As telecom expense management and telecom lifecycle management services continue gain popularity among enterprises eager to reduce telecom expenses, companies can benefit from making TEM “resolutions” for 2010 to make certain they achieve their goals.

 

Trent McCracken (News - Alert), president of Spectrum, Inc., offers these four TEM resolutions that can be applied to your organization.

 

1. Invest in a TLM solution: Telecom lifecycle management is no longer “something to try,” McCracken said. “It is proven with every new company that invests in this solution, the ROI is greater than anticipated. Not to mention the hard dollar savings (which everyone needs right now), you have to look at the efficiencies and optimizations that are gained within the telecom, IT, and accounting departments.”

 

2. Keep your “eye on the prize”: Implementing a TLM solution requires a lot of planning, and actions “outside the comfort zone,” however, statistics show that if you stick with the implementation, listen to the recommended process changes from the TLM provider, and make the hard decisions, the overall payoff can be enormous.

 

3. Inspect what you expect: Companies should be a part of the implementation and not step aside, McCracken explained. “Many of the components of a TLM solution require knowledge of how the process is currently. Companies have the best historical knowledge of their infrastructure, so be sure to communicate this to the TLM provider. After all, everyone is on the same page in that we are looking for ways to save monies and improve processes. The teamed approach is the best way to accomplish this,” he said.

 

According to a recent Gartner (News - Alert) MarketScope,the IT research firm expects that both 2009 and 2010 will be so-called “breakout” years for TEM, as companies based in Western Europe start to adopt TEM services in greater numbers.

 

Telecom lifecycle management providers – such as Cincinnati-based Spectrum (News - Alert), Inc. – can manage the complete telecom lifecycle, from benchmarking current services, service order management, asset management and expense management, invoice visibility and auditing, to customized analytical reporting of all wireless and wireline services