I swear, I’m not about to make another Tiger Woods joke. Twenty-ten REALLY is “The Year of the Tiger” according to the Chinese zodiac. So, in this time of resolution and goal-setting, I find “The Year of the Tiger” an inspiring reminder to be a tiger when it comes to business. It’s going to be all about running lean, agile, and fast.
How can you as CIO be more tiger-like in your approach? Allow me to suggest this no-brainer business resolution of 2010: stop wasting millions on telecom expenses.
Let me take it a step further. I propose that every CIO resolve to examine how they manage their telecom spend. Is it in a standardized, centralized way? Or more likely, are people across departments (IT, Accounting, HR, etc.) handling bits and pieces of this complex process in a rather disconnected fashion? Given that telecom is probably one of your top four overall expenses, you should know how it’s being handled.
At Telesoft, we often remind CIOs that telecom and related network services account for almost 4% of company revenue. And it’s not a simple figure to understand. Telecom is notorious for hard-to-track, continually changing inventory, complex billing, and baffling contracts. It’s complicated, increasingly expensive, and rapidly evolving with new technologies.
So how do you get a grip? Back to my Tiger reference. Make 2010 your year to put the old “eye of the tiger” to your telecom expenses. What will you discover when you take a closer look at telecom? Analysts say up to 26% of your telecom spend is erroneous or could have been avoided. Make this your year to take a proactive approach to Telecom Expense Management (TEM). If you don’t, you are wasting money. And that’s no way to be a tiger.
