Use Loaner Devices

You can reduce mobile calling costs for employees that do not regularly travel overseas and for those that travel to different countries by establishing a pool of loaner devices. These mobile devices can be set with reduced calling and data plans for international travel. Employees can arrange to have domestic calls and e-mail forwarded to the device.

Use SIM Cards

For employees that travel more frequently, removable country specific Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards make it possible for employees to save money. Employees have to have unlocked phones that allow them to insert SIM cards and operate on the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network. Aside from Verizon in the US, some providers in Japan, and a few other countries this is the most common network overseas. SIM cards enable employees to leverage the benefits of the SIM card company’s volume discounts for international roaming.

Implement Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) for International Sites

FMC technology allows wireless users to seamlessly transfer calls and call features from a cellular network to a WLAN and back using the same device, phone number, and voice mail. The enterprise specifies a preferred type of connection on employees’ devices such as Wi-Fi to avoid use of the more costly provider’s network. This reduces roaming charges in locations with Wi-Fi connectivity. It has some limitations, and it does not address inbound calling because location information for the device is not available to the home provider to enable call routing.

Use Skype

For mobile calls, obtain a “SkypeIn” phone number and configure it to forward to the employee’s foreign cellular (generally prepaid) phone number. Forwarding the employee’s US cell phone number to the Skype number, achieves end-to-end call forwarding from the US cell number, and incoming cell calls will be free. With this approach, the cost is reduced, but it is equivalent to the cost of an international mobile-terminating call from the VoIP provider since most international markets have billing where the calling party pays the cost of calls to the roaming subscriber. Skype calls to cellular and landline numbers cost $1.40 down to .20 cents per minute.

Educate Your International Travelers

Perhaps the most important feature is to educate your employees about the high costs of using mobile services when they travel overseas. Employees should turn off their mobile phone if they are not available. This avoids charges for calls to the handset on the foreign network, and forwarding of the call from the handset back to the domestic voice mail server. Disabling applications that automatically connect to the network can help to avoid costly application updates that use the foreign cellular network. Where possible, employees should also avoid downloading attachments using wireless services. It is more cost effective to wait until a LAN or Wi-Fi connection is available.