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Technology Expense Management Insights & Blogs | Valicom

Telecom ExpenseManagementBlogs

Explore our TEM blogs for expert perspective, real examples, and clear guidance to manage telecom and technology expenses confidently, with fresh insights added routinely.

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Valicom CEO Nancy Peckham to Attend Society of Telecommunications Consultants Conference

Valicom CEO Nancy Peckham to Attend Society of Telecommunications Consultants Conference

Oct 24, 2011

Telecom auditing and expense management firm Valicom is pleased to be involved in the Society for Telecom Consultants (STC) annual conference October 25-28 in Orlando. Valicom founder and CEO Nancy Peckham will be attending and participating in the vendor advisory council networking session. Valicom provides telecom consultants with the telecom expense management software Clearview and a suite of telecom auditing services to help them expand and grow their consulting practice.

Tips for Choosing the Best Telecom Carrier for your Business

Tips for Choosing the Best Telecom Carrier for your Business

Oct 20, 2011

At Valicom we have found that one of the best ways to reduce telecom expenses is by going out to Request For Proposal (RFP) for inactive or soon to be inactive contracts. Even if a Client doesn’t want to change Carriers, they may be surprised to find changes other Carriers have made since they last looked into their services. These could be changes in service, pricing, equipment and more.

Wireless Carriers Agree to End “Bill Shock”

Wireless Carriers Agree to End “Bill Shock”

Oct 18, 2011

The vast majority of America’s wireless carriers came to terms with the Federal Communications Commission on Monday, agreeing to alert consumers when they are approaching their monthly limits for voice, data and text messages, or when they are about to incur international roaming charges. Mobile providers will send a second alert when customers reach those limits.

Free Texting Apps: Great For You, Scary for Carriers

Free Texting Apps: Great For You, Scary for Carriers

Oct 12, 2011

As part of a continuing wave of profit-eating options to regular text messaging plans, Apple is set to release its new free iDevice-to-iDevice texting app called iMessage as part of an update to its mobile operating system. Essentially, it allows Apple doodad owners to send and receive messages with text, photos and video to each other over a Wi-Fi or cellular data connection.

Telecom Tactic 7: Telecom Contract Negotiation

Telecom Tactic 7: Telecom Contract Negotiation

Oct 5, 2011

Ok, now that we have your attention, let’s talk tactics. Remember that the telecom vendors are in business to make money. YOUR money. So they are good at this, and maybe you aren’t. Either get someone to the negotiating table with you that has experience, or at least be aware of these basic tactics….

Gartner Reports on Trends & Growth of SaaS Apps

Gartner Reports on Trends & Growth of SaaS Apps

Oct 4, 2011

As Valicom’s telecom expense management software Clearview is deployed as a SaaS application (software as a service) we always keep our eyes and ears out for research and trends in that area.Gartner released some new data yesterday on SaaS adoption. They find that over 95 percent of organizations expect to maintain or increase their investments in software as a service (SaaS) and more than one-third have migration projects under way from on-premises to SaaS, according to their recent survey.

Telecom Tactic #6: Contract Management

Telecom Tactic #6: Contract Management

Oct 3, 2011

Keeping track of your contracts is another imperative step to a good telecom expense management program. Granted, you may wonder why you care…. So we’ll tell you.

Telecom Tactic #5: Telecom Issue Tracking

Telecom Tactic #5: Telecom Issue Tracking

Sep 30, 2011

A difficult task for any IT or telecom manager is issue tracking and change management. People get hired and fired, buildings open and close, and products get retired and replaced. You need to know WHAT is going on, WHO did it, WHEN it happened and if it actually got done.

Telecom Tactic #4: Telecom Invoice Auditing – Wireline

Telecom Tactic #4: Telecom Invoice Auditing – Wireline

Sep 26, 2011

This is where the rubber meets the road. Telecom invoice auditing. Every piece of paper that comes into your office from a carrier is a place to save money. Incorrect charges, setup fees you were never supposed to pay, items not billing to contract terms – there are a lot of reasons you are paying too much for your telecom services.

Telecom Invoice Processing: The Clearview Software Advantage

Telecom Invoice Processing: The Clearview Software Advantage

Sep 23, 2011

As we run through good telecom management tips, we should pause and talk about tools. Anything is easier to do if you have the right tool. In the case of telecom or wireless management, we have spent years perfecting Clearview – our web-based telecom expense, invoice and inventory management software. It is the engine that drives our entire telecom auditing service menu, and is available for use in your telecom department too.

Telecom Tactic #3: Invoice Processing

Telecom Tactic #3: Invoice Processing

Sep 21, 2011

A major source of headaches for telecom managers is dealing with telecom invoicing. Lots of paper = lots of mess. And you know you should really review those suckers EVERY time, EVERY month, but really – who has the time.So finding a way to streamline invoice processing should be high on your list. A few tips to make your life easier…

Kicking off Fall on good financial footing: What is telecom expense management?

Kicking off Fall on good financial footing: What is telecom expense management?

Sep 8, 2011

It’s fall, and while most eyes are turning to football, those in charge of company finances are eyeing balance sheets and chewing their fingernails thinking about year end reports. So we thought it might be a good time for a reminder that you should also be taking steps to cut the fat from your telecom and wireless budget.

Justice Department Moves to Block AT&T Merger with T-Mobile

Justice Department Moves to Block AT&T Merger with T-Mobile

Sep 5, 2011

News reports just hit the wire that the US Justice Department is taking action to oppose the mega merger of AT&T and T-Mobile.

For Smartphone Savings – Standardize, Standardize, Standardize

For Smartphone Savings – Standardize, Standardize, Standardize

Sep 1, 2011

As everyone knows, smartphones are rapidly taking over plain old cell phones in the business realm. That means expensive wireless devices, fat data plans, apps apps apps, and costs costs costs!

What MSPs and IT Consultants Need to Know About TEM

What MSPs and IT Consultants Need to Know About TEM

Aug 30, 2011

In a recent post over at Channel Partners, Joe Basili did a great job of boiling down why master agents, IT consultants and MSPs would care about telecom expense management.

TEM Training Showcases Complexity of Telecom Management

TEM Training Showcases Complexity of Telecom Management

Aug 24, 2011

I ran across an interesting article today promoting a class for Telecom Expense Management training called “Best Pactices for Wired and Wireless Network Cost Control“. It is a two day seminar that will set you back eighteen hundred dollars, and the list they cover is daunting to say the least. What it really illustrates nicely is how complex telecom expense management really is if you try to tackle it yourself. Just as an excerpt…

Valicom is Taking TEM to IT at CompTIA Breakaway Aug 1-4

Valicom is Taking TEM to IT at CompTIA Breakaway Aug 1-4

Jul 28, 2011

Telecom expense management (TEM) firm Valicom will be participating in CompTIA’s annual Breakaway in Washington DC August 1-4 to showcase their SaaS telecom and wireless expense management platform Clearview. Utilizing the web-based TEM software, IT consultants and IT solution providers can expand their service offering and increase revenues through white label and profit-sharing partnerships. This offers a unique opportunity to enter the lucrative telecom management market.

Third Party Telecom Billing – or “Cramming” – Sparks Senate Hearing

Third Party Telecom Billing – or “Cramming” – Sparks Senate Hearing

Jul 14, 2011

A common problem addressed in a telecom expense management or telecom invoice auditing program is third party billing, known as “cramming”. TEM firms have long known that this is a problem on landline invoices, and now it is creeping onto cell phone bills too. And Congress is taking notice. A recent report, and a Senate hearing yesterday, are shedding light on the problem and suggesting changes to help remedy it.

Invasion of the Tablets: iPad Accounts for 25.5% of all Mobile Browsing

Invasion of the Tablets: iPad Accounts for 25.5% of all Mobile Browsing

Jul 11, 2011

A variety of articles recently have been discussing that iPads account for 1% of all current internet traffic. That’s not bad for one tablet, but then Apple launched the iPad 14 months ago with total sales topping 25 million devices. Last month, research firm comScore reported that the iPad comprised 89 percent of global tablet traffic. A May survey from Nielsen found Apple’s touchscreen tablet held 82 percent of the tablet market in the U.S. It will take a long time for any tablet competitor to catch up.

Don’t wait until your next Telecom RFP to get prepared

Don’t wait until your next Telecom RFP to get prepared

Jul 8, 2011

As we discussed in our recent webinar “Plugging the Leak: Software Tools and Strong Tactics to Contain Telecom & Wireless Costs”, telecom contract RFPs and negotiation are the #1 way to save money on telecom.

Insights from our latest webinar: Telecom Contract Negotiation – Talk softly but carry a big stick

Insights from our latest webinar: Telecom Contract Negotiation – Talk softly but carry a big stick

Jul 6, 2011

As I discussed yesterday, we ran some polls during our latest webinar – “Plugging the Leak: How Software Tools & Strong Tactics Contain Telecom Costs” – with some interesting results. Well, not interesting to us – we know what causes our client’s pain – but maybe interesting to you.