OSS are tools have a big part to play in modern ICT organisations. They can make the difference between effective or ineffective operations of electronic assets. The Executive Series of blogs provide information that is targeted for senior executives on how to utilise OSS to deliver better business outcomes.
Do you know what the word ossify means? If not, can you guess? No, it’s not another of my made-up words to describe OSS in an obscure way. For those of you who didn’t already know that it’s a real word and what it means, wait for it… it means to cease developing; to stagnate. […]
We’ve recently talked about the two service provider business model extremes – OTT / DSP (Over the Top or DSP) versus REIT / TaaU (Telco as a Utility) are affecting OSS. The fast-twitch OSS that services the OTT / DSP model is bringing about some fascinating changes in the way service providers procure “assets.” They’re […]
Yesterday’s blog discussed innovation at the speed of data being even faster than innovation at the speed of software. But not all aspects of OSS need to evolve at the sames speeds. In the Olympics, sprinters need fast-twitch muscles and training to hone for speed, whilst marathon runners need slow-twitch muscles and appropriate training for […]
We’ve all heard of Moore’s Law, which predicts the semiconductor industry’s ability to exponentially increase transistor density in an integrated circuit. “Moore’s prediction proved accurate for several decades, and has been used in the semiconductor industry to guide long-term planning and to set targets for research and development. Advancements in digital electronics are strongly linked to […]
“In the first quarter of 2016, more cars were registered for phone numbers in the US than were personal cell phones.” From an article named, “Five technologies for the next ten years” The article starts, “Over the next decade, mobile, the Internet of Things, machine learning, robotics, and blockchain technologies will change a great deal…” […]
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It seems to be gaining momentum as a framework for personal data protection. Various governments have been releasing data protection Acts of their own lately too. At the moment the focus appears to be on data privacy within public bodies, but big business is sure to be required to meet […]
“For a period of time, Jeff Bezos was a heavy investor in marketing, but after a while he retrenched. “About three years ago we stopped doing television advertising. We did a 15-month-long test of TV advertising. And it worked, but not as much as the kind of price elasticity we knew we could get from […]
“There were 34 billion visits to US stores in 2010. By 2013, that number had plummeted 48% to 17.6 billion, according to Elite Wealth Management. As consumers make more of their purchases online, the challenge of engaging consumers in store is accelerating the rise of ‘experiential shopping’.” David Kelnar in a fascinating trend analysis on […]
“Thousands of bank staff are being subjected to cyber security “fire drills” to determine who opens malicious emails or fails to report suspicious computer activity, in a sign financial institutions are ramping up their defences to criminal attacks on their information technology systems.” James Eyers on AFR.com. So banks have commenced running cyber-security fire drills […]
Dell sells directly to its customers, avoiding the markups of intermediaries. Dell once diverged from this model, selling through agents, but failed and quickly reverted. The OSS market is quite clearly different from Dell’s PC and laptop market, with vastly different customer volumes and revenue per customer. However, there are some OSS companies that have […]
Most of you would have noticed a significant structural shift in the last few years towards customer advocacy and listening to the customer far more closely, not just in OSS but across most industries. This introduces some interesting contrasts though. In any given year most OSS engineers, despite being genba staff, don’t get the opportunity […]
It’s almost time for our monthly OSS breakfast in Melbourne (last Wednesday of each month). Last month saw the attendance of the only UI / UX expert I know who also has OSS experience. It surprises me that there aren’t more UI / UX / OSS experts out there, but I’m also not all that […]
“Global telecommunications study: navigating the road to 2020.” In the study listed above, executives at some of the world’s largest CSPs indicate that the players most likely to disrupt their industry is OTT app providers. Any thoughts on why they might be perceived to be 30x more influential than technology specialists, or 5x more influential […]
When it comes to designing, building and configuring OSS, there is a tendency to have a functionality delivery mindset. That is, if we can get our OSS to meet each functional requirement then we tick the box and move on to the next. There is usually a long list of requirements that need to be […]
“To avoid commoditization, telcos should become the focal point of the extended value chain, focusing on digital services and taking advantage of their traditional competencies.” “Global telecommunications study: navigating the road to 2020.” The graph above tells a story about the changing share of wallet (end-to-end value chain) in the telecommunications sector. The three dials […]
Time-to-market is an important metric in the Telco vernacular. It’s important because rapid TTM allows one CSP to get an attractive new product out to customers earlier than competitors and all the benefits that go with it (ie rapid revenue turn-on, market share, brand awareness, etc). One of the primary impediments to a product’s TTM […]
“Global telecommunications study: navigating the road to 2020” It’s interesting that “Improved IT Systems and Processes” is seen as a strategic priority by around a third of respondents to this executive study by EY. It also implies that improved IT systems and processes are probably only front-of-mind for investment for about one third of Telco […]
“I made the point that there was one rule that had to govern any operator shift of focus to higher service layers—the network itself must remain profitable. You can’t say you’ll earn new revenue that in part at least will subsidize a network loss, because competitors with no network and no losses will then have […]
“Gartner’s 2016 CIO Survey revealed five key innovation practices that deliver the highest improvement in digital performance: Crowdsourcing, Different metrics, Formal innovation management and work with Startups. Nevertheless according to the same survey, CIOs also indicated that these five innovation were the least used.” Sebastian Barros here. I suspect these CIO findings are also mirrored in the OSS industry. How many […]
“The telco’s strategy encompasses three broad categories of APIs, each of which targets a different audience: – Private, internal APIs accessible exclusively to Telstra’s developers; – External, public APIs, that are available for use by third-party developers; and – APIs intended for use by Telstra’s partners. “Each one of these has a different value to […]
