Karen Thatcher, CEO

I am happy to announce the fall 2012 scheduled dates for the Essentials of Telecom Auditing workshops! The dates are as follows:

Monday & Tuesday, September 17-18, 2012

Thursday & Friday, November 8-9, 2012

I want to keep these events very personalized and hands-on, so registration is limited to only 8 participants for each workshop. Workshops will be held at our  corporate offices in Overland Park, KS.  Registration is first-come, first-served so don’t delay.

To learn all the details, including the 2-day agenda, visit our Telecom Audit Training website.

Elizabeth Supica, VP

Imagine a newly married couple, neither of which speak each other’s language. They do their best to understand one another, but a lack of meaningful and understandable communication will most likely doom the union from the start.

Throughout many companies, the relationship between the IT department and executive leadership is similar. The familiar phrase “it was a match made in heaven” rarely, if ever, applies.

Through a survey of 150 IT departments at mid-sized companies, the IT Leadership Exchange found that 90 percent of CIOs expect that the IT department will be misaligned with business needs in an economic recovery, and more than half feel that this will threaten the business’s long-term competitiveness.

Fortunately, there are a few simple things you can do to bridge the often troublesome gap between IT and executives. Cooperation and understanding of each others needs can go a long way.

1) Align Business Goals with IT Methodology and Projects.
In practice, every enterprise has its own distinct sets of business and IT goals. Priorities within these sets will differ depending on a variety of internal and external factors such as company size, market position, degree of IT dependency, industry, and geography. In today’s complex business world, strategic planning based on the alignment of business goals and IT is crucial to success.

Business discussions should focus on strategic, relationship-related matters including clearly outlining IT and business partner roles, business unit goals, and potential future projects. It is important that management begin with a clear view its business goals and exactly how IT can, and will, contribute to the needs of the business. Business leaders need to be certain that every IT department member understands and can articulate the needs and goals of the business first, then design IT systems and projects only the the extent that they will help achieve these goals.

2) Determine Project Hierarchy and Stick to it.
If there is one phrase that those in IT hear most frequently, it is “I need this right away!” Every request from the organization seems to be as urgent as the last – even if the request is complete nonsense from a technological standpoint. Oftentimes executives are under the impression that IT works only for them. They sometimes lose sight of the fact that the IT department serves hundreds or thousands of others on a daily basis.

Of course problems and issues will arise that require emergency status, but those that are not critical and, more importantly, do not bring value to the organization should be avoided. Every proposed project should result in increased sales, efficiency, and contribute in a meaningful way to the business. When business goals are aligned properly, the IT department has a much easier job in deciding how to divvy up valuable resources.  A written hierarchy for IT is crucial to keep everyone on the same page.

3) Know (and teach) the Difference Between “Wants” and “Needs”
Most senior managers lack a solid understanding of technology. They understand its importance but are not necessarily sure about how it all works. This is an area where IT can help by making sure that management understands the difference between an IT “need” and a “want”.

It is the responsibility of IT personnel to convey what can and cannot be done easily from a technological standpoint. Just because someone wants something to work a certain way does not mean it can easily be accomplished. Wants can, and probably should, turn into needs as the business evolves.

4) Work to Streamline Internal Processes
Management guru Peter Drucker teaches that process improvements can transform business and lead to innovation. Drucker notes that this is “the change that creates a new dimension of performance” for organizations. Ultimately, an IT department is judged on its productivity, efficiency, and the manner in which it serves individuals both inside and outside the organization.

When IT productivity increases, so does the productivity of those it serves. Routine analysis of IT operations will routinely uncover potential areas for improvement. These might include: improved automation, software and security upgrades, status request times, etc.

5) Make Accountability a Key Factor
IT accountability comes into play in the areas of IT operations, cost management, service delivery, and projects. IT accountability is critical to achieve maximum business value from IT-related decisions. Management executives need to make the IT leader fully aware that accountability is crucial to the success of the organization. Accountability should not happen only when things go wrong. Rather, IT needs to take ownership from the beginning.

The key to directing individuals and teams towards success is to clarify the organizational purpose from the outset. Management can only expect accountability from IT after they have conveyed a clear direction and the performance measures and objectives that are the most important to the company and its vision. Poor IT performance can reflect as much on management as IT itself.

6) Delegate IT Tasks Whenever Possible
More often than not, executive management teams tend to view cost-reduction as its number one priority for IT. In a tough economy, IT can feel even more heat as management looks to cut costs in every way possible.

One consistent problem that IT endures is that they have little time for tending to basic, but crucial, telecom issues.  In fact, IT managers often cite telecom as their number one time-intensive area. The key to effectively increasing IT efficiencies AND reducing costs at the same time can be as simple as delegating mundane tasks and telecom management of field locations to an outside firm that specializes in this area.

Handing off the variety of daily telecom issues to an expert frees up IT to concentrate on larger projects – the areas that contribute most to achieving business goals and growing the enterprise.  An expert telecom outsourcing firm will not only help bridge the gap between IT and management, but also between field offices, accounting, and ancilliary services departments.

Elizabeth Supica, VP

If there is one thing we have learned over the many years in this industry it is the fact that not all telecom cost-reduction solutions are created equal.

There are many companies in the marketplace that will “guarantee” a set percentage of cost-reduction savings across the board.  These companies employ dozens of high-powered sales reps (on commission, of course) that are relentless in extolling the benefits of huge savings to CFOs, CIOs, and others who are in the telecom decision making department.

If only you’ll turn over all of your telecom services to them,  then you will reach the telecom “utopia of savings” that you have been looking for!

When you find yourself in the midst of these types of sales pitches, be aware that many of these companies are simply resellers of telecom services – NOT true telecom auditing firms.

There are major differences between the two.

I recently had the pleasure of being on a podcast where I addressed many of the issues that should be considered before turning over your business to a reseller (i.e. CLEC) of telecom services.

The podcast is roughly 10 minutes long.  Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this topic.

Info PR: ? I: ? L: ? LD: ? I: ? Rank: ? Age: ? Tw: ? l: ? +1: ? whois Robo: ? Sitemap: ? Rank: ? Price: ? Links: 0|0 Density

?

Elizabeth Supica, VP

TelCon Associates has managed telecommunications for some of the largest REITs in North America for many years.   Because we are in the position of dealing with most of the issues that multifamily communities and their residents deal with every day, we consider ourselves very well attuned to the challenges of the industry.

The overriding question that we ask constantly ask ourselves is…”how can we continue to provide value to our multifamily clients through the use of telecommunications-based services?”

Our goal is to help our residential multifamily clients not only reduce and maintain telecom expenses, but also help grow their businesses and increase their “bottom line”.  We do this by providing services that assist them in keeping their customers (i.e. residents) happy and ready to sign another lease.

The fast growth of mobile technologies has made it possible for us to do just that.  We have recently rolled out a new phone polling service for multifamily communities.  Our aim with this new service is to provide a simple and affordable way for multifamily management and staff to gain valuable, real-time feedback on just what their residents like – and dislike- about the issues that concern them.

Let’s face it, sites like Facebook and Twitter have made it too easy for residents to vent their complaints and frustrations instantly to the world.   The proactive approach is to find out what residents are thinking BEFORE they turn to social media outlets.  Our phone polling service can help.

The following video gives a short two minute overview of the service and how it works.  If you would like a personal demo, please contact us and we will provide you with all the information you need.

Karen Thatcher, CEO

I ran across an article the other day regarding the fact that members of the U.S. Senate were now looking into the “unauthorized charges” that are mysteriously showing up on consumer phone bills – to the tune of about $2 billion per year.

My first thought after reading the article was….”where have these guys been for the last 15 -20 years?”

Of course these mysterious charges are not new to the world of telecom, especially those of us in the telecom auditing and bill management side of the industry.

The fraudulent practice is commonly referred to as “cramming” and it is a topic that we have been writing and teaching about for years in telecom fraud articles as well as a part of our telecom auditing workshops.  Cramming is now apparently getting bad enough to warrant a federal investigation.

What is Cramming?

Cramming is a widespread practice whereby third-party billing companies fraudulently add unauthorized charges to land lines and cell phone bills.   We have uncovered crams within virtually every telecom audit we have conducted over the last 20 years.

Removing crams is not difficult, but keeping them off future bills can be a challenge due to the fact that they have a tendency to reappear within months after being removed.  The third-party businesses that fraudulently place these unauthorized charges on bills were  most likely created for the sole purpose of exploiting these  methods to generate all, or at least most, of their revenue.

Telecom Carriers Make Huge Profits From Cramming

Many telecom carriers now offer third-party bill blocking to help prevent crams from appearing on bills. For the most part, however, these same carriers are against legislation to control third-party billing.  Even though the practice of cramming is completely fraudulent, the major carriers  are make millions processing these charges for third-party vendors.

According to a recent report, telephone companies over the last decade have generated more than $1 billion in revenue from the practice. AT&T, Qwest and Verizon have earned more than $650 million over the last five years through cramming.

Cramming continues to be a problem for both consumer and businesses, but I doubt that the federal government will have much of an effect on stopping the practice of fraudulent charges to phone bills.   The best defense is to simply examine your phone bills on a regular basis to identify charges that should not be there.

If you are a business owner, now is the perfect time to conduct your own telecom audit.  I am certain that you will find savings by removing crams from your bills.  If you are new to telecom auditing, make plans to attend one or our telecom auditing workshops this fall.   These 2-day events will give you the knowledge to keep those bills clean – now and into the future.

Karen Thatcher, CEO

Essentials of Telecom Auditing is a 2-day workshop that will teach you the skills necessary to conduct a thorough audit of your company’s voice and data services.

The information presented during the workshop is the same processes and methodology we have used at TelCon Associates to save our clients millions of dollars in unnecessary telecom spending.

I am happy to announce scheduled dates for the Essentials of Telecom Auditing workshops!  The dates of the 2011 workshops are as follows:

Monday/Tuesday – September 26-27, 2011

Monday/Tuesday – October 17-18, 2011

Thursday/Friday – November 3-4, 2011

I want to keep these events very personalized and hands-on, so registration is limited to only 8 participants for each workshop. Workshops will be held at the TelCon Associates new corporate offices in Overland Park, KS. Registration is first-come, first-served so don’t delay.

To learn all the details, including the 2-day agenda, visit our Telecom Audit Training website.

Elizabeth Supica, VP

Sure, we can now use our phones to surf the internet, answer email, play games, read a book, even navigate around town. But the South Koreans have figured out a way to grocery shop from the subway! Now that is an idea whose time has come.

This innovative idea of creating “virtual” stores that can be placed anywhere is a concept that I believe will become commonplace in the U.S. – probably sooner than later. Within just a few short years, everyone will carry an internet enabled smart phone with them wherever they go.

Physical locations of brick and mortar stores could one day become irrelevant.

Why take time to drive to the mall, park your car, and fight the crowds when you can shop from wherever you are at any time of day? Imagine doing ALL of your Christmas shopping while waiting for a bus or train!

Take a look at how one South Korean retailer increased their market share without building one single additional brick and mortar store.

Elizabeth Supica, VP

Text2Residents.com offers users a custom text and voice application that will not only save time and increase productivity for management and staff, but also help foster a more effective line of communication between management and residents by leveraging the power of group text and voice messaging.

“We saw the need for our multifamily and senior living clients to integrate mobile applications to help communicate better – and more efficiently – with residents and staff members. Virtually everyone carries a cell phone wherever they go, so a group texting platform was the perfect solution for our new service,” says Elizabeth Supica, VP of TelCon Associates.

Although it works “in the cloud”, the platform is designed to be simple and super easy to use.

The following video overview below explains in detail how the service works, and the benefits it provides multifamily and senior living management.

For more information, and to test drive the service FREE for 30 days, visit Text2Residents.com

Elizabeth Supica, VP

If you are like me, you often struggle with one simple thing: consistently getting things done. After a long day, I sometimes feel like I have not accomplished anything I set out to do that day.

If you are a “multi-tasker”, the feeling of being overwhelmed by the inevitable interruptions of a typical work day can really put a damper on staying on task and completing the important things that need to get done.

Fortunately, there are productivity tools available now that help me stay focused.  Not only do they increase my productivity, they also help eliminate wasted time and effort during my work day.   As one would guess, all of these tools center around technology.

The following is a list of tools that I use regularly to stay more productive and get more done throughout my day.

Productivity Tool #1: Android 2 Smart Phone

Ok, I’ll admit it… I am addicted to my Android smart phone. I use my Android for so many tasks, I sometimes wonder how I ever got along without one!  My Android acts more like a pocket desktop computer, delivering my email, text messages, and phone calls without fail.

Because my phone can access the Internet wherever I go, it allows me to leverage productive time during my day – time that would otherwise be wasted.  Standing in line at the bank, the supermarket, or dry cleaners has now become productive time thanks to my Android and its many useful apps.  If you don’t have smart phone yet, do yourself a favor, and get one. You will never look back.

Productivity Tool #2: Tadalist.com

I am the poster child for the “to do” list.  Oftentimes my written to do lists span 3-4 pages.   Because I collaborate closely with TelCon Associates colleagues in other locations, I need a simple online solution that enables me to share lists with others.  Tadalist.com is the answer.

This online tool is easy to use and works great.  When “to-dos” are added to any list of mine, an RSS feed triggers a small pop up window on my desktop PC, alerting me that a new item has been added.  It may not be as simple as a hand written list, but when working with others on tasks, tadalist.com comes in very handy.

Productivity Tool #3: Screencast-o- Matic

Lately, one of my favorite (and fun) tools in my productivity arsenal is one that saves me time with employees and clients alike.  It is a video screen capture tool called Screencast-o-Matic.

If you have ever had someone look over your shoulder while you demonstrated a “how to” on your computer screen, you will love Screencast-o-matic.   This ingenious tool captures and records your computer screen – along with audio – into a fully functional how-to or demonstration video.  The video file can then be saved to a hard drive, stored onto Screencast-o-matic servers, or even immediately uploaded to YouTube.

Screencast-o-matic lets me record training tutorials or sales presentations ONE TIME, then store them in a video format that can be shown over and over again in the future.  It is not only a time saver, it makes it convenient for employees and clients because they can view the videos at anytime via the Internet or CD ROM.

Screencast-0-matic is free to use, but you will want to spend $12 per year to get the extra features that are included in the premium version.   Try it, and you will begin to think of all sorts of uses for this wonderful tool.

Productivity Tool #4: The Action Machine

If there is one thing that multi-taskers suffer from is the ability and to focus on just ONE task – without interruption or taking the “eye off the ball”.   It has been estimated that it takes a full 15 minutes to get back into a productive state on a task after you have been interrupted by another.

One of my colleagues introduced me to a handy little tool called the Action Machine. This desktop application sits in your control bar and, when fired up, acts as a “command and control” center for staying focused on one task at a time.

With the Action Machine, you simply take the items on your to-do list and puts them into action mode.  After all, a to-do list is only as good as the action and effort one takes to complete  it.  Specific time frames (in increments of 15 minutes) are set for any and all tasks on the action list.   The goal is to not waiver from taking action on any one task until the timer goes off.  It literally forces you to stay focused.

One thing I love about the Action Machine is the detailed reports that can be generated for the time spent on tasks, lists, days, weeks, etc.  Anyone who bills by the hour could use the Action Machine to clock their client activities throughout the day, week, month, or even year.

The Action Machine is not a free tool, but the increased productivity that results from its use is well worth the small fee.

Productivity Tool #5: My Own Customized Voice/Text PBX System

Cloud communications technology has made it possible to design complicated PBX systems for the routing of voice and text data.   At TelCon Associates, we have been hard at work designing new ways for our clients to not only reduce telecom costs, but also to provide tools that will increase their productivity.   We are now designing custom PBX systems – hosted in “the cloud” -  that will do just that.

With me as their first guinea pig, our tech guys designed a system that integrates all of my communications devices from just one dedicated phone number. My personal PBX gives me the ability to control exactly how my calls and texts are routed – even by day and time.   It integrates voice calls, texts, and even transcribes my voice mail messages and sends them to my email account.

Another positive is that because my personal PBX ties in all of my communications devices with one dedicated virtual number, I never have to give out my cell phone number to anyone.

TelCon Associates will soon be offering these types of hosted PBX systems to small businesses who need more control over all of their communication devices and their users. 

Technology can be very useful in making your work day more productive, but don’t forget about things like a healthy diet, regular exercise, and a good night’s sleep.   Without those, no to-do list in the world will be good enough to overcome an unproductive workday.

Alicia Link, Audit Specialist

Can your business afford to give away $100,000 a year?

If you are not on the most cost effective telephone plan for your business, you may be doing just that.

This week, TelCon Associates identified almost $100,000 in annual savings for a property management client simply by making strategic changes to the phone plans at 17 apartment communities. While it is often thought that finding significant errors in billing will provide that big windfall, it is more typical to reap rewards by reviewing the basics – the telephone plans.

Unfortunately, it does take time and effort to stay on top of ever-changing phone plans by carriers, but the results can be dramatic. For example, at&t in Texas has a new plan available, the at&t Business Local Calling Plan. The difference between the cost of a standard line with additional features and a line with this Plan can be as much as $40.00 or more per line!

Even better, the plan does not require any long term commitment.  Account representatives for carriers often try to push specific plans or features that are not necessary, or the most cost effective.  The bottom line is to know what plan you have, if any, and what is available through your carrier.  The cost of not knowing may be much more than you think.

So do take the time to research, or partner with a company that can help.  It could be worth an extra $100,000 or more!

Related Articles

How to Correct and Resolve Telecom Billing Errors
Telecom Audit Case Study: Multi-location Apartment Community REIT
8 Quick Ways to Reduce Local Phone Service Charges