Telecom procurement, also known as telecom contract management, can be challenging at the best of times. But new industry pressures and the after-effects of COVID-19 have made it even more difficult.
It's been a tough couple of years for the telecoms industry.
Industry pressures and COVID-19 have highlighted weaknesses in today's telecom supply chains. Not only that, this potent combination has emphasized the lack of support for growing demand and knowledge gaps in the way enterprises navigate market changes and negotiate contracts.
Enterprise telecom procurement teams must focus on telecom contract management, managing global supply chains, cash flow, and the demands of new ways of working. And this has put important processes, like optimizing telecom environments, on the backburner.
This is a mistake.
Enterprises that overlook their telecom contract management processes stand to miss out on potential savings, telecom market expertise, contract negotiation openings, and much more besides.
Common Telecom Procurement Challenges
From managing strategic procurement objectives to maintaining vendor relationships, corporate telecom contract management has a long reach. But busy in-house teams often lack the time and resources to tackle growing procurement challenges.
These challenges include:
- Operational, workforce, and supply chain disruptions
- Significant spikes in telecom usage and traffic
- Economic uncertainty
- Inefficient supply chains
You must take the opportunity to review your purchasing goals and ensure you maintain control of your telecom spend.
Here are our top telecom procurement considerations for 2022 and beyond.
What are the Top 3 Telecom Procurement Considerations in the Coming Years?
1. Telecom Demand Will Continue to Grow
Network usage is skyrocketing. This is primarily due to uptakes in remote working, reliance on cloud services, and increased networking requirements for dispersed customers.
For example, consumer roaming traffic is predicted to exceed pre-COVID levels in 2023. By 2026, consumer mobile devices will generate 3,500 petabytes of data.
Securing the best rates is crucial to reducing the risk of growing telecom costs for procurement teams. By partnering with a telecom expense management (TEM) provider, enterprises can navigate the biggest challenges.
An experienced partner can assist in-house teams with benchmarking, sourcing, and telecom contract management. This helps you achieve better data visibility and find the best deals. With this insight, you can approach negotiations with confidence, even in light of economic uncertainty and mounting demand.
2. Market Changes
COVID-19 caused major disruptions to the global market, affecting everything from supply chains and infrastructure to in-house teams and workloads. The pandemic even delayed 5G deployment plans.
Additionally, economic instability is forcing enterprises to evaluate their outlook and plan their contract procurement and negotiations with greater care.
To be successful, enterprises must:
- Improve financial reporting
- Revisit KPIs
- Rethink future investments (e.g. 5G)
- Strengthen supply chain operations
A global telecom contract management has the market expertise to help you achieve these goals and secure the best rates for future investments. They provide the support you need to get the most out of your telecom contracts, offering in-depth industry insights to manage in challenging times.
Working with a telecom contract management will also strengthen your supplier relationships. This enables you to pivot effortlessly when the need arises, which will be critical to success in 2022.
3. Supply Chain Management
COVID-19 and the subsequent global lockdowns placed additional strain on supply chains.
Disruptions in manufacturing locations resulted in extended lead times to customers, and this negatively impacted serviceability and revenue. In response, many businesses have started diversifying and shortening their supply chains, favoring domestic sourcing over disparate, disconnected networks.
Continued economic uncertainty has also highlighted the need to strengthen enterprise telecom supply chains. In one McKinsey study, 93% of telecom procurement and supply-chain leaders said they planned to increase the resilience of their supply chains.
Managing the entire telecom lifecycle on a global scale is difficult without considerable internal resources and time. To overcome this, many businesses are choosing to leverage the services of a global telecom expense management provider.
A TEM provider works as an extension of your in-house teams to improve and optimize processes in your supply chain. This includes end-to-end telecom procurement support, which frees up valuable time for your internal departments. From initial request for proposal (RFP), tender processes, and negotiations to contract management – TEM providers have years of experience managing telecoms on a global scale.
By leveraging country-specific knowledge and established vendor relationships, a telecom expense management provider can greatly improve the telecom procurement process and help manage increasingly complex global supply chains.
Partner with an Experienced Telecom Procurement Provider
2022 has presented many new challenges. But the right telecom expense management partner provides support and insight to guide your telecom procurement operations and achieve long-lasting results.
For help identifying the best vendor for your needs, download our free brochure.
Topics: TEM
