this is to draw up a simple spreadsheet. Capture fixed expenses such as rental costs and salaries first, and then have sections for variable costs such as stationary, telecommunications and fuel. These operational costs should form the basis of your budget. They define your break-even point of your business. Bring in less income than that and your business will be in trouble. Always know the target that you need to reach in terms of turnover.

Define Your Payment Dates

Try not to have all your expenses payable at the same time of the month. Most landlords require that you pay the rent up front yet many insurance companies, for example, will allow you to schedule your debit orders for the 10th or 15th of the month. What this does is spread the load of your payments throughout the month. Instead of having to make sure that you have a lump sum of cash available at the end of every month, you need only a portion of your expenses to be covered then and have some more time to get in the balance of your cash before the next batch is payable.  It may initially seem like a mission to split up the payment dates but it can make a huge difference to your cash flow.

Be Strict with Your Debtors

This is a trap that too many business owners fall into. They do not want to offend customers and potentially lose out on their business so they bend over backwards to accommodate them and let them get away with paying late on a regular basis. Large companies often use this tactic to help balance their cash flows. The longer they can stave off paying a small business, the greater benefit to them. You don’t have to be aggressive when chasing payments. From the outset with clients, make sure that you clearly communicate your payment terms. Ideally, small businesses should operate on a cash-on-delivery basis but in many industries, this is not possible. Try to have as short a period as possible for payment. Ideally, it should be seven or 14 days. At the outset, it should never be more than 30 days. If it is seven days then clearly state this on your invoice and when you make delivery.  If after the eighth day you have still not received payment, make a phone call to find out if it has been processed. If it has but doesn’t yet reflect in your account, let your client know that you will call to confirm as soon as it does. This is a polite way of letting them know that you watch and manage your cash flow closely and that they cannot get away with delaying payments.

Make Sure You Have a Wide Customer Base

Many small businesses start with just one or two major clients. While this is great initially, think of what will happen if that big client delays payment or doesn’t pay at all. How will that affect your cash flow? It is much better to have lots of smaller amounts of cash consistently coming into your business than to depend on one or two large payments every month. To have large clients is great but make sure you can break even without their payments. That way, you will always have a strong cash flow.

Hosted PBX – Powerful Telecommunication Features

Hosted PBX system with its powerful telecommunication features ideally suits businesses of all sizes. This phone system enjoys great demand among small business operators since it enables them to project a flourishing business image in an affordable manner.

Professional Call Handling Features to Impress Your Callers

Hosted PBX systems come with excellent phone answering features that will impress your callers. All incoming calls are welcomed with a pre-recorded professional greeting. Through further communications with the callers, this facility connects the calls to the appropriate extensions of the user. The callers are given a number of custom menu options including dial by name, and dial by extension so that they can be connected quickly to the appropriate phone lines. Callers can listen to music while the calls are being connected.

Make Use of Advanced Functionalities for Effective Communication

When you are busy with work or on the move, you may not be able to attend every call coming to your office. For effectively managing such situations, the hosted PBX system comes with a number of advanced features. The callers can leave their voice messages in the voice mail boxes of the PBX system, when they are unable to reach the user. Even fax mail and voice to email services are made available for the callers to convey their messages.

Benefits of Hosted PBX Systems

Benefits that hosted PBX systems offer small and home-based businesses are many. This is the main reason why such phone systems are very popular among small business owners. Some of the notable features include:

• No expensive hardware is required
• Save on start-up and maintenance costs
• No additional phone lines
• Reduced long distance charges
• Improved business credibility
• Call transferring with find me follow me service

A hosted PBX system with all its powerful telecommunication features attracts more customers to your business, improves productivity and brings in more revenue for your business.

What are Video Managed Services?

As a video product manager, it is encouraging to see that video conferencing has finally taken the business world by storm.

All the people involved with video, such as analysts, equipment manufacturers, service providers and experienced customers, have discussed the benefits of businesses—from SOHO to SMB to global enterprise—deploying video conferencing and we’ve done the same in previous blogs.

Using video conferencing can decrease travel and increase quality of life; outsourcing the management of that video conferencing environment can save on additional operations and personnel expenses. This can be done through a company that offers managed services outsourcing.

Video Managed Services - a combination of telecommunication services and/or facilities with complementary management services, thereby eliminating (or decreasing) the need for hiring and/or developing in-house skills to support the systems. 

Not only does the term apply to video conferencing services management, but is a generic definition that covers any type of outsourced management services.  To drill down a little further, the goal of a managed service is to shift the burden of any technology management to a third party resource or provider.

You can break managed services into two types: on-site or remote.  There are benefits to both, and they can be provided separately or as a hybrid:

On-site

Dedicated staff focuses specifically on your environment and culture and are integrated into the day–to-day fabric of the service offering by being available at the site or location in need of assistance.
The on-site staff is responsible for preparing the room for a video conference, making certain the equipment is on and available for the call. They also sometimes stick around to assist if any problems arise and will actually sit outside the room just in case they are needed, although the majority of troubleshooting can be handled remotely with the proper toolsets.
While on-site managed services provide a good security blanket, it can be expensive due to the dedicated nature of the position—people need to be available, regardless of whether or not their help is really needed.

Remote

Remote support comes through connectivity and in-network tools, remote personnel and outsourced help desk tools and procedures.
A remote management team can reach into your collaboration environment and use web-based browser tools to see if the equipment is turned on, functioning properly and ready to be connected or provisioned and can diagnose any problems through those same tools before users are impacted.Remote management is typically less expensive and can provide 24/7 support for the environment.  This type of service does require the third party to have access to the infrastructure via network connectivity, so it is very important that the managed service provider has tools developed around this remote monitoring and management service. They also need to have the ability to provide your with reports on uptime of the environment being managed, SLAs for service response times and tools or processes that allow you to request action at any time.

This article was originally published by InterCall

Expense reduction experts

Expense reduction experts and consultants offer to make savings of up to 15% – 20% on your current costs, assuming that the specific areas have not been tackled actively in the past three years. These experts can provide you with advice and support to identify and understand the cost drivers of any commodity or service throughout the supply chain and show you how to make it happen:

In each stage of the supply chain there are potential areas for cost reduction. The challenge is to identify those that can deliver savings with the least disruption and with the fastest results.

Purchasing from Suppliers

Direct and indirect materials are an obvious candidate for cost reduction. In a manufacturing organization the following big ticket items are areas that the experts will target for trimming.

• Raw materials
• MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Operating expenses)
• Packaging
• Tools and consumables used in manufacture

Essential and business support services often have more scope for cost reduction than materials. High spend areas should be the main focus although the experts will go for some “quick wins” to demonstrate what is possible. Some main areas for savings:

• Energy and Utilities
• Facilities, security and safety
• Courier and travel
• Temporary labour and HR services
• Telecommunications

Production

Production expenses can be tackled in many areas. Experts will identify opportunities as follows:
• In the design of the product. Product development determines up to 80% of product cost and this is hard to remove later.
• In Lean Production. You can improve labor productivity, cut production throughput times, reduce inventories and cut out errors and reduce scrap.
• Overhead Cost Reduction. Inventory carrying costs, power, and administration costs can be reduced.
• Product Line Rationalization. Focus is on the most profitable product lines and products that are losing money should be highlighted for attention.
• Quality. The cost of quality can be 15% to 40% of revenue. Experts look for areas that are over-managed.

Distribution to Customers

Potential areas of expense reduction are the big spend items, warehousing, rail and road transportation, air-freight and reverse logistics. Specialist consultants should conduct an audit to establish details of the current operation, both in-house and outsourced, including all modes of transport. Potential costs that can be reduced may come from

• Operational improvement of modes of transport and rates negotiation
• Review of warehousing and distribution centre operations to identify possibility for centralization
• Use of technology and software to provide efficiencies
• Review of the allocation and use of labour

Employee costs are a big slice of overall operating costs. Cutting staff may be costly in the long term as skills may be in short supply in a buoyant market. Reliable and noteworthy <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackPageview', '/outgoing/article_exit_link']);” href=”http://www.clear-vantage.eu/en/”>expense reduction experts</a> will ensure sustainability of the business over short-term cost cutting.

Simplify Datacenter Management With Centralized Control of Service Processors

Preventing datacenter downtime is a top priority for datacenter managers, and for good reason. Across every industry, lost hourly revenue due to downtime is very expensive. Recent studies estimate that downtime costs as much as .8M per hour in lost revenue for firms in the energy industry, more than M per hour for firms in telecommunications, and M -.6M per hour for companies in other sectors, including manufacturing, finance, and information technology.(1) Even on good days, datacenter infrastructure management is a challenge, as administrators often have to control computer systems, serial devices, and power from multiple individual interfaces.

Centralized server management platforms simplify access to IT assets by aggregating access and providing a single management portal, thus eliminating the need to manage devices individually. When downtime occurs, centralized server management platforms provide a unified point of entry that allows administrators to access, troubleshoot, power cycle, and bring servers and appliances back online quickly. In addition, on a day-to-day basis, centralized management allows administrators to more easily and efficiently do their jobs.

Integrated Onboard Technologies

Integrated onboard technologies, or service processors, are microcontrollers embedded in a motherboard of a server, a PCI card, or on the chassis of a server. They are independent from the main CPU and the system OS and are accessible through an Ethernet interface; dedicated (Out-of-Band) or shared with the data Ethernet (Sideband).(2) Service processor features vary by manufacturer and include remote power-cycling of devices, monitoring of a server’s on-board instrumentation (temperature, CPU status, fan speed, and voltage), remote console access via Serial over LAN (SoL), and the ability to set event traps and perform OS-level shutdown.

Some service processors also allow for data logging, KVM control, and virtual media.

There are several different types of integrated onboard technologies made by various manufacturers.

Centralized Management

There are currently two centralized management platforms on the market, Avocent’s DSView and Raritan’s Command Center, which can be used to manage devices made by multiple vendors. Avocent also makes two service processor aggregation appliances that can be used to manage devices with integrated onboard technologies: the Cyclades OnBoard Service Processor Manager and the MergePoint 5200 Management Gateway Appliance. Both integrate with the DSView software and can also be managed by CLI. The Cyclades OnBoard provides out-of-band physical consolidation, power control, and monitoring, and requires only one external IP address for all connected devices. The MergePoint provides service processor “auto discovery”; hardware monitoring, group execution of commands; integrated support for Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and Virtual Network Computing (VNC), and Serial over LAN (SoL) power control.

Raritan, whose embedded solutions include PCI cards, industry-standard “daughter” cards, and a single-chip solution, currently supports generic devices through its Command Center Secure Gateway appliance and is expected to further expand this support to include IPMI in Q1. Minicom, whose KVM.net product currently provides out-of-band KVM over IP management for mixed server environments, is expected to add support for integrated onboard technologies in Q2.

Bringing Together A Total Solution

Both Avocent and Raritan provide complete integrated management solutions that allow administrators to manage devices with embedded onboard technologies such as IPMI, iLO, and DRAC, as well as allowing them to manage equipment currently controlled through secure console servers or KVM over IP. In addition, some devices can integrate support for Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and Virtual Network Computing (VNC), so that full server management coverage (in-band and out-of-band) can take place from one user interface. 42U’s knowledgeable sales engineers can provide you with a customized business-specific solution that will help you accomplish your goals.

42U provides turnkey datacenter solutions, including KVM over IP, intelligent power, environmental monitoring, rack cooling, and rackmount solutions. The team at 42U specializes in assessing needs, creating solutions, and supporting clients, to ensure that IT professionals maximize their use of current technologies to improve overall business performance.

References:

(1) IT Performance Engineering & Measurement Strategies: Quantifying Performance Loss, Meta Group, October 2000, cited in “The Hidden Cost of Computer Downtime,” http://www.creativedata.net/index.cfm?webid=207

(2) Service Processor Management http://www.global.avocent.com/us/learnmore/serviceprocessor.asp and Centralized Management

http://www.avocent.com/web/en.nsf/Content/learnmoreDSV3

(3) HP Integrated Lights-Out (iLO) Standard http://h18013.www1.hp.com/products/servers/management/iloadv/index.html

(4) Remote Insight Lights-Out Edition II

http://h18013.www1.hp.com/products/servers/management/riloe2/index.html

(5) Dell PowerEdge Remote Access Controller (DRAC)

http://lists.us.dell.com/fom-serve/cache/75.html

(6) Service Processor Management

http://www.global.avocent.com/us/learnmore/serviceprocessor.asp

(7) Sun Advanced Lights Out Manager 1.6 (ALOM)

http://www.sun.com/servers/alom.html

(8) What Is ILOM?

http://www.sun.com/products-n-solutions/hardware/docs/html/819-5846-11/819-5846-11/c~config_ilom.html

(9) Sun Remote System Control (RSC) for Sun Fire V480, Sun Fire V490, Sun Fire V880, and Sun Fire V890 Servers

http://www.sun.com/servers/rsc.html

(10) Service Processor Management

http://www.global.avocent.com/us/learnmore/serviceprocessor.asp

Managed VoIP Service: a Solution to Business Growth

Innovation in the telecommunication domain has made quite a few things possible. As a matter of fact, in today’s competitive business environment, the manged VoIP services provide the end users with the benefit of speedy deployment and manageability. Apart from these benefits, these IP services are backed with reliability. The high-quality IP solutions for meeting international as well as long distance “calling needs” are now available at unbelievably low costs. With these services, the end users can enjoy superior Internet based solutions without any trouble.

Managed VoIP services have opened a whole new horizon of possibilities that are waiting to be explored. These services have come up as a one-stop solution for a plethora of communication needs. And the best part is that these are cost effective. The scalable managed IP solutions help the business users to avoid capital expenses. As a matter of fact, in these VoIP services, the infrastructural support-in terms of hardware or software equipment are usually offered by the service providers. Therefore, the business users do not have to invest in the equipment such as VoIP switch, NOCs or gateways, as they just have to keep a track over the cost of operation without doing much in terms of management.

Considering the facts, the business entities are opting for the services to reap more profits in a logical and planned out way. As a matter of fact, the providers of managed partitioning services often come with the necessary knowledge to deliver the same to their clients. Some of the important points that must be considered in this context are as follows:

1.VoIP network performance: A fully managed VoIP service offer better service quality, security of communication, reliability, business continuity as well as disaster recovery – which make them more useful for the end users.

2.Solution scalability: Such services are more flexible as well as scalable.

3.Productivity improvements: A fully managed VoIP solution adds many more advantages such as unifying of communications. The easy availability of customized and web portal-based communication management applications are another add-on. As a matter of fact, such solutions provide easy access to wide area network management, automated call distribution, call detail records analysis and much more.

To conclude, communication over the VoIP has seen a lot of improvement, as the call quality is better than before. More and more business users are making calls in this manner. In this context, the managed partitioning services are optimizing the use of the ‘channel’ capacity available in any networks. It can be said that business users are sharing data, video and images over the IP networks, resulting in the best usage of bandwidth with a concomitant increase in the call productivity. The managed switch partitioning is also minimizing the transmission latency and increasing the reliability of communication to a large extent.