Posts tagged "Expense"

Ezwim joins TEMIA, the Telecom Expense Management Industry Association

Ezwim joins TEMIA, the Telecom Expense Management Industry Association

Amsterdam (PRWEB) February 9, 2011

Ezwim, a leading vendor of on-demand telecom management services, today announces that it has become a member of TEMIA, the Telecom Expense Management Industry Association (http://www.temia.org). TEMIA is the authoritative voice for the Telecom Expense Management (TEM) supplier community.

“Many companies struggle to understand and manage their cost of telecommunications, especially as more sophisticated mobile devices and services are being deployed” said Bram Cool, General Manager of Ezwim. “In Europe a growing number of companies are seeing the benefit of TEM to manage telecom assets and costs. Unfortunately, there is still not enough awareness in the market of the value TEM can bring. As a TEMIA member we want to contribute to develop the market on the benefits of TEM.”

Joe Basili, TEMIA’s managing director said “each new TEMIA member makes us stronger and more relevant. Ezwim marks an important milestone; we now have members with corporate headquarters in France, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada and America.”

TEMIA members are committed to integrity with a rigorous Ethics Code and membership shows the supplier is mature with financial stability to pay dues and commit resources to work with a trade association; it also testifies the vision to invest in the future of the industry.

AboutT EZWIM

Ezwim is a global leader in telecom management cloud services for enterprises and operators. Ezwim’s Telecom Management Suite, available at http://www.ezwim.com, offers a complete portfolio of telecom management applications that enable global organizations to gain visibility into, and control over, the mobile and fixed communications assets and costs. Ezwim helps companies to realize telecom cost reductions, process efficiencies and run every part of their enterprise telecommunications in the cloud.

About TEMIA

TEMIA, the Telecom Expense Management Industry Association, was founded in 2006 by the largest Telecom Expense Management (TEM) service providers that cumulatively manage $ 36 billion of telecom and data spend. Since that time, TEMIA has grown to 34 members with several TEM suppliers based in Europe, Latin America and other regions outside North America. TEMIA´s mission is to expand the size of the TEM market globally and develop industry standards to augment overall service quality and performance through the development and promotion of open industry standards.

Members work together for growth of the industry and to cultivate shared industry knowledge among TEM providers, business partners, telecom service providers, and enterprise clients, while still competing for client business. For more information about TEMIA, please visit http://www.temia.org or contact info (at) temia (dot) org.

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Attachments

©Copyright 1997-

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

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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©Copyright 1997-

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

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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©Copyright 1997-

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

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.

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.

American Express and Concur Begin Expense Reporting Services

ConcurBreeze leverages direct information feed from American Express Business Card to help mid-market firms much better handle cash movement, conserve some time and enhance effectiveness.

American Express along with ConcurBreeze (Nasdaq: CNQR), the world’s leading provider of on-demand employee invest administration providers, extended their partnership right now using the launch of Concur® Breeze, an on-line expense reporting services for American Express Industrial Card core-market purchasers that automates and streamlines the submission, overview and approval of all business bills – such as T&E, office supplies, advertising, shipping, telecommunications and more. Concur provides leading-edge expense reporting possibilities in a cost-effective, easy-to-manage on-line resolution.

Concur is quick and simple to setup. It streamlines the entire expense administration process by automatically creating expense reports utilizing electronic data imported from American Express business card products, thereby delivering better quality, more robust and more detailed data. By automating the entire process and eliminating the need for paper receipts, spreadsheets, and lengthy reimbursement cycles, ConcurBreeze reduces the cost, time and hassle associated with expense reporting – simplifying bookkeeping and helping companies better track costs and manage cash.

Middle-market merchants that integrate expense report systems directly with company cards and additional commercial payments recognize greater effectiveness and decrease expenses over the entire range of traveling and entertainment expenditure management, according to a recent analysis report around the advantages of Corporate Card and Expense Reporting Integration from Aberdeen Group. The businesses listed in the survey attained nearly 90% reduced percentage of expense reports sent in with mistakes, 66% lower costs to process a sole expense report, and 28% greater level of compliance. A free copy of this particular report is available at www.concurbreeze.com/americanexpresscorporatecard.

“Concur Breeze is intended to tackle the distinctive needs of core-market companies looking to reduces costs of their operations and improve productivity with an automated expense reporting process,” said Elena Donio, Executive Vice President & General Manager, Emerging Company for Concur. “We’re thrilled to extend our joint venture with American Express to provide this unique program that utilizes the latest technology to bypass previous limitations to automation inside this market segment.”

“Concur Breeze brings ‘software as a service’ performance for automated expense reporting into the middle market at an attractive cost,” said Sara Tresch, Vice President of Company Development, Global Business Card for American Express. “This extension associated with our collaboration with ConcurBreeze enables us all to supply special benefit to our own mutual clients as well as eventually provide financial savings and efficiencies to workers and their own corporations.”

At any time use our savings cost calculator on our internet site to find simply how much you can reduce the costs for your organization and personnel expense therefore increasing productiveness.

A privileged 60-day totally free trial of Concur is available to American Express Industrial Card customers. Learn more at www.concur.com/americanexpresscorporatecard.

Asentinel Announces Multi-million Dollar Patent Licensing Agreement of Telecommunications Expense Management Patents

Asentinel Announces Multi-million Dollar Patent Licensing Agreement of Telecommunications Expense Management Patents
MEMPHIS, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Asentinel, a technology-driven telecom lifecycle management company, has entered into a patent license agreement. These patents include more than 80 claims issued by the US Patent/Trademark Office.
Read more on Business Wire

Verizon nabs deal to sell iPhones
NEW YORK, Jan. 8 (UPI) — U.S. telecommunications giant Verizon Wireless has finally broken AT&T’s grip on the iPhone, a source told The Wall Street Journal.
Read more on UPI

Comtech Telecommunications Corp. Receives .2 Million of Movement Tracking System Orders
MELVILLE, N.Y. | Comtech Telecommunications Corp. (Nasdaq:CMTL) announced today that its Maryland-based subsidiary, Comtech Mobile Datacom Corporation, received orders totaling $ 27.2 million under…
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Emptoris Acquires Rivermine for Leading Telecom Expense Management Solution

Emptoris Acquires Rivermine for Leading Telecom Expense Management Solution
Strategic Acquisition Expands Global 1000 Customer Base, Partner Footprint and Solution Suite. Addresses Critical, Growing Category of Telecom Spend for Global 1000 Companies (PRWeb January 06, 2011) Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/0106/prweb4946434.htm
Read more on PRWeb

A. H. Belo Corporation Discusses Future Business, Operating and Financial Strategies at Citi Conference
DALLAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Robert W. Decherd, chairman, president and Chief Executive Officer of newspaper publisher A. H. Belo Corporation (NYSE: AHC), discussed the Company’s future business, operating and financial strategies at Citi’s 21st Annual Global Entertainment, Media & Telecommunications Conference earlier today. The presentation focused on A. H. Belo’s improving financial performance …
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Tift County government officials discuss SPLOST
Officials with the Tift County Board of Commissioners and council members of the cities of Tifton, Omega and Ty Ty met again Wednesday night and reviewed a slightly revised list of items proposed for funding if voters pass the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax V referendum to be scheduled for March 15.
Read more on Tifton Gazette

Asentinel Announces Multi-million Dollar Patent Licensing Agreement of Telecommunications Expense Management Patents

Asentinel Announces Multi-million Dollar Patent Licensing Agreement of Telecommunications Expense Management Patents
MEMPHIS, Tenn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Asentinel, a technology-driven telecom lifecycle management company, has entered into a patent license agreement. These patents include more than 80 claims issued by the US Patent/Trademark Office.
Read more on Business Wire

Avotus Awarded 2010 INTERNET TELEPHONY TEM Excellence Award
MISSISSAUGA, Ontario–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Avotus Corporation announced today that Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC) has named Avotus’ ICM ® eProcurement as a recipient of the 2010 INTERNET TELEPHONY TEM Excellence Award.
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Emptoris Acquires Rivermine for Leading Telecom Expense Management Solution
Strategic Acquisition Expands Global 1000 Customer Base, Partner Footprint and Solution Suite. Addresses Critical, Growing Category of Telecom Spend for Global 1000 Companies (PRWeb January 06, 2011) Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/0106/prweb4946434.htm
Read more on PRWeb

Ways to Cost Analyze and Reduce Telecommunication Expense

Cost analysis is a must for all operations of a business.  Expenses incurred due to telecommunication service charges require a considerable budget allocation and hence have to be analyzed with care to minimize cost.  

The first step in the analysis will be to consolidate all the voice and data services used, and then to analyze the monthly telephone bills.   The charges for the local lines, T1s, networks, and Internet should be considered separately. Their usage should be justified and it should be checked to see if plans are used to their maximum limit. The usage pattern of local and long-distance calls also should be studied.  The suitability of switched and dedicated lines should also be assessed. A wide range of data services like WAN, MPLS, IP Sec VPN, Private Lines, VoIP, Web Hosting, etc. are available. The choice of data service used should also be validated.  Internet plays an inevitable role in business and as per the needs of the business DSL, T1, T3, high speed Internet, fractional or burstable T1 can be selected. Audio, video and web conferencing should also be borne in mind while choosing services. The phone systems, LAN/WAN set up, cabling equipment used should also be evaluated and the apt type of equipment should be chosen as per the requirement. As per the traffic volume the quantity of trunks should be determined and distributed among the trunk groups. Once the analyses on all these fronts are complete, we will be able to assess what exactly are our requirements.  Once the requirements are fixed, the second step will be to identify  services which are not a perfect choice, eliminate them, and replace them with suitable ones,  and the third step will be to identify the services in which the expenses are not justified.  These data now have to be carefully analyzed and investigated to reduce cost.

The next step will be to look out for service providers with competitive prices.  The service cost and rates of local exchange companies and long-distance carriers should be analyzed.   The most suitable plans and services should be chosen in such a way that they are fully utilized and no compromise on services is made.   

The usage and cost incurred should be strictly monitored. In short, review and analyze the existing system and ensure optimization of resources and minimization of costs.  Relocations, upgrades, network planning, security assessment, and project management will help reduce cost.   

It would be best to negotiate contracts based on the volume of calls. Best deals would be offered when the volume is more. Minimum monthly usage commitments should be avoided as they may prove to be expensive.  Customer service should be provided 24X7. Least second billing (say 6 seconds or less) would be advisable.   Consolidated billing on a two-week bill resolution basis would help establish strict control over the overheads.  Several bill analysis tools are readily available.  A suitable tool can be used to analyze the bill.

The efforts taken to cut costs in voice and data services directly reflect on the profitability of a business. Cost analysis of data and voice services is a must for every business.

Telecom Expense Management – Spotting Telecom Billing Errors

Whether a business has only ten employees making a few long distance calls a day, or is a burgeoning enterprise with hundreds of employees conducting thousands of calls and data transfers every hour, it is important for that business to carefully manage their telecommunication costs.

Telecom Expense Management, or TEM, involves the constant monitoring of telecom expenses that accrue monthly. The goal of TEM is to ensure that invoices match agreed upon contract rates and tariffs, and to optimize the services offered by the telecom provider with the needs of the individual business. Effective TEM is an essential accounting task that must be conducted by companies and firms working in virtually all industries.

Billing errors lead businesses to overpay for the services rendered by the telecom provider. These errors can waste money on services that were neither asked for nor used and will significantly eat into profit margins over time. Billing errors can range from honest mistakes made by the telecom provider, to more insidious and deceptive practices that rely on a business’s preoccupation with other matters to sneak changes into the billing terms.

Here are some errors that have been known to occur.

1. Simple Human or Computer Miscalculations

A common error is one in which either a computer or human miscalculation leads to an incorrect total on a billing invoice. The miscalculation may only affect the amount charged for a single telephone call, or it might be one that substantially alters all the monthly charges. These miscalculations can be fixed by bringing them to the attention of the telecom provider.

2. Duplicate Bills

Large telecom providers are susceptible to the same issues that negatively affect any other bureaucracy. With multiple agents handling the same account, confusion and mistakes are likely to eventually occur. If an account is not properly flagged as being billed, or communication between employees is poor, duplicate bills can accidentally be sent to clients. And unless your company is vigilant in detecting duplicate billing, you might be overpaying. Once again, this error can be fixed by bringing it to the attention of the provider.

3. Incorrect Contracted Rates

The agreed upon terms between the business client and the telecom provider may not always be honored. Due to miscommunication between the client and provider or sloppy account management, the rate assigned to the business may differ from the contracted deal that was negotiated when the telecom services were first acquired. This error – especially if the difference is relatively minor – can continue unbeknownst to the client for months at a time. Keen and meticulous oversight of billing statements is needed to spot this error.

4. Unnecessary Surcharges

Surcharges on services that should be included in the contracted plan are sometimes added to an account without the client’s knowledge. Surcharges related to limits on data transfer, available phone lines or long distance use could be tacked onto the monthly bill. These additional fees unreasonably inflate communication costs, and unfairly penalize the client for using services to which he should already be entitled. Knowing what’s in your contract is important here and keeping on guard for any additional fees.

5. Cramming, Slamming and Modem Hijacking

The most unethical of billing errors is the intentional altering of the agreed upon terms between the client and provider. ‘Cramming’, as it is commonly called, involves additional fees that are unrelated to any actual use or services. The provider will select and choose additional ‘phantom’ services and amend them to the original contract. They may be labeled as a ‘Membership Fee’ or ‘ISP Service Fee’, but are in fact nothing more than boldfaced attempts to slyly bilk more money from clients. Occasionally the terms of the original contract are ambiguous and reserve the provider’s right to increase or otherwise manipulate future rates and options. A client must take charge and directly confront telecom providers that engage in this practice. They should ask their provider why they were charged those specific fees and attempt to have them removed.

“Slamming” is the practice of switching a telephone customer’s long-distance service provider to another carrier without the customer’s permission. In recent years, this practice has lessened because customers now have to go through a series of verifications to change their long distance service.

“Modem hijacking” is a variation on cramming. It occurs when software, usually delivered through a pop-up ad, is downloaded onto a business computer over the Internet. It then uses dialing software to reroute the computer modem to dial long-distance numbers. The fees charged for this can be ridiculously high.

6. Unreimbursed Refunds or Credits

Another error involves a late or absent refund or discount from a telecom provider. This occurs when billing errors have been brought to the attention of the provider, but the expected refund is not given. A special rate or discount reserved for business clients may likewise not be actualized. These delays and errors can be frustrating, increasing the animosity between client and provider.

The wide range of errors that can effect your bottom line, and the subsequent monitoring that preventing them entails, is a time and resource drain that is sometimes best managed by professionals who have the industry experience to know both the needs and demands that business clients have. Though it is possible for some small clients to adequately manage their telecom expenses on their own, for most the task is demanding. Effective TEM should not be relegated to beleaguered employees already busy with other daily obligations. Using experienced experts provides the peace of mind to focus on the more important task of successfully managing your business.

Telecom Expense Management

Telecommunications networks are considered the backbone of any company’s infrastructure. Almost all companies set aside a major part of their budget just to manage telecom expenses. As enterprises have increased their use of telecom services, the monthly invoices—which often come from a host of different voice, data, and wireless carriers throughout the country—are so complex, they make hospital bills look tame by comparison.

According to research surveys, telecom expenses more than often account for more than 20% of a company’s IT budget. This often comes up to a huge amount, and with the economic conditions the way they are telecom expenses have to managed to see that they remain controllable. Telecom is a significant expense. With the complexity of telecom billing worsening as firms add mobile devices, wireless services, and new data circuits, the overhead in handling the monthly paperwork is significant.

The major goal of any company is to manage telecom expenses, while at the same time getting the most out of telecom service providers. Telecom expense management is a major challenge for every company, but even though, no one is willing to put a significant amount of effort or energy to reduce the cost. The heads of companies have too much on their minds to give telecom expense management much thought.

Naturally they turn to telecom consultation companies to manage their telecom expenses for them. But, not every telecom consultation company has a solution that is feasible or specific to their customers. The reports are way too generic or often contain terms and services, invoices that are more than often not comprehended by their customers. Instead of the solution they are given reports and stats to deal with.

Telecom expense management is difficult especially when customers require specific solutions to their problems. Secure Path Networks is a telecom consultation service that specializes in telecom expense management. Experts at Secure Path Networks have often found out that telecom costs are often more higher than what they ought to be.

The experts at Secure Path Networks provide customer specific solutions, so that customers actually see a decline in their telecommunication expenditures. Telecom cost management has never been easier, Secure Path Networks reduces telecommunications expense up to 50% while improving quality and reliability, and they have the track record to prove it.

Visit http://www.securepathnetworks.com for a no cost, risk-free assessment and see how Secure Path Networks can save you money and time by auditing your telecommunications costs.

CEO of TNT Expense Management: Happenstance and Strong Childhood Values Lead to Business Success

Growing up in a very poor Brooklyn neighbourhood, Michael had a happy childhood “since I knew no better.” His parents were Italian immigrants working in factories and living according to old-world values that kept Michael and his siblings away from the bandwagon of kids who went the wrong way. After graduating from East New York Vocational high school, where he took electrical and computer classes, Michael continued his education at the Technical Career Institute, then got his first job as a technician for ITT Communications.

Meanwhile, Michael’s personal life was about to change his professional plans. After two years of marriage, he and his wife were expecting a son whom he wanted to raise away from New York. It happened that Electronic Mail Corporation of America (EMCA) needed technical assistance moving their offices from Manhattan to Connecticut; Michael moved with them, staying as an engineer and senior engineer manager. He devoted the following twelve years to working for consumer-services company CUC International, where he ran voice and data networks, and continued building his knowledge base. The company entered into a merger after tremendous growth; he asked for a departure package and by that afternoon was already doing consulting work.

Although Michael never meant to make consultation his primary work, this stage of his career ended up being vital for his future. “I never had the intent of starting a company; it sort of just fell in my lap. Now I don’t know if I could go back to working for someone.” His company, TNT Expense Management, began with a team of three people. Due to his reputation among clients, the phone calls kept rolling in, and after a short while he had to recruit additional people to fulfil the demand. Overnight, without any previous expectations, his consulting work became a full-fledged business. Michael remembers the moment when he realized this and the anecdote that marked it: “We had just signed a client with a market capitalization of 0 billion, there were only three of us in the company, and we had a server running on a file cabinet in a basement. That’s when we realized this was going to be a company, and not just a few of us doing consulting.”

Today, TNT Expense Management coordinates the telecommunications of large companies, reducing their costs and assuring that companies pay only for what they should be paying. Among the techniques used are sourcing of contract negotiations, bill auditing, processing of invoices and making optimization recommendations about how to reduce costs. TNT’s clients are mostly Fortune 500 and several Fortune 50 companies, and Michael proudly relates that his business has almost 100% client retention. What is his secret? “Reputation, reputation, reputation.” What brought prestigious names to TNT’s roster was performance at an in-depth level and finding the maximum savings for its clients. Although the company has only about 85 employees, it does business on the level of billion-dollar corporations. As Michael puts it, “Big companies expect you to be structured, formal and at their level in your work and communication with them.” Having a quality staff has proven to be crucial. Even though TNT has a significantly smaller staff than what one would expect from a company that generates -12 million in revenue, the selection of employees was anything but random. When asked what brought his company to success, Michael replies: “Having the right people. Make sure you spot the right people and make them happy.” When it comes to efficient and professional employees, it’s a matter of knowing what they are doing, and in a conscientious way. With such an approach, no wonder TNT has grown to become an “ethical, customer-focused company.”

Still, the cherry on top of the large-corporation-client cake is not always sweet. Clients have high demands and the job can become stressful. In those moments, it’s important to stay on track. “Don’t make decisions in a panic mode.” On the other hand, sometimes the issue is not in the task’s difficulty so much as in the client’s temperament. Michael happens to have a remedy for that situation as well. “Growing up where I did exposed me to a lot of different personalities, income levels and backgrounds. That was very helpful to me later on in life because in business you deal with a lot of different types of people. If you can see past someone who is being obnoxious, see where that person’s coming from and why they’re coming off that way, you will be able to respond in a way that makes that person calm down.”

Ultimate career choices are not necessarily those made in one’s twenties, nor do they always require the skills possessed at that point in life. A good CEO and businessman must have well-developed people-smarts to recruit key employees and effectively communicate with clients. And of course, every now and then, not take things too seriously.

Not advice one would give to a heart surgeon, but often the best tonic in business.

Telecom Expense Management — Spotting Telecom Billing Errors

Whether a business has only ten employees making a few long distance calls a day, or is a burgeoning enterprise with hundreds of employees conducting thousands of calls and data transfers every hour, it is important for that business to carefully manage their telecommunication costs.

Telecom Expense Management, or TEM, involves the constant monitoring of telecom expenses that accrue monthly. The goal of TEM is to ensure that invoices match agreed upon contract rates and tariffs, and to optimize the services offered by the telecom provider with the needs of the individual business. Effective TEM is an essential accounting task that must be conducted by companies and firms working in virtually all industries.

Billing errors lead businesses to overpay for the services rendered by the telecom provider. These errors can waste money on services that were neither asked for nor used and will significantly eat into profit margins over time. Billing errors can range from honest mistakes made by the telecom provider, to more insidious and deceptive practices that rely on a business’s preoccupation with other matters to sneak changes into the billing terms.

Here are some errors that have been known to occur.

1. Simple Human or Computer Miscalculations

A common error is one in which either a computer or human miscalculation leads to an incorrect total on a billing invoice. The miscalculation may only affect the amount charged for a single telephone call, or it might be one that substantially alters all the monthly charges. These miscalculations can be fixed by bringing them to the attention of the telecom provider.

2. Duplicate Bills

Large telecom providers are susceptible to the same issues that negatively affect any other bureaucracy. With multiple agents handling the same account, confusion and mistakes are likely to eventually occur. If an account is not properly flagged as being billed, or communication between employees is poor, duplicate bills can accidentally be sent to clients. And unless your company is vigilant in detecting duplicate billing, you might be overpaying. Once again, this error can be fixed by bringing it to the attention of the provider.

3. Incorrect Contracted Rates

The agreed upon terms between the business client and the telecom provider may not always be honored. Due to miscommunication between the client and provider or sloppy account management, the rate assigned to the business may differ from the contracted deal that was negotiated when the telecom services were first acquired. This error – especially if the difference is relatively minor – can continue unbeknownst to the client for months at a time. Keen and meticulous oversight of billing statements is needed to spot this error.

4. Unnecessary Surcharges

Surcharges on services that should be included in the contracted plan are sometimes added to an account without the client’s knowledge. Surcharges related to limits on data transfer, available phone lines or long distance use could be tacked onto the monthly bill. These additional fees unreasonably inflate communication costs, and unfairly penalize the client for using services to which he should already be entitled. Knowing what’s in your contract is important here and keeping on guard for any additional fees.

5. Cramming, Slamming and Modem Hijacking

The most unethical of billing errors is the intentional altering of the agreed upon terms between the client and provider. ‘Cramming’, as it is commonly called, involves additional fees that are unrelated to any actual use or services. The provider will select and choose additional ‘phantom’ services and amend them to the original contract. They may be labeled as a ‘Membership Fee’ or ‘ISP Service Fee’, but are in fact nothing more than boldfaced attempts to slyly bilk more money from clients. Occasionally the terms of the original contract are ambiguous and reserve the provider’s right to increase or otherwise manipulate future rates and options. A client must take charge and directly confront telecom providers that engage in this practice. They should ask their provider why they were charged those specific fees and attempt to have them removed.

”Slamming” is the practice of switching a telephone customer’s long-distance service provider to another carrier without the customer’s permission. In recent years, this practice has lessened because customers now have to go through a series of verifications to change their long distance service.

”Modem hijacking” is a variation on cramming. It occurs when software, usually delivered through a pop-up ad, is downloaded onto a business computer over the Internet. It then uses dialing software to reroute the computer modem to dial long-distance numbers. The fees charged for this can be ridiculously high.

6. Unreimbursed Refunds or Credits

Another error involves a late or absent refund or discount from a telecom provider. This occurs when billing errors have been brought to the attention of the provider, but the expected refund is not given. A special rate or discount reserved for business clients may likewise not be actualized. These delays and errors can be frustrating, increasing the animosity between client and provider.

The wide range of errors that can effect your bottom line, and the subsequent monitoring that preventing them entails, is a time and resource drain that is sometimes best managed by professionals who have the industry experience to know both the needs and demands that business clients have. Though it is possible for some small clients to adequately manage their telecom expenses on their own, for most the task is demanding. Effective TEM should not be relegated to beleaguered employees already busy with other daily obligations. Using experienced experts provides the peace of mind to focus on the more important task of successfully managing your business.

Three Ways Telecom Expense Management Saves You Money

Telecom expense management is one of the fastest growing areas in the telecommunications industry for one simple, obvious reason: Companies want to keep their cellular and landline costs down. Ten years ago saving money on these items was a relatively straightforward research and accounting task, but in the age of the smartphone, cell phone plans alone are complicated enough to demand attention from an expert. As multiple-service platforms subject to sophisticated (and according to some, deceptive) pricing schemes, modern phones often inflict the second highest expenses on businesses – just after payroll.

Telecom expense management experts put communications costs under a microscope, examining them for savings opportunities. A full service telecom expense management firm can not only generate savings requests for proposals (RFPs) but implement them through its own team of certified experts. According to telecom expense management firm GILL Technologies many cost audits discover savings based on the following three factors. These aren’t the only ways telecom expense management services save clients money, but they’re prominent enough to draw attention to in this article.

Cell Phone Billing Errors: Many people are surprised to learn that wireless carriers routinely overcharge out of sheer error – some estimates put the error rate as high as 30%, with most mistakes leading to added costs. Many billing errors are subtle and difficult for a non-expert to spot, such as erroneous dates for service migration and cancellation. Others are more blatant, but can fly under the radar in an enterprise-scale organization, such as when carriers charge for extra handsets.

Cell Phone Usage Analysis: Although gigantic cell phone bills display usage (along with other line items that are incomprehensible for the non-expert) they don’t provide any easy way to analyze your company’s usage across the entire fleet. Telecom expense management professionals don’t just find the cheapest plans based on basic costs, but on how members of your organization actually use their phones, down to the minute, message and bit of data. In a more dynamic environment where use fluctuates, RFPs will often feature pooled minutes and other shared resources to compensate for these changes. Otherwise, it becomes possible to select billing that fits your usage needs as closely as possible instead of one size fits all packages that effectively overcharge you for data, messaging and minutes you won’t actually use.

Carrier Analysis: Telecom expense management experts study the carriers as intensely as they do your business. That means they’re fully conversant in the major carriers’ latest pricing schemes and administrative procedures. This allows an analyst to renegotiate your contract from an educated standpoint, migrating services to a new carrier if need be without changing or interrupting any aspect of your existing service. You keep the same phone number and handset and at minimum, the services you’ve always used, but you pay less. Consultants can manage billing and services across multiple carriers in a way that would be impossible (or at least impractical) for an in-house accountant.

Once you add these tactics together you may be looking at a significant cost reduction. For example, some GILL Technologies clients have saved over 50% on their billing compared to their previous plans. These real savings (telecom expense management consultants typically draw profits from a percentage of the savings, so costs never increase for their clients) demonstrate why telecom expense management has become such a popular business to business service in both prosperous and uncertain economic climates.

What is the Value of Telecom Expense Management & Managed Sourcing Today?

Reston, Virginia – Enterprise businesses are more than ever seeking outside expert help to ensure they are properly managing their telecom and IT networks. The rationale for seeking outside help is as simple as the solution is complicated. Effective leaders know that they and their teams cannot be all things to all people. To strive for such a goal is an exercise in futility and a sure fire way to reap poor results and incur excessive costs. It’s well understood that you must leverage your greatest strengths and minimize your liabilities to the greatest extent possible, in order to vigorously compete in the global marketplace, have expectations for success and still have peace of mind enough to pursue a social life.

Fortunately for most communications network operations executives, they get it right. The solution: keep the competent and the willing on their existing internal telecom / IT network team and partner them with outside Telecom Expense Management (TEM) expertise capable of delivering a high-performing and operationally sound network at competitive market pricing. This pragmatic approach allows companies to retain the proper internal talent and control needed to effectively work with and manage the relationship with their chosen outside TEM provider, while still extracting the priceless niche expertise provided by the TEM provider.

The stakes are high today and the choice of forgoing outside TEM help is often tantamount to driving your car fast through the fog or driving it for years on end without professional servicing. You may get away with it for a while, but it will catch up with you eventually. And when it does, you will wish you had made the proactive TEM choice as opposed to the reactive one of embracing complacency until an emergency dictates otherwise. The former choice is the responsible one and always the cheaper one in the long run.

Because of these realities, the TEM industry has exploded in the past few years. Gartner reports that there are now over 100+ TEM firms offering their assistance to companies all along the enterprise spectrum, from companies with revenues of a few million to Fortune 50 giants. And the future looks bright for TEM providers, as the TEM arena is estimated to grow at an annual compounded rate greater than 30% through 2010, at which point it’s estimated to total .5 billion.

What exactly is Telecom Expense Management (TEM)?

Although definitions may vary between firms depending upon their focus and point of view, Telecom Expense Management (TEM) is generally defined as the discipline of effectively managing a communications network to achieve desired levels of service delivery / quality of service (QOS), while keeping costs contained to levels at or – even better – below current market levels.

“For us, it’s fairly straightforward,” says Source Loop’s Managing Director & Founding Principal Chris Lee, “We help companies realize maximum telecom cost savings and increase their Return on Investment (ROI), while ensuring improved operational and network performance. “ That’s certainly the result outsourcers are looking for, but how do you achieve these results, is a question many potential TEM clients will be interested in.

According to Chris, “Source Loop drives telecom costs and network performance to optimal levels through our holistic Telecom Life Cycle Approach. Source Loop is a full service TEM, so our offerings include Auditing, Cost Avoidance / Telecom Cost Elimination (TCE), Rate Benchmarking, Network Optimization, Network Assessments and our TEM practice embraces an Industry Best Practices standard that we apply to all our TEM processes. Specifically, processes involving Invoice Management, Payments, Reporting, Budgeting, Cost Allocations, Order & Inventory, Vendor Management, Technology Alternatives, Contract Negotiations etcetera. Our clients essentially become our partners; we focus on their TEM needs so they can focus on their core business. Our TEM approach is proactive, integrated and committed to providing innovative best-in-class network solutions to our clients. Our TEM clients have averaged over M in realized savings.”

What exactly is Managed Sourcing?

If a solid TEM practice is essential to a healthy network, especially on a recurring basis, then Managed Sourcing acts as the spearhead at the vanguard of effective Telecom Expense Management. Managed Sourcing may generally be defined as the systematic procurement of telecom services at competitive rates. According to Source Loop Managing Director & Principal Daren Moore, “A good sourcing practice is arguably the best way to save on Telecom Network costs, since savings are realized up front, before ever leaving the company coffers. Our clients have averaged in excess of 38% realized savings to date.”

From Source Loop’s perspective, Managed Sourcing is critical to controlling and managing your telecom spend, since this is often where the greatest opportunity for network savings is realized. It is perhaps one of the greatest services a competent TEM can provide. Source Loop’s Managed Sourcing practice utilizes its sourcing experience and current market data to evaluate rates for data, LD, voice, local and wireless services; develop and manage the Request For Proposal (RFP) process; and ensure that best of breed terms and conditions are secured from selected vendors. Enterprises would find it difficult, if not impossible, to gauge the current telecommunications market without some form of outside assistance. “When selecting a TEM provider, I would highly recommend that you evaluate the firm’s Sourcing capabilities, as this truly is a powerful driver of network cost savings,” says Daren.

Source Loop’s managed sourcing solution includes: the development of a complete inventory of services; a comprehensive network assessment; full rate and term benchmark comparisons of existing services to best available for comparable spend; RFP development; leads negotiations with vendors; and provides full read-outs and recommendations to clients.

* Source Loop is a privately held (LLC) Telecom Expense Management & IT consulting firm based in Reston VA, with an office in Alpharetta, GA., offering both professional and managed services designed to enable companies to effectively manage their Telecom / IT networks and service providers. Source Loop provides Sourcing, Network and Operational Assessments, Audits and Optimization services. In addition, Source Loop also provides a recurring managed service for all telecom expenses. Source Loop may be reached by phone at 1-866-834-0476 or via website at http://www.sourceloop.com.

What is Telecom Expense Management?

One of the most pressing concerns for most medium to large sized businesses is keeping telecommunications costs under control. This is especially difficult when a company uses a variety of services and hardware, including long distance, mobile and broadband Internet. Smart businesses develop formal procedures for cost reduction and tracking – something professionals call telecom expense management.

It’s easy to define telecom expense management by its goals – cost reduction and expense tracking – but when you get into the actual methods of telecom expense management you’ll discover that best practices involve a number of combined tactics to the point where many companies employ professional telecom expense management services. GILL Technologies is one such company, and it employs the following methods to keep client telecom costs down, while helping them identify critical elements in their billing and usage.

Error Detection: Erroneous charges are common for virtually every carrier and service. These include everything from miscalculated per minute charges for wireless bills to suspected fraud. Telecom expense management professionals audit billing, usage and contractual entitlements. When they don’t match up, the telecom auditor requests an adjustment to reflect the true expense.

Contract Auditing and Management: By examining the client’s real usage requirements, a telecom expense management professional can determine whether or not existing contracts provide the most cost effective solution. For example, companies routinely pay for more minutes than they actually use, or make use of certain services more than they anticipated. For example, if a client routinely goes above the usage ceiling for his company’s broadband or mobile data, the company will be subject to punishing additional charges. Telecom expense management discovers the best plans for a company’s actual needs.

Market Analysis: A skilled telecom expense management service provides an unbiased service that directs clients to the carriers that best suit their needs. Telecom expense management professionals are aware of the latest hardware, network and contract developments for carriers and can pick the most budget conscious options. In some cases the professional will recommend different carriers depending on the service, and can provide management services that allow clients to easily distribute services across multiple carriers so that if (for example) the best carrier for mobile is different from the best for broadband, the client can take advantage of both. The best management services ensure that on the client end, this is no more difficult than using a single carrier by providing a unified single point of contact.

Telecom Expense Management and Reporting Software: Best practices in telecom expense management require transparency so that the client understands company usage and savings under the management regime. The easiest solution for the client is access to specialized software. GILL Technologies provides access to its own telecom expense management software to enable clients to monitor their own usage and costs in addition to the services of a telecom auditing professional. This visibility allows management to detect misuse, understand usage patterns throughout the company, and enforce telephone, mobile and internet policies.

These are just a few of the tactics used in a combined telecom expense management strategy. It’s easy to see why top quality telecom expense management requires professional help. The cost of the service is more than offset by savings, and a quality telecom expense management company can show these savings down to the penny. It’s a net negative expense – a benefit to your bottom line.

Telecoms Expense Management ? Why Bother?

Telecom costs equate to 3.6% of a typical companies entire P&L spend which would explain why “telecommunications expenditure remains near the top of every CIO’s expense list” (Gartner) and why “Telecommunications cost management has become one of the hottest sectors in today’s business process automation marketplace.” (Aberdeen Group)

More than 50% of large enterprises don’t know what they are spending on telecom related services across the company. The telecommunications spending area is so wrought with inefficiency, in fact, that most people don’t know how much they spend on telecom services, never mind how they can best manage those budgets. (Aberdeen Group)

From our experience in this space Xceed has discovered that the difference between ‘average’ and ‘competitive’ rates is as much as 40%. Only 5% of the contracts we’ve reviewed could be classed as ‘competitive’.

However, good telecoms expense management isn’t just about negotiating the best contracts, it requires active management of the telecoms providers and a high level of scrutiny when it comes to checking bills. A staggering 80% of telecoms bills include hidden charges or mis-billing. The traditional approach of “stare & compare” simply isn’t effective. Some global blue-chips still rely on a plus or minus 10% approach when it comes to paying their telecoms bills – ie, if it’s + or – 10% of last month’s bill then it gets paid without question. When you understand that BT alone has over twenty different billing systems which don’t talk to each other you’ll appreciate that a more stringent approach always pays dividends.

Checking you’re receiving the correct tariff is straight forward enough. However, it starts to get more complicated when you look into the number of zero or low usage lines, closed locations, high usage, non-business related charges and other aspects of variable expenditure. In short, it’s as much about asset register management as it is bill management.

 You’re entitled to recover over-billing and mis-billing for up to six years from your network provider. However, the most dramatic savings are realised when this is one element of a cohesive approach to telecoms and inventory management, as Giga Information Group so snappily states “Bill management should be part of a strategic plan, a step that will reduce enterprise costs and achieve savings in the short term, while creating the infrastructure for streamlining processes and systems and laying the foundations for a long-term solid solution for managing and optimising the provision of communications.”

 So, in our experience it’s well worth treating Telecoms Expense Management as a serious project and covering the full breadth of Fixed Line, Mobile & Data Networks, from both a fixed and variable cost perspective. We’re sure you’ll identify at least 20% savings and in extreme cases you’ll save over 50% of your current spend. Well worth investigating.

Telecoms Expense Management ? Why Bother?

Telecom costs equate to 3.6% of a typical companies entire P&L spend which would explain why “telecommunications expenditure remains near the top of every CIO’s expense list” (Gartner) and why “Telecommunications cost management has become one of the hottest sectors in today’s business process automation marketplace.” (Aberdeen Group)

More than 50% of large enterprises don’t know what they are spending on telecom related services across the company. The telecommunications spending area is so wrought with inefficiency, in fact, that most people don’t know how much they spend on telecom services, never mind how they can best manage those budgets. (Aberdeen Group)

From our experience in this space Xceed has discovered that the difference between ‘average’ and ‘competitive’ rates is as much as 40%. Only 5% of the contracts we’ve reviewed could be classed as ‘competitive’.

However, good telecoms expense management isn’t just about negotiating the best contracts, it requires active management of the telecoms providers and a high level of scrutiny when it comes to checking bills. A staggering 80% of telecoms bills include hidden charges or mis-billing. The traditional approach of “stare & compare” simply isn’t effective. Some global blue-chips still rely on a plus or minus 10% approach when it comes to paying their telecoms bills – ie, if it’s + or – 10% of last month’s bill then it gets paid without question. When you understand that BT alone has over twenty different billing systems which don’t talk to each other you’ll appreciate that a more stringent approach always pays dividends.

Checking you’re receiving the correct tariff is straight forward enough. However, it starts to get more complicated when you look into the number of zero or low usage lines, closed locations, high usage, non-business related charges and other aspects of variable expenditure. In short, it’s as much about asset register management as it is bill management.

 You’re entitled to recover over-billing and mis-billing for up to six years from your network provider. However, the most dramatic savings are realised when this is one element of a cohesive approach to telecoms and inventory management, as Giga Information Group so snappily states “Bill management should be part of a strategic plan, a step that will reduce enterprise costs and achieve savings in the short term, while creating the infrastructure for streamlining processes and systems and laying the foundations for a long-term solid solution for managing and optimising the provision of communications.”

 So, in our experience it’s well worth treating Telecoms Expense Management as a serious project and covering the full breadth of Fixed Line, Mobile & Data Networks, from both a fixed and variable cost perspective. We’re sure you’ll identify at least 20% savings and in extreme cases you’ll save over 50% of your current spend. Well worth investigating.

Telecoms Expense Management ? Should I be Interested?

Analyst Observations

Telecom costs equate to 3.6% of a typical company’s entire P&L spend which would explain why “telecommunications expenditure remains near the top of every CIO’s expense list” (Gartner) and why “Telecommunications cost management has become one of the hottest sectors in today’s business process automation marketplace.” (Aberdeen Group)

More than 50% of large enterprises don’t know what they are spending on telecom related services across the company. “In fact, this area is so wrought with inefficiency that most people don’t know how much they spend on telecom services, never mind how they can best manage those budgets.” (Aberdeen Group)

From our experience in this space Xceed has discovered that the difference between ‘average’ and ‘competitive’ rates is as much as 40%. Tellingly, only 5% of the contracts we’ve reviewed could be classed as ‘competitive’.

Historical Overbilling

However, telecoms expense management isn’t simply about negotiating the best contracts; it requires active management of the telecoms providers and a high level of scrutiny when it comes to checking bills.

A staggering 80% of telecoms bills include hidden charges or mis-billing. The traditional approach of “stare & compare” simply isn’t effective. Some global bluechips we know still rely on a plus or minus 10% approach when it comes to paying their telecoms bills – i.e. if it’s + or – 10% of last month’s bill then it gets paid automatically. When you understand your network provider has a large and eclectic collection of billing systems that aren’t always in sync you’ll appreciate that a more stringent approach always pays dividends.

Checking you’re receiving the correct tariff, whilst time consuming, is straight forward enough and can even be done manually – which will yield results. However, for large or even medium sized organisations it just isn’t practical to scrutinise every line of every bill for Mobile, Fixed Line and Data charges. This is where Software as a Service can help as there are tools which, correctly configured, can compare millions of lines of billing data against your contracted tariff in a matter of seconds. We’ve never seen this exercise fail to identify 10% overbilling, frequently much greater, irrespective of the supplier.

If your personal mobile or landline provider routinely added 10%-40% to your monthly bill we don’t think it would be long before you asked for a rebate. Surprisingly, very few businesses have identified this, despite the fact that for many, telecoms comes second or third to staff costs in terms of total spend.

One global blue-chip we know spends over £500m on their telecoms bills but until recently had never gone beyond “stare and compare” as a method of managing this cost

and challenging their suppliers to do better.

You’re legally entitled to recover overbilling and mis-billing for up to six years from your network provider. However, the most dramatic savings are realised when this is one element of a cohesive approach to telecoms and inventory management, as Giga Information Group so snappily states “Bill management should be part of a strategic plan, a step that will reduce enterprise costs and achieve savings in the short term, while creating the infrastructure for streamlining processes and systems and laying the foundations for a long-term solid solution for managing and optimising the provision of communications.”

Zero Usage & Inventory Management

TEM starts to get a little more complex when you look into the number of zero or low usage lines, closed locations, high usage, non-business related charges and other aspects of variable expenditure. There are two aspects to this area of TEM:

First is the inventory or telecoms asset management aspect. Between 15% and 35% of all fixed telecoms assets are surplus to requirements. The number of lines being paid for rarely matches the number you’re actually using, which goes across fixed line, mobile and data networks. Recently we came across a famous computer gaming company which was paying €18,000 per month for a high-speed pipe into its Madrid office. This had been paid for 18 months, without question; until we pointed out that it had never been used. Not once. Ever.

Changing Practices

So far nothing we’ve outlined carries any risk to the business when it comes to implementing the savings that are identified. The areas that do carry an element of risk are those which involve changing practices. This includes high-usage, non-business related calls and other aspects of variable cost.

A simple example is people frequently using 118 or 0870 numbers, usage of which is commonly covered by company policy or by simply making the numbers unavailable. But

how many times do your organisation’s landlines get routed externally for internal calls? How often are your Blackberrys calling other company Blackberrys but being charged at standard mobile rates? Not many Telecoms Managers let alone Executives can answer these questions but there are real savings to be made in this area.

There are also specialist tools and companies which can give you the answers or the tools to get the answers yourselves. The only slight risk is ensuring that any change in working practice doesn’t affect your business.

In short, good Telecoms Expense Management is as much about asset register or inventory management as it is about bill management.

We’ve found it is important to treat Telecoms Expense Management as a standalone project, covering the full breadth of Fixed Line, Mobile & Data Networks, from both a fixed and variable cost perspective. By combining the various elements mentioned in a comprehensive TEM project we’re sure you’ll identify at least 20% savings and in extreme cases you’ll save over 50% of your current spend.

Current Market

A number of companies are currently doing exactly this and in many ways it is the US leading the way. TEM is an established, billion dollar industry in the States. Major US corporations like American Express and Bank of America are rolling out comprehensive TEM solutions across their global estates. Both American Express and BoA have opted for one of the US market leaders, who offer a comprehensive TEM solution which includes installing TEM hardware on the client site.

By comparison the UK is significantly behind with no clear market leader for Telecoms Expense Management and very few organisations understand there’s more to TEM than the recovery of historical overbilling.

Search for TEM companies in the UK and you’ll predominantly find Procurement Consultancies which offer a bill checking and recovery service which is conducted manually. There are also air-time resellers who offer Telecoms Expense Management as a pre-cursor to selling you their telecoms services but there are also a few UK centric

companies and products that specialise in TEM and offer independent consultancy with the right software for the job.

The best approaches we’ve seen include a comprehensive review of the current inventory along with powerful software to eliminate or recover over-billing. For sustainable savings the ultimate solution lies in Software as a Service (SaaS) or a bureau / managed service which can manage your asset register at the same time as precisely checking each month’s itemized billing. This helps to ensure you maintain an up to date and accurate telecoms asset inventory (which in itself can be invaluable in managing office relocations and IT integrations) at the same time as driving year on year savings which are typically in the region of 10%-15% when using TEM specific software.

Conclusion

So should you be interested in Telecoms Expense Management?

Let’s put it this way; if you could save 1.44% of your entire P&L spend without impacting the performance, morale or service of your organisation, would you? Of course you would.

This is effectively the opportunity on offer from the leading Telecom Expense Management firms. We’ve seen an average of 40% savings on over 20 TEM projects which we’ve monitored. So with Telecoms costs equating to an average of 3.6% of a company’s entire P&L spend it’s reasonable to argue that 1.4% of your P&L spend can be removed with minimal risk.

So, should you be interested in Telecoms Expense Management?

Emphatically; Yes.