|
8:30-9:00
|
Continental Breakfast
|
|
|
9:00-9:10
|
Introductory Remarks
Sure, it's tough for telecom managers. But there are ways to lessen the pain, and we'll spend today telling you what they are.
First, a quick overview of the particular kinds of deals that a recession fosters – mid-term restructurings; uncompetitive renewals;
quickie RFPs; bankruptcies; and shotgun mergers.
|
Hank Levine
|
|
9:10-10:15
|
Doing Network Deals in a Recession
When the pressure to reduce costs is high and rising, it can be tempting to sacrifice long-term leverage for short-term gains.
Join Ben and Jack to explore tactics and strategies that deliver market-leading cost reductions without giving away flexibility or
creating problems for future negotiations. This session will include discussions on successful tactics for mid-term rate reviews,
contract extension discussions, picking the "low-hanging fruit" and appropriate commitment structures and sizes in the current climate.
Ben and Jack will also be sharing their experience about how the carriers' senior deal negotiators have been reacting to the economic
downturn in recent negotiations.
|
Ben Fox
Jack Deal
|
|
10:15-10:30
|
Break
|
|
|
10:30-11:20
|
Key Terms That Will Save You Money If You Get Them Right and Cost You Dearly If You Don't
Don't get lulled into thinking that once you can identify 'bookable' savings your contract work is done.
Thinking minimum commitment adjustment clauses don't matter is so 2008. Agreeing to the wrong business downturn clause is like protecting
your assets with a CDO. Assume that the vendor will be proactive – or even reasonable – about billing errors? Please. And neglecting the
impact of regulatory charges or forgetting to get protection when you spin off business units is just plain dumb. It's easy to focus on
the dollar signs, but many contract provisions directly affect your costs and risks. We'll devote this session to identifying the clauses
you need and the clauses you need to trash.
|
Laura McDonald
Hank Levine
|
|
11:20-12:00
|
The Carriers' Tactics and How to Deal with Them
While everyone loves to talk about "strategic partnerships," in tough times the users' need to save money by paying less runs
smack into the suppliers' need to make money by finding ways for users to pay more. For a variety of reasons, suppliers seem to
have more insight into the strategies employed by customers to save money than the customers have into the tools used by the carriers
to extract money. In this session we level the playing field by opening the carrier playbooks and looking at their favorite strategies.
|
Hank Levine
|
|
12:00-2:00
|
Lunch
Keynote Speaker: Mitch Ahlbaum, Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications
("DoITT"), on "It's No Picnic for the Public Sector Either..."
|
|
|
2:00-2:50
|
Key Services I: Managed Services, Managed Equipment and Outsourcing Agreements
If your organization has to show short-term savings, one target is network management. That's true whether you are contemplating
outsourcing, have already outsourced, or have an approach that combines internal and external solutions. Whatever your approach,
if you don't understand your current costs, plan changes carefully, and execute on the plan, the expected savings won't materialize.
In this session, we'll walk through the options, explain how to develop a successful strategy, and describe some pitfalls to avoid so
that outsourcing doesn't end up unexpectedly costing you more than running the network in-house (or vice versa).
|
Marc Lindsey
Tony Mangino
|
|
2:50-3:40
|
Key Services II: Mobile Services
Even in the best of times, enterprise customers spend more than they need to on wireless services and devices,
but the convenience seems to justify the cost. In leaner times, it pays to ferret out wasteful practices, renegotiate
supra-competitive prices, and re-think how your company uses wireless service. Through a disciplined, multi-dimensional
approach involving optimization, contract renegotiation, and tighter management of end users, an enterprise may be able
to cut its wireless costs by as much as 50%. Now is the time to implement these measures and to renegotiate other terms
that expose your company to liability, such as sky-high overage charges and early termination fees. We'll give you a roadmap.
|
Kevin DiLallo
Ben Fox
|
|
3:40-4:00
|
Break
|
|
|
4:00-4:45
|
Reducing Costs After the Deal is Signed
You've just signed and want to know what to do next, or your contracts are mid-term and you need to save money.
Join Theresa to explore how to save money during and after implementation and over the term of your contracts.
You'll leave with Theresa's Top 10 Ways to Save Money, including hints on how to communicate with your user community
about telecom habits and usage.
|
Theresa Knutson
|
|
4:45-6:00
|
Wine and Cheese Networking Reception
|
|
