We may think we are doing the best for our business, but we sometimes miss the obvious. Hiring an external telecom auditing often brings in a perspective that we haven’t paid attention to. Read the questions mentioned below and find out if the internal auditing of your telecom expenses proper.

• Do you review your expenses only when a problem is flagged? Many organizations look into the expenses only when a problem is noticed. The absence of regular auditing can bypass several problems that have not come to the notice of the organization.
• Are your reviews limited only to the areas identified as the problem areas? Even when a problem is flagged, internal auditors often don’t go into a thorough review but focus only on the problem area. This may not tell you the root cause of the problem.
• Do you not review the current contract? Often, once a telecom contract has been signed, organizations don’t look into it and often keep renewing it for the future. An analysis of the contract and a comparison with other telecom plans or vendors will tell you if it is suited for your future needs.
• Do you ignore studying the usage of the services? Internal auditors often ignore analyzing the usage of the telecom services and miss finding out if there is a misuse, abuse, or over-use. Analyzing the usage can help reduce expenses significantly.

More often than not, internal auditors are not equipped with the knowledge to audit the telecom expenses. A telecom audit by a professional telecom management team can help reduce expenses to an extent not typically possible by an internal team.

I am sure you would be reluctant to accept that you are not an expert at something. And if you did acknowledge it, you wouldn’t get into that job. However, you will be surprised to find out how most people take telecom audit to be a simple job and don’t bother to seek professional help. Are you also one of them? Do you also feel that professional telecom audit is not for you? Let’s find out if you have been doing a good job in auditing your telecom expenses.

• How often do you perform an audit of your telecom network? Is it only during times when a problem has been observed?
• Have you performed an audit after a recent reshuffle in your business that involved relocation of business units, services, and resources? More often than not, you will find that you are being billed for services that are no longer being used or have been cancelled.
• How structured is your procurement and payment system? You may want to look into the services being order by different departments and the expenses incurred on them.
• Have you had an audit after the induction of new technologies in your telecom network?
• Do you really understand each and every item in your telecom contract? Are you in the habit of assuming things instead of understanding the terms and conditions in the contract?

More often than not, organizations that perform audits internally go for a reactive audit, instead of a proactive one. A proactive audit helps you ensure optimization of the telecom services and maximum cost-savings. Only a professional team can help you reap these benefits. How? Check out our earlier posts on this blog.

More often than not, businesses don’t look at outsourcing the audit of their telecom network. Most of the time, their system of internal auditing is not structured. A random error is what often triggers an internal audit. Such an audit is typically not exhaustive at it focuses only on the problem area. It is recommended that you go for a professional audit.

Let us look at the reasons that make a professional telecom audit important.

• Reason #1: Your internal audit team does not review the telecom contract.
• Reason #2: You don’t study the usage of the telecom services as part of the internal audit.
• Reason #3: The procurement and payment structure for telecom services is not centralized.
• Reason #4: Your audit team studies the bills only when there is problem found.
• Reason #5: Your internal auditing looks only at the area where a problem was found.
• Reason #6: You don’t study your bills on a regular basis.
• Reason #7: Your telecom bills are very high.
• Reason #8: You have had departments and business units relocating.
• Reason #9: You have had your telecom network modified with new technologies and you are not aware of the new usage and expense patterns.
• Reason #10: You cannot understand your telecom contract.

Professional telecom audit not only helps recovers costs but also helps reduce expenses on telecom services. Such a team typically takes its payment only after realizing savings for you. Moreover, it releases the internal resources engaged in telecom auditing for other important tasks.

Almost all businesses understand the importance of technological innovations in communication, and most of them thrive on telecommunications. However, some of these businesses turn a blind eye when it comes to analyzing their telecom expenses. Is yours one of them? Let me tell you why you should not rule out a telecom audit for your business.

If your business has different departments procuring and paying for telecom services, you lack the knowledge of the overall need, usage, and expenses. Do you want to pay for departments that are misusing the services? Do you want departments to procure services that are way too costly or unnecessary? How would you get an idea of how your business is making use of the telecom services if you don’t have a centralized procurement and payment system? No, a telecom audit does not centralize the system for you but provides you enough data on the services, the needs, the current usage, and the expenses so that you can take appropriate action.

An audit helps you track the errors in accounting and billing, thus helping you recover costs. It also helps you understand the fine print of the bills and the telecom contract.

Any changes in the telecom network caused by newer technologies, increased needs, or relocation will cause a major change in your expenses. Getting an audit done at this time will help you find out if you are getting what you paying for.

The telecom audit can help you reduce your telecom costs dramatically. Often, businesses go for an internal audit when they come across a problem. Typically, such an audit is limited in its focus. A professional telecom audit, that too a proactive one, is much more sensible than an internal, reactive one.

The title of this post does not mean to suggest that you need a telecom audit only in certain situations. Being proactive with an audit will not only keep your telecom costs in check but will save you from facing problems. Today’s post highlights the factors that should make a business go for an audit as a reactive step.

Decentralized procurement and payment structure

Like many businesses, you may not have a centralized system of procurement and payment of the telecom services. You don’t have an idea of the overall needs, usage, and expenses as payments are made separately by different departments. A telecom audit will give you a clearer picture of the telecom services and expenses.

Problems with bills

You should go for a telecom audit if you find that your telecom bills are very high. Or, if  you have come across instances where you couldn’t understand some items in the telecom bills. Go for an audit if your telecom usage is not defined and you are not sure if you pay for what you use.

Relocation

Relocation often causes major changes in the telecom network. If you have had departments and businesses moving to different locations, you should know if you are using the services and features you are being charged for. An audit will help you find this out.

Changes in the telecom network

If you have had your telecom network modified with new technologies, you may have lost track of the usage and expenses. An audit will tell you if you are reaping the expected benefits from the changes made.

Incomprehensible telecom contract

If you have not been able to figure out the fine print of the telecom network, you may be paying for services you don’t need and have never used. Get an audit to find out how well the telecom contract meets your business’ needs.

A telecom audit does not add to your expenses but helps cut them down. A proactive audit is always better than a reactive one.

Your business uses telecommunication services extensively, and now you feel that the internal team is not equipped to manage the services efficiently. You have decided to hire the services of a telecom management company. Great! Now what? Do you choose the first company you come across or do you take time to make the decision?

Today, while surfing the Internet, I came across a post by Noel Huelsenbeck. Though a 10-month old post, it contains some concrete pointers on choosing the right telecom auditing firm. The post corroborates the guidelines provided by the Center for Communications Management Information (CCMI). Apart from presenting CCMi’s criteria that includes value, reorting, support, and flexbility, Huelsenbeck suggests software delivery, use of automation, and overseas outsourcing as pointers for choosing the right telecom auditing company.

The post also mentions that seeking examples of problems that were resolved by the company will give a better idea of the company’s capabilities. The writer presents CCMI’s list of areas where the telecom management companies can make savings.

Apart from looking at what the company has to offer to your business, find out if the company meets ethical standards in serving you. Let us look at how you can figure this out.

• Find out if the company sells or brokers products for another company. If it does, do not go for its services.
• Find out if the company has shown real savings in the past. If it hasn’t, it is not worth hiring.
• Find out if the company realizes its payment before it realizes savings for the business. If it does, avoid such a company.

You need to spend a considerable amount of time in choosing the right telecom management company. Do not make the decision in haste.

In one of our earlier posts, we told you how important a professional telecom audit is for a business that thrives on telecom services. Let’s find out what the audit process is comprised of.

Analysis and Inspection

A telecom audit team will start with analyzing the telecommunication service being used by the business. It will study the invoices and understand the current usage and management of the telecom services.

Identification of errors

While studying invoices, the audit team will identify the problem areas and track down the errors in billing and accounting.

Recovery of costs

Once the errors have been identified, the audit team will move to recover costs incurred because of the errors.

Review of plans

The audit team reviews the current telecom contract and finds out if there are plans that suit the business needs better. The audit team looks at aligning the telecom services with the telecom needs of the business.

Review of usage

The audit team analyzes the usage of the telecom services within the organization. It sees if there is a misuse or overuse of the services and brings them to the notice of the management.

A telecom audit shows a business real savings. The audit team identifies problem areas and recommends changes in the telecom service contracts. However, it is the telecom management team or the business’ management that implements the suggestions.

A professional telecom management team is the best bet for organizations looking not only for telecom auditing but also for better decisions regarding the telecommunication services.

Since most organizations using telecom services recognize the importance of auditing, they have some kind of telecom auditing in place. However, most of the time, the auditing is internal. Typically, the internal auditing team comprises of people from the IT and telecom departments. Even though the basic thought behind auditing remains the same across organizations, external auditors have more to offer than the internal ones. Let’s look at what the internal auditors may miss.

Reviews are performed for flagged situations

Internal auditors may conduct reviews only if there is a problem. Only flagged situations get the auditors’ attention.

Reviews are limited to the problem area

A flagged situation triggers a review by the auditors, and they tend to limit their audit and review only to the problem area, ignoring several other areas that need attention.

Current contract is not reviewed

Internal auditors may fail to review the current telecom contract and keep renewing it. A comparison with other plans gives a better picture of the current telecom scenario. However, in the absence of an obvious problem, auditors do not look into the current contract. The telecom services will not align with the telecom needs of a business if auditors do not study the telecom needs every time a contract ends.

Usage is not studied

Since internal auditors look only into the problem area, they may completely ignore any misuse, abuse, and over-use of the telecom services. Usage analysis is extremely important if an organization wants to cut down unnecessary expenses.

Due to the lack of domain expertise, internal teams are not fully equipped to handle telecom auditing. A professional telecom management team brings in a telecom audit that looks into every aspect of the telecom services being used by an organization.

For some businesses, telecommunications costs are one of their biggest expenses. Trying to justify these heavy expenses can be difficult, particularly if their internal checks and balances are not adequately managed.  If this is the case, engaging a telecom auditor could help to save that business.

A good telecom audit should be able to identify areas where savings can be met. The audit looks at two major areas - external and internal factors. External factors start with the type of communications carrier used and the type of agreements in place.

There are so many different types of agreements available that it takes a professional to find the right one. In fact, for heavy users, it is possible to negotiate an agreement tailored specifically to that business. Most respected telecom auditors can help a business negotiate a tailored agreement with a service provider that is best suited to that business.

An internal audit can help to identify which areas of the business generate the largest telecommunications costs. A comparison can then be made to determine whether or not there is a net return on each dollar expended.

Managing areas that have a poor return can cut expenses considerably. There is also an opportunity to review business practices to see whether or not those not delivering a net return can be turned around and made profitable.

This may not actually cut expenditure in dollar terms. However, if an increase in income can be generated then the cost in real terms will decrease. The business as a whole becomes more profitable and, of course, steers well away from the dreaded bankruptcy situation -  all because the business decided to engage a telecom auditing team.

Telecom audits are necessary if you want to find out if telecom services are helping your business and if there is any scope for improvement. Internal audits may not serve the purpose. An independent telecom consultant is best suited to audit your telecom service. If the thought of hiring an outside company worries you, let me tell you that most telecom companies take their payment from the cost savings they make for you. Moreover, an outside company will bring a fresh perspective to things, apart from offering their telecommunication expertise.

A professional telecom audit helps look into areas that are typically ignored by internal teams. Let us look at the business benefits of a telecom audit performed by a telecom consultant.

• It frees up internal resources. Typically, the internal resources working on telecom audit and management are brought in from different domains. They do not have the required understanding of the telecom network in order to manage it. Moreover, the business ends up losing resources that could have been used in higher-value projects. A professional telecom audit team rescues the internal resources, helping business utilize them properly.
• It simplifies the telecom plans and tariffs for the business. More often than not, businesses do not know what they are paying for. They trust the word of the telecom carriers and religiously pay bills. A professional team can make businesses understand their telecom requirements and suggest suitable telecom carriers and plans for them.
• It reduces telecom costs considerably. A professional telecom audit tracks all the errors in billing, accounting, and contracts; finds out if the telecom carrier is slamming and bring problems to the notice of the business and the telecom carrier. This helps recover costs that would have otherwise remained lost in the complication of telecom rates and plans.

These three benefits make a professional telecom audit a must for all businesses using telecommunication services.