Five Benefits of Telecom Expense Management
July 19, 2013
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor
As much as we all like to stay connected, we also have a desire to do so without paying too much for our mobile or telecom service. Quality and availability are certainly nice, but not if the provider wants double the average cost to deliver on these expectations. The challenge is in identifying the best strategy to keep costs in check while still getting what you want. It may be time for telecom expense management.
In the corporate environment, telecom expense management is an important tool to ensure the services on the bill are the services actually in use. It also forces you to identify any and all lines on an account so that any idle connections are disconnected for a reduction in the final monthly cost. Not an easy task, this practice does ensure only the prudent use of resources so you get the best value for the dollar.
A recent AMTEL report offered five ways to cut your company’s monthly communications bills. With telecom expense management at the ready, you can easily identify what you have, what you need and where changes can be made for a lower bill. Let’s take a look at these five methods and see what may be applicable in your environment.
Disconnect the zombie phones – no, this isn’t a fun play on the zombie phenomenon of late. Instead, this is a direct guideline on what to do with phones no longer in use. When an employee leaves the company or moves to another location, a phone is often left behind that should be disconnected.
Sidestep the excessive roaming charges – if a user needs to travel internationally, their phone will automatically search for data service and trigger an alert. This immediately generates an international roaming charge. If a plan is put in place before travel that accounts for this kind of connection, the fee is generally much lower.
Recycling works – get rid of old equipment no longer in use. These line items are easily donated, repurposed, recycled or destroyed according to need. Any associated services should be immediately terminated, once again reducing the cost.
Avoid the overages – while no one wants to be charged for overages, the needs of the user sometimes exceed the allotment from the carrier. Telecom expense management forces you to take a closer look at the needs of your users and adjust your plans accordingly.
Penalty elimination – it’s easy to overlook an invoice, especially if something changes in the billing process. Putting invoice processing on an automated platform ensures timely payment and eliminates unnecessary penalties.
Telecom expense management solutions, such IBM Emptoris Rivermine (News - Alert), are designed to empower companies to reduce their telecom expenses through the active management of the communication lifecycle. By automating processes already in place – and likely dispersed throughout the organization – a company can quickly identify those services they don’t need, holes in accessibility they do need and the best methods for streamlining the cost of communications.
Edited by Rachel Ramsey