Telecommunications

Joint Venture

Wireless Internet Services

Our client, a producer of print- and Internet-based information services, sought new ways to expand its business. We developed the model of a joint venture with a wireless Internet company to produce new promotional services for the mobile business customer. We identified the natural partner, opened discussions between the two companies, and developed the appropriate deal structure. The business is now under joint development, with initial service launch scheduled within two quarters. The resulting company is expected to achieve profitable revenues in the high hundreds of thousands of dollars within three years of launch.

Increasing Added Value

Wireless Telecom Service

A major European cellular carrier wanted to add value to its basic communications service to differentiate it from the competition. Based on a carefully structured program of market research and analysis of related markets, we helped the company assemble a portfolio of information services for its most important customer segments. These services all revolved around the needs of the traveler away from home and included such elements as wireless e-mail, hotel and restaurant reservations, automobile services, and health care referrals. The client is now assembling the relevant set of partners to support a robust service portfolio.

Communications Market Strategy

Electronics and System Integration Company

This $6 B division of a Fortune 50 company had developed numerous telecommunications products and service concepts in its R&D laboratory and sought help in commercializing them. We reviewed the project portfolio and identified several multi-billion dollar product ideas. We then helped the company determine which to pursue on its own, which to develop in conjunction with partners, and which to partially spin out to take advantage of the investment community's current large appetite for communications technology companies.

Sales and Marketing
Cost-Effectiveness

Telecom Services

One of the largest telecommunications companies was concerned that expenses for sales and marketing were rising faster than revenues and that its cost structure might be higher than that of its principal competitors. After detailed benchmarking of our client's costs versus those of its competitors, and a careful analysis of where the organization was spending its money, we identified opportunities for nearly $100 M in annual cost savings through restructuring the marketing and sales functions responsible for more than $20 B in revenues. These savings were achieved at the same time as revenue growth has accelerated.

Improved Customer Care

Telecom Services

A major telecommunications carrier was concerned that its customer care organization had grown so large and complex that it was no longer manageable. Our analysis focused on dramatically improving service quality as seen by customers and on decreasing operating costs through reduced cycle times and more efficient business processes. In addition, we identified opportunities to recover many hundreds of millions of dollars in working capital through faster service provisioning (permitting earlier billing) and dramatically improved credit and collections processes.

Faster, Cheaper Billing Processes

Telecom Service Company

A major telecommunications carrier was experiencing many delays and interruptions in its billing processes. Billing seemed to be in a constant state of crisis, requiring Herculean staff efforts and several tens of millions in excess costs. Bills were often incorrect, permitting customers to withhold payment, often for months while disputes were settled. In some cases, bills were several weeks late, affecting cash flow quite severely. We conducted a thorough review of billing with a cross-functional team and identified seven areas for improvement, including investments in software upgrades and testing and introducing a process-driven organizational model with uniform, shared process metrics. The company anticipates that these changes will shorten processing cycles by 30-50% and lower unit billing costs by approximately 10%.

Return to Recent Projects