AT&T and Verizon’s UnMergers
Staying Connected
About five years ago AT&T and Verizon announced with great fanfare their strategic business expansion into the world of content development. The carriers spent billions of dollars and had to overcome fierce regulatory resistance to acquire companies such as Time Warner and Yahoo. Roll forward to 2021 and both companies have taken a huge U-turn and made the strategic decision to unload all of these acquired assets … at fire sale prices. Listen to this 11 minute podcast as , the Managing Partner at LB3 and Chairman of TC2, and TC2’s describe how AT&T and Verizon are...
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Understanding SLAs for Managed Services
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A profound difference in the construct of service level agreements (SLAs) between managed services and outsourcing deals and network transport SLAs is that SLAs are more custom to a particular contract or customer. Knowing what to measure and how to measure it, however, can be challenging. In this 10 minute podcast, , one of TC2’s Managing Directors, and help you understand how to define and negotiate these custom SLAs so you can include them in your next managed services or outsourcing deal. If you would like to learn more about our experience in this space, please visit our and ...
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Achieving Meaningful WAN Service Levels
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Wide Area Network service levels are critically important for helping keep an enterprise’s network humming. Unfortunately, SLAs are not always well understood. The key point of SLAs is to cover all services, end-to-end, and for the supplier and enterprise to have a clear understanding of who is accountable for the service as it moves along the chain of connections. In this 10 minute podcast, TC2’s Technical Director, , and look at best practices for WAN transport service levels and highlight the steps enterprises will want to take to address their service level needs. If...
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Using RFPs to Deliver Innovation
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When buying technology or ICT services, issuing an RFP to qualified suppliers is a great way to help frame out requirements and then do a fair, apples to apples comparison of the proposals you receive. Astute companies also use RFP processes to identify and deliver innovation in IT services and technology. In this 9 minute podcast, , one of TC2’s Managing Directors, and discuss strategies that TC2 has used to leverage RFP processes to deliver innovative solutions and offer tips for helping you achieve the best results from your RFP process. If you would like to learn more about...
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Look Out for the Rising Costs of ILEC Local Services
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Do enterprises still use POTS lines? Well, the ILECs appear to be asking the same question, because there is a disturbing trend taking place with ILEC pricing. For example, one well known ILEC recently raised its list rate for POTS services by a whopping 50%. Listen to this 9 minute podcast as TC2 Directors , , and discuss why enterprises still use POTS lines for services like elevator phones, explain why ILECs are imposing these huge price increases, and offer insight on what you need to do. If you would like to learn more about our experience in this space, please visit our and...
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Navigating a Smooth Supplier Exit
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At some point most companies that use IT services have to go through a transition from one supplier to another. The need to change suppliers could be driven by any number of reasons and can be a daunting effort and a process that must be carefully managed. In this 12 minute podcast, , one of TC2’s Managing Directors, and , a Senior Partner at LB3 and President of , a leading IPv4 advisory firm, share useful insights with TC2’s and provide steps you need to take to minimize disruption if you’re gearing up for a supplier change. If you would like to learn more about our...
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A Regular Strategic Review of your ICT Contracts is Essential
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At TechCaliber, we have always advocated for using a lifecycle approach for ICT contracts, and as technologies and suppliers have changed over the years, this approach continues to work and deliver huge benefits for enterprises. But what is this lifecycle approach? Listen to this 7 minute podcast as TC2 Directors and describe the five elements of the lifecycle and point out a potential “gotcha” and how to overcome it with a regular strategic review. If you would like to learn more about our experience in this space, please visit and webpages.
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What Makes a Good Negotiator?
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If you’re a savvy buyer of technology, you know that it’s seldom that you just accept the terms of a deal that your vendor offers … you negotiate it. Negotiations often focus on price, but there are any number of commercial arrangements and service terms that can be improved through a spirited negotiation. On this 11 minute podcast, TC2 Managing Director and discuss the attributes of a good negotiator and highlight how knowing the subject matter and understanding the issues can deliver a winning result. If you would like to learn more about our experience in this space,...
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Telecom Procurement and Contracting: The Basics
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LB3 and TC2 recently ran a three-part on-line class covering the basics of telecom procurement and contracting. Our aim was to deliver what can be a very difficult topic, in a format that was understandable to someone who’s new to telecom and ICT procurement, and also serve as a refresher for telecom veterans. Listen to this 10 minute podcast as the architects of the class, , a Partner at LB3, and TC2 Director discuss the class with TC2’s and provide a quick overview of the class and highlight some interesting observations. If you’d like to learn more about our experience in this...
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Why Benchmarking Matters More Than Ever
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When companies buy technology, one of the steps that often neglect to take is benchmarking. It could be because they believe they already get the best - or at least acceptable - pricing or service level. They trust that their vendor is looking out for them. Or maybe they just don’t have the time or really understand what actually can be benchmarked. On this 6 minute podcast, TC2 Directors and explain why benchmarking of technology is so much more than simply comparing prices, or commercial provisions, or SLAs, and highlight why benchmarking matters more now than ever. If...
info_outlineIn this first episode of our four part podcast series where LB3's Laura McDonald and Kevin DiLallo discuss with TC2's Joe Schmidt the Ten Things to Watch in 2019, we cover GDPR and US Data Privacy.