Posted by Jennifer Burns on Thu, Jul 22, 2010
As you probably know by now, we love educational events. A month or so back, we started hearing teasers regarding a new event focused on Enterprise Mobility. Now that it has come to fruition, we are giddy. Admittedly, I am a geek. Feel free to poke fun.
CTIA will be hosting the CTIA Enterprise & Application Conference in San Francisco October 5th-8th. Prior to the event, The Enterprise Mobility Foundation will be kicking off Enterprise Mobility Boot Camp - a Two-Part Power Session for IT/Telecom professionals who need unbiased advice from mobile enterprise experts.
Enterprise Mobility Boot Camp Part I: Examines the "hot issues of the day" for the mobile enterprise, and then dives deep into the tactical considerations IT/Telecom professionals face every day. A range of strategies for maximizing the mobile enterprise through mobile applications and a hosted networking reception rounds out day one programming.
Enterprise Mobility Boot Camp Part II: Enables IT/Telecom professionals to learn about leading vendors in the space, participate in a peer-to-peer, rapid-fire "Speed Networking" session to make valuable connections and finally engage in an "Ask the Experts" panel/break-out session with leading enterprise mobility analysts.
To find out more information or to register, click here.
I know that I need to get into shape and there is always more to learn in this dynamic area, so I will definitely be there! I hope to see you.
Posted by Jennifer Burns on Tue, Jul 20, 2010
The Telecom Tip Junkie is back in full force! I hope that you found my recent post on RFP tips helpful and informative.
I came across another great tip from AOTMP. This one seems particularly relevant right now as us consumers are constantly lured into buying the latest technology (iPhone 4.whatever's next, Droid X, etc.). Lets be honest, it is starting to get difficult to stay in "the know" with the latest developments or even drawbacks. For instance, what kind of data plan is necessary when purchasing the Droid or will I need rabbit ears from my old TV in order for my new iPhone to work. Personally, I don't have a clue.
What I do know is this dynamic environment combined with hundred if not thousands of users, poses a number of challenges for those of you charged with evaluating the options and managing the infrastructure. While blindfolding and gagging your company's early adopters whenever a new mobile device is released has some appeal, its probably against your HR policy. As an alternative, here is a little tip that may help a little.
Tip #265: Environment Management - Periodic Technology Reviews
New technologies may enhance current business operations or may not be practical at all; however, you shoul establish a periodic review of what is available. it is possible that you might not need to replace what is in use now, but you may find bundled packaging or pricing of services is a current offering from you Telecom Service Provider. There are several methods by which you could conduct these reviews. One way would be to require a meeting with your Telecom Service Provider representative every six months. Alternate methods might be to consult the technological savvy people within your organization, conduct research on the internet, or check the Service/Price Guides of the providers to evaluate promotional offerings. New technology may increase efficiency, but to make a sound decision about new technology offerings, you need to also consider functionailty, implementation costs and recurring costs in your assessment.
Until next time.
Posted by Jennifer Burns on Fri, Jul 16, 2010
I promised to blog about CCMIs National Summit on Telecom Expense Management and some of the sessions. While Ian’s keynote presentation was by far my favorite, of course, I really enjoyed a session presented by Steve Martin the IT Financial Officer of Liberty Mutual Insurance. He presented a Case Study that discussed the RFP portion of his company’s Telecom Expense Management provider selection process.
Steve’s presentation resonated with me personally. In my earlier days at Quickcomm, I was the person responsible for responding to any RFX that came our way. Responding to an RFX takes a significant amount of time, thought and….patience. To say that this portion of my job was both grueling and frustrating is a complete understatement. I am still wondering what I did in a previous life that warranted this task to fall on to my plate. I have received RFXs that were over 200 pages (which didn’t include our response), ones that required 9 copies printed while asking how we will help them “go green”, ones required on blue paper, one that inquired into Quickcomm’s preferred snack choice is and I won’t even get into some of the off-the-wall questions we have had to respond to. Don’t ask.
Sorry, I digress. Of course, I understand that the RFP process is a necessary evil for some organizations. And while it is a huge undertaking on the supplier’s part, it is even more so for an enterprise. Scoping, writing, reading, evaluating and down-selecting is far more difficult than simply responding. When I saw Steve’s case study, I absolutely had to attend as I was really curious as to hear from an enterprise what the thought process was behind this huge undertaking. I left the session wanting to sing Steve’s praises from a mountain top. He really had some valuable knowledge and tips to share that helped both enterprises and suppliers. Here are some:
- Don’t ask questions just because you can. Only ask what is necessary. His RFP was originally 413 questions which after second review was whittled down to 255 questions.
- Discuss RFP scoring BEFORE the RFP is launched.
- Create a supplier background RFI process. Ask repetitive bidders a standard set of questions and keep the responses on file and leverage for future RFX.
- Focus on your company’s specific needs.
- Create a company overview document for Telecom Expense Management. Provide as much current state information and historical data as possible. Include current workflows and processes. (I can’t stress how much this helps suppliers properly scope, respond and price your project.)
- Define team roles and responsibilities. Ensure that everyone on the RFP Team understands roles and responsibilities before the RFP launches.
- Summarize all of the supplier responses along with the following comparison
- Did they provide the same answer, if “Yes”, eliminate it as a differentiator
- Level of confidence in the response
- Follow up questions you may have
- Supplier edge
- Interact with the suppliers during the process. View a demo, discuss the RFP, clarify responses and discuss your potential issues and concerns in detail.
And my absolute favorite was:
- Approach the RFP as if the supplier knows best. I know it seems self serving that I would say this is my favorite but hear me out. I will be the first person to say that you know your business best…here comes the “but”. While you may know your business best, some suppliers are experts in telecom expense management. TEM suppliers have been implementing these projects and processes for clients of all shapes and sizes. And we have been doing it for a long time and have had to overcome some unique challenges.
Steve noted during the session that the way they were currently doing things wasn’t necessarily the best way. I loved it when he said, “We weren’t doing the right thing in the first place, and we needed someone to tell us that. I want a partner to tell me what I need, not what I want.”
Posted by John Bruce on Thu, Jun 24, 2010
Excellent recent webinar by Jennifer Beck at Gartner, entitled “The CIO Mindset”. They surveyed their clients, pretty much a who’s who of corporations, to figure out what’s keeping CIOs awake at night. In general terms, no shocking revelations, they discovered the top three concerns are; Improving Business processes, Reducing Enterprise costs and Increasing the use of information/analytics.
As a vendor who can confidently demonstrate we improve business processes, reduce enterprise telecomm costs by over ten percent and provide analytics to help users drive their businesses more efficiently, the report was well received. It went on to call out the areas of most interest in improving the overall economics of IT and immediately after the hot topics of virtualization, cloud computing and Web2.0 was Networking, voice and data communications.
Good company news all round. USA and England both qualified for the final sixteen and the Socceroos almost pulled off an upset. Every office is happy.
You can find the Webinar on the Gartner website.