"I love taking an idea... to a prototype and then to a product that millions of people use." Susan Wojcicki. When it comes to starting with an OSS build, I'm a big believer in the benefits of building a rapid prototype in one of the customer's pre-production* environment. Most suppliers approach their OSS implementation projects with the production environment firmly entrenched in their thinking as first…
Read More »"Graph databases are based on graph theory. Graph databases employ nodes, properties, and edges. Nodes are very similar in nature to the objects that object-oriented programmers will be familiar with." Wikipedia entry on Graph Databases. I believe that Graph data models represent the likely future for OSS. And I've long held the belief that flexible object-oriented data structures are required for next-generation OSS. When looking for…
Read More »"It is my belief that it is not possible to invent truly original ideas if you absorb too much of that that you wish to differentiate yourself from. As I said, don’t overly study the competition. Study instead the behaviours, needs and frustrations belonging to your customers. Build a culture and environment that nurtures creativity and problem solving." Simon Devonshire. Over time, over budget, under delivered.…
Read More »Elitecore Announces LTE-ready, Integrated BSS Platform Elitecore Technologies, a global provider of next-generation BSS solution announces future ready pre-integrated BSS platform comprising online charging, convergent billing, PCRF, DSC, 3GPP AAA and enhanced mediation for LTE networks. It supports gradual migration from existing networks to provide personalized LTE offerings such as shared wallet/family plans, a la carte plans and VoLTE support. The Elitecore BSS platform has Business…
Read More »“Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. At the top of the following web link, I talk about the chess-board analogy. In a regular game of chess, each of the pieces are isolated from one another, meaning that if one piece moves, no others are impacted (except when an opponent's piece…
Read More »NetCracker and NEC to Enhance Operational Excellence for MegaFon NetCracker and NEC Corporation announced that Russian communications leader MegaFon has selected NetCracker and NEC Neva Communications Systems to implement comprehensive Operations Support Systems (OSS). The new OSS will enable MegaFon to centralize network resource management, accelerate service introduction, and improve service quality and customer experience for mass market services across all of its affiliates. NetCracker’s OSS…
Read More »"I've always challenged myself and the people who work with me to take new approaches to traditional business challenges, to push the envelope and constantly ask whether our sacred cows are still producing great milk." Irene Rosenfeld. In an earlier blog, entitled Ruthless Simplification, the topic of being ruthless in your simplification was discussed. Further to that discussion, ruthlessness often has to extend to sacred cows.…
Read More »"A long apprenticeship is the most logical way to success. The only alternative is overnight stardom, but I can't give you a formula for that." Chet Atkins. Thanks to a recent comment from Laurence Smith regarding training (see here), I thought I'd elaborate on a theoretical approach I have mulled over previously for overcoming a common issue experienced by OSS implementation teams. I say it is a…
Read More »"I have never believed in the Wizard of Oz theory of consulting, that I am all-knowing and all-seeing, and that everyone around me is kind of a backbencher." David Axelrod. Today I'll give away my model for delivering consultancy on any OSS project, no matter what shape or size. Promise not to tell anyone else, especially the naysayers who claim there is no such thing. Ok,…
Read More »"The Ericsson Mobility Report found that mobile data traffic is expected to grow by 12 times between 2012 and 2018." The quote is a sub-set of yesterday's but I thought I'd drill down on one important prediction - that mobile data traffic will grow by twelve times in six years. This indicates that as individuals, we are surrounded by so much information that our brains need…
Read More »"Data – there sure is a lot of it and looking forward there is going to be increasingly more. The Ericsson Mobility Report found that mobile data traffic is expected to grow by 12 times between 2012 and 2018. That’s huge! So what makes data fresh? It’s the ability to use it in real time, to look at the different data sources, correlate them, analyze the…
Read More »"Intuition becomes increasingly valuable in the new information society precisely because there is so much data." John Naisbitt. Yesterday we spoke of a couple of acronyms that aren't so common in traditional B/OSS, namely NFV and SDN. Today, I have five more for you that aren't so common but have roles to play in B/OSS being a revenue centre rather than a cost centre. They are…
Read More »"One has to passionately believe it is possible to change the industry, to turn it on its head, to make sure that it will never be the same again." Richard Branson. Have you heard of these two TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) - NFV and SDN? If you haven't, it might be time to do some research because these two concepts - Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Network…
Read More »"Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that results in stagnation. I have known talented people who procrastinate indefinitely rather than risk failure. Lost opportunities cause erosion of confidence, and the downward spiral begins." Charles Stanley. When implementing an OSS, or most projects for that matter, it seems that there are four types of activities: Thinking Talking Documenting Doing It seems that every OSS…
Read More »"Advertising is legalized lying." H.G. Wells. My hat goes off for the persistence shown in securing an OSS implementation contract. The sales cycle tends to be lengthy (nine months plus plus). During that time, many promises tend to be made that the implementation team will find difficult to deliver. Unfortunately this often sets unrealistic expectations within the CSP that need to be re-set by the implementers.…
Read More »"The most important part of education is proper training in the nursery." Plato When do most OSS vendors/integrators deliver training to their customers? At the end of the project right? When SHOULD the OSS vendors/integrators deliver training to their customers? At the start.... and then throughout the implementation... and then after they've finished. Have you ever noticed that most vendors spend a great deal of time…
Read More »NSN takes mobile broadband network operations into the cloud With NetAct 8, Nokia Solutions and Networks is virtualizing and modernizing its long-established Operations Support System (OSS) to make network operations simpler and nimbler. NetAct 8’s single, end-to-end view of multi-technology, multi-domain and multi-vendor networks helps operators to run these networks more efficiently and with lower costs. Also new are an off-the-shelf integration of Customer Experience Management…
Read More »"There is no logical way to the discovery of these elemental laws. There is only the way of intuition, which is helped by a feeling for the order lying behind the appearance." Albert Einstein. Further to yesterday's blog about network modelling, I had a task back in 2001-ish to help a vendor develop their first-ever auto-discovery tool. It was such a thrill when we got it…
Read More »"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes." Marcel Proust. A new friend over in the Philippines suggested that I write a blog entry about network modelling. Now I'm going to sound like the ultimate nerd here but mapping network devices into OSS is probably the most challenging but interesting tasks I've done in OSS. I love the…
Read More »"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter." Winston Churchill. Did that title grab your attention? I'm not some crazy who's advocating the death of democracy by the way, but I do have an interesting question to pose today. Interesting to me at least... Given that there is a race to the bottom underway around the world with many countries seeking to…
Read More »"The Delphi method is a structured communication technique, originally developed as a systematic, interactive forecasting method which relies on a panel of experts. The experts answer questionnaires in two or more rounds. After each round, a facilitator provides an anonymous summary of the experts’ forecasts from the previous round as well as the reasons they provided for their judgments. Thus, experts are encouraged to revise their…
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