"A lot of people asked me if it was frustrating not having a clear specific diagnosis, but I didn't mind, I just chose the most optimistic diagnosis." Karen Duffy. Predictive analytics has become a bit of a cliche for the OSS industry, one which I've succumbed to using too (see these previous blogs as but a few examples - 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5). As…
Read More »"Nobody will ever pay you to solve your problems... but they’ll line up if you can solve theirs." Ramit Sethi. OSS were originally designed to coordinate and streamline network management processes for CSPs. OSS helped CSPs solve operational problems. They still do. Keeping Ramit Sethi's quote in mind, if we have a customer that needs help processing vast numbers of service orders and we provide them…
Read More »Redknee Signs $6 Million Dollar Order in APAC for Innovative Energy Retail Solution. Redknee Solutions Inc. announced that a leading national corporation and service provider in Asia Pacific has signed a deal for $6 million dollars with Redknee to support its growth in the energy retail sector. This is a significant deal that will equip the service provider with Redknee’s Connected Suite to monetize its energy…
Read More »SaskTel International serves up new SaaS OSS suite. SaskTel International (SI), a leading-edge communications software and services solution provider, has announced the launch of a robust suite of Operations Support System (OSS) software solutions via a new Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model. The SaaS-enabled software provides Communications Service Providers (CSPs) with a flexible approach to drive the fulfillment and assurance of services while cost-effectively managing IT and software…
Read More »"While some seem to have a knack for this sort of thing, most of us fail miserably at this most basic sales skill – explaining what we do for a living." Sean Rosensteel. How do you describe what you do for a living? Does your audience look dazed and confused when you describe what an OSS is and what part you play in our industry? I…
Read More »RCN Goes Live with NetCracker Next-Generation Revenue Management. NetCracker Technology announced that RCN, a U.S.-based provider of high-speed Internet, digital TV, telephone and business communications services, has gone live with an upgrade to NetCracker’s next-generation Revenue Management solution. RCN is a leading, competitive cable provider focused largely on key metropolitan markets, such as New York City, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. A NetCracker customer since…
Read More »"Our technological powers increase, but the side effects and potential hazards also escalate." Alvin Toffler. One of the many user groups touched by an OSS (directly or indirectly) is the field work-force. The field work-force have to deal with hazards that most of us desk-jockeys don't come into contact with. Confined spaces, hazardous materials (eg gas, asbestos, etc), working at heights and other similar hazards aren't…
Read More »C Spire Selects Centina Systems for Strategic Service Assurance. Centina Systems announced that C Spire™ will deploy its NetOmnia™ suite of solutions for service assurance. This will include real-time end-to-end network visibility for improved troubleshooting and problem resolution. C Spire is a full service provider of Internet, telecommunications, and network services. The company offers Triple Play services to residential customers along with a suite of fixed…
Read More »"My goal is no longer to get more done, but rather to have less to do." Francine Jay. A few questions for all the vendors out there. Do you know which applications within your suite that your customers actually use? Do you know which features of these applications they use? Do you know which features none of your customers use? Can you think of any reasons…
Read More »"The more you engage with customers the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing." John Russell. You must be wondering whether the heading above is a typo? It's not. Let me explain. This is the fifth post in my Customer Experience series. The previous four have been built around the perspectives of the OSS vendor's customer (ie the…
Read More »"I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day you bet on people, not on strategies." Larry Bossidy. In a recent post, I spoke of the challenge in getting the right balance between two scarce assets, customers and human resources. This got me thinking about how tough it is for organisations in the OSS…
Read More »"To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour." Winston Churchill. Following on from Implementations, the third post in this…
Read More »Comverse Selected by Telekom Srbija to Modernize, Virtualize & Introduce IP Messaging, New Rich Services. Comverse announced that Telekom Srbija, the region’s leading mobile service provider, serving Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, has selected Comverse to modernize its messaging platforms, enable IP Communication, and lay the foundation for monetizing future rich communication services (RCS). “As the regional leader, Telekom Srbija aspires to improve the lives…
Read More »"When you translate a dream into reality, it's never a full implementation. It is easier to dream than to do." Shai Agassi. After Contract Negotiations, the second post in this Customer Experience series, today's post discusses the next step, when the project moves into the implementation phase. The customer experience during the implementation stage basically revolves around variation (from the dream). CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE. Project implementation is…
Read More »"Suspicion and doubt lead to animosity and hatred." Ralph Steadman. To expand upon the first post in this Customer Experience series, which was on Product Evaluation, today's post relates to the next step, forming a contract between the customer and the winning bidder. The customer experience during the contract negotiation stage basically revolves around suspicion. Customers are a scarce commodity for even the largest vendors. As…
Read More »If you're in the process of defining an OSS business case or know someone who is, check out my new and improved OSS business case builder here:
Read More »"Fear cannot be banished, but it can be calm and without panic; it can be mitigated by reason and evaluation" Vannevar Bush. In the Christmas Day blog, I indicated that I was going to begin a series on how OSS vendors / integrators can start with the customer experience and work back to improve their own products, services and systems. Today's blog is the first in…
Read More »"The biggest threat to McDonald's lies within - and that is us as a company becoming complacent. There are a lot of companies that get fat, dumb and happy and take their eye off the ball and forget about serving customers." Charlie Bell. How many of you could make a better burger than McDonalds? Chances are that almost 100% of you will answer that question with…
Read More »"Every company's greatest assets are its customers, because without customers there is no company." Michael LeBoeuf. When a vendor is seeking growth (and that's most!), they focus on building up a strong customer base. As Michael LeBoeuf states above, an OSS vendor's greatest asset is its customers because of their relative scarcity. It makes sense that a vendor should be doing everything in its power to…
Read More »Comptel Has Won a New Telefonica Group Customer in Chile. Comptel’s Fulfillment deal is a part of the Telefonica de Chile Quad-Play transformation project that will enable improved customer experience for integrated wireline, wireless, Internet and TV services. With the Telefonica de Chile deal Comptel enters a new market in South America. The order value exceeds 1.2 million EUR, comprising Comptel Provisioning and Activation and Comptel Catalog software…
Read More »"If you torture the data long enough, it will confess." Ronald Coase. A subscriber to this blog named Paul recently asked a very thought-provoking question in relation to the context of data within this earlier post. He asked whether by "context" I meant that you come at the data with a question in mind that you're looking to solve. My definition of "context" is slightly different,…
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