Following up on last week’s post regarding a review of your telecom solution, this week we’ll go into detail on what a review involves.
My experience is in Project Management of large Fortune 100 company infrastructure deployments supporting network and software requirements. That focus word there is requirements. My project budgets were often in the $5 to $10 million range. In that range, there is no return policy. When that invoice is fulfilled, you own the hardware and software regardless of whether it meets your needs or not. We always started by defining the problem we were trying to solve and what needs we were trying to fulfill. From that, we would build a requirements list and work with the vendors to create an overall solution.
Understanding exactly what the business needs are is one of the hardest things to define. Sometimes what a user thinks they want, can be much different from what they actually need. What engineering understands the request to be may be filtered through a history of bias for and against a technical solution.
A good Systems and Business Analyst can clear the fog and confusion. The analyst function is to understand the user’s work flow and get to the bottom of what they really need to do their job. The user requirements are then converted to technical requirements that are used by engineering to develop a solution that will meet the user requirements. That solution than goes out to vendors for bidding. Finance should definitely be involved in the process so they can make sure the expected costs are known ahead of time.
I am the first to admit that Fortune 100 companies have those job roles fulfilled in spades. It is uncommon that smaller companies have the skills on-site that can do all this work. It is common to contract analysts, project managers and engineers to fill the gap. The caveat is to make sure that you hire independent resources that won’t push you towards one solution or another based on their biases and partnerships.
Teledata Select offers a whole range of services that will help you meet your business goals. Starting with a complimentary review of your current telecommunication bills to find opportunities for savings. better service and more functionality. We also offer project management for new service implementation and infrastructure installs, including fiber and low voltage cabling. Contact us for a detailed discussion of your specific business technology needs.
0 Comments