A strategic OSS expert: Work smart, work lazy, build assets
Whilst reading an article on Business Insider called, “A Gen Z software engineer at Google reportedly earns $150,000 working one hour a day,” I found
It seems that OSS/BSS are always an afterthought. And always seen as a cost centre rather than a revenue generator.
Now I’m biased of course, but I think that’s such a narrow view. And we need everyone in our industry to spread the same gospel.
I like to think of it like this… Sales teams identify the customers and revenue (let’s call them THE BUY-SIDE). Network teams build the assets that service the customer needs (let’s call them THE SELL-SIDE). But the OSS/BSS are the profit engine because they bring buyers and sellers together.
They initiate revenues (Fulfillment / Activation workflows), they retain revenues (Assurance workflows) and they can identify, then minimise costs (automations, analytics, leakage management, identify ineffective work practices, identify simplification opportunities, workforce coordination, etc, etc). They also have a strong influence on customer experience.
OSS/BSS operationalise the assets (to deliver the services that customers pay for).
How much revenue do our OSS/BSS operationalise? All of it (unless some orders are for professional services and/or being activated directly on the network without touching OSS or BSS systems)
The OSS/BSS also provide the strategic levers for management to pull in future. In times when long-term competitive advantages are hard to find, your OSS/BSS can give significant competitive advantage (if flexible and effective) or hinder it (if inflexible / unadaptable).
If we’re going to be seen as being more than just a cost centre, we have to be better at building business cases that show the value being created – turning the intangibles into dollar figures.
Whilst reading an article on Business Insider called, “A Gen Z software engineer at Google reportedly earns $150,000 working one hour a day,” I found
In a recent article, we compared how telco holds itself accountable to its internally adored five-nine availability standards, yet still has cellar-dwelling customer satisfaction scores.
Large carriers (let’s call them T1’s) tend to approach OSS procurement projects very differently from small to medium sized carriers (let’s call them T2’s). This
I really enjoy the musings of Jason Fried. He blogs over here at 37signals, has written books such as “Re-work” and runs a successful (bootstrapped)
Here at Passionate About OSS, we are exactly that – Passionate About OSS (Operational Support Systems). We’re also passionate about BSS, NMS, or any other names you call the tools that help to operationalise your network.