negotiating world class conferencing contracts
TRANSCRIPT
3/4/2016 Optelcon Confidential 1
“Best in class companies have 80% of their spend under external
management review”—Aberdeen Research
Expertise. Passion. Systems. Information. Savings
Negotiating World Class
Conferencing Contracts
3/4/2016 Confidential 2
Founded in 2003 and based in Chicago, Optelcon is a global IT, telecom and
mobility spend reduction firm that specializes in contract negotiations,
benchmarking, optimization and life-cycle management.
Optelcon has built a reputation for delivering best in class results. With minimal
client resources, our team has saved companies hundreds of millions of
dollars on over $2.2B in spend.
Optelcon is regularly engaged by some of the largest global IT procurement
and consulting companies to negotiate their own IT agreements as well as that
of their clients. Fortune 500 companies, mid-size enterprises and telecom
carriers also put their trust in Optelcon to consistently deliver industry leading
cost reduction results.
ABOUT OPTELCON
3/4/2016 Confidential 3
Optelcon is 100% results driven. Optelcon takes an
all of the above approach to deliver industry leading
cost reduction results.
How Do We Cut Costs?
3/4/2016 Optelcon Confidential 4
Who hires Optelcon?
Some of the companies who put their trust in Optelcon to deliver
maximum cost savings and subject matter expertise.
Our Clients Save More Money With More Vendors
Optelcon helps our clients save money with over 90 global IT vendors.
Negotiating World Class
Conferencing Agreements
3/4/2016 Confidential 6
“The times are a changing”
• Traditional
• Per minute audio / web
• Toll-free access
• International toll-free
• Call-back
• Named hosts
• PSTN transport
• Multiple bridges
• Rising monthly costs
• Next-Gen
• Capacity-based models
• Named / concurrent users
• All you can eat
• On-net transport (SIP)
• Intelligent global routing MPLS with QoS
• Predictable monthly spend
• 24-hour global day
Traditional consumption models for virtual meetings
Pay per minutePremiums for int’l
minutes
Monthly spend
increases as adoption
grows
Next-Gen consumption models for virtual meetings
Unlimited usage 24/7Includes local access from
international locations
Predictable, fixed
cost licensing
STEP 1: Securing buy-in from your key stakeholders
• Identifying key stakeholders:o Power users (sales, marketing, training, corporate communications, executive
team)
o Executive Admins
o The users with the loudest voice
• Ways to engage them:o End-user feedback requests (via survey)
o User panels
o Online discussion groups (Chatter, Yammer)
• Questions to ask:
o What % of time do they spend in the office (versus on the road)?
o What functionality do they use the most in virtual meetings?
o What new functionality do they want to see added in the next 12 months?
o Is there a willingness to change platforms if it improves the collaboration
experience?
o Are they open to connecting via VoIP?
o Are they open to using local toll access numbers (versus toll-free access)?
STEP 2: Getting your house in order
Confirm the key dates Analyze the invoice
Auto-renewal date
Notification date (auto-renew)
Minimum commitment &
Interval
Minimum call fees
Feature charges
Taxes, fees, surcharges
What is in the invoice frequently does
not line up with the contract
STEP 3: Preparing your contract negotiation checklist
End Of Contract Specify Month To Month Term When Initial Term Ends
Max Suggested
Revenue Commitment
%60% of total expected contract spend
Type of Commitment% Of Total Term Of Contract, Not Monthly Or Annually
(check out the link in the resources section for a great article about this)
Technology UpgradeCommitment Relief If Newer Lower Cost Solution Is Implemented. E.g. Toll Free to
VOIP
Comprehensive
PricingAll Current And Projected Services Pricing In Agreement
Fees And Surcharges Complete List. Negotiate Waivers
Call Rounding 4 or 5 Digit Rounding. Avoid 2 Digit Rounding
Technology
SeparationKeep Voice Terms Separate From Other Technology. i.e. WebEx
Call Minimums Negotiate Removal
SLAs Well Defined With Out Clause For Non-Performance
Global Rates List All Country Rates
STEP 4: Reviewing the impact of surcharges & fees on your
invoice
Unless specifically requested, added surcharges and fees will not show
up on a contract, in an RFP or in billing reports
STEP 5a: Ask about the active host pricing model
• What is the Active Host model?
• Pay for 15% of your employee
count (in year 1)
• Deploy to 100% of your
employees
• Simplify administration,
maximize investment
• Re-evaluate every 12 months
When does it make sense?
• Changing virtual meeting
platforms
• Adoption is at least 15% of your
employee count
• Initiative to increase collaboration
• In acquisition mode (fastest way
to integrate new user groups)
STEP 5b: Take advantage of your global footprint
• Challenge with named licensing modelso Licenses go unused for 16 hours every day
o Global companies have to license every user (paying for idle time)
o No flexibility to take advantage of 24-hour workday
• Concurrent User Plan Solves This Problem!• Customer Example:
• 6,000,000 minutes per month in virtual meetings
• 15,000 registered users in North America, Europe & Asia
• 3 x 8-hour workdays (with minimal overlap)
• Benefit:• Approximately 9,000 minutes per concurrent port
• 700 ports (includes buffer)
• $50 p/port
• $0.0058 per minute
Step 6: How will virtual meetings integrate with your UC strategy?
• Deployment of unified communications is not a
flash-cut
• Virtual meeting tools can augment your UC strategy:
o Advanced use cases (online training, town hall meetings, sales demos)
o Bridge video endpoints into virtual meetings
o Executive, high-profile users
o Minimize change during a phased deployment
• Questions:
o What is your UC strategy and who’s leading that effort?
o How important is video communication to your organization?
o What functionality gaps will need to be addressed by virtual meeting
tools
Contract negotiation cheat sheet
1) Secure buy-in from key stakeholders
2) Confirm the key dates / commitments on current contracts
3) Prepare your contract negotiation checklist
4) Calculate the impact of fees and surcharges on your current
invoice
5) Ask about new consumption models (Active Host, Concurrent
Ports)
6) Validate how a new solution will integrate with your UC strategy
• *When in doubt, call in the experts to help you negotiate the best
deal possible
3/4/2016 Optelcon Confidential 18
Our Recent Results Speak For Themselves. (2014-2015 Only)
In addition to saving clients money in Telecom and Wireless, Optelcon will address
your entire global IT spend.
Life Cycle Management
•Deliver• Improve
•Advise•Analyze
-Audit-Benchmark
-Strategy-Tactics-Playbook
-Negotiate-Source-Recover -Implement
-Measure-Optimize-Advise
3/4/2016 Confidential 19
Optelcon’s services include monthly incremental improvement analysis,
audits, optimization, Market Rate Watch and advisory services.
3/4/2016 Confidential 20
Team Member Role
Years of
Experience Prior to Optelcon
Full Bio
Double Click on Icon
Robert PommerFounder & CEO,
Executive Consultant24
Co-Founder, COO/CTO and Vice Chairman of
Universal Access (Now Global Capacity)
Anita Mandell
VP of Operations,
Customer Care,
Executive Consultant24
VP of Global Network Delivery and Voice
Operations - Accenture.
Chris Barger
VP of IT Operations,
Category Leader,
Executive Consultant25
Director Of Data Center Operations and IT
Procurement - CGI (60,000 Global Employees)
Larry ConklinDirector of Audit
Operations21
Sr. Telecom Auditor And Designated Auditing
Subject Matter Expert- IBM
Therese AlcalaDirector of Telecom
Analytics24
Service Program Manager, Bill Auditor and analyst
- Verizon Business Network Services
Debra Walker
Sr. Director of Analysis
and Database
Development 22
Sr. Telecom & IT Data Analyst- ATT/IBM Global
Services
Matt Galman
Sr. Director of Mobile
Operations, Sr.
Consultant10
Director Of Wireless Operations and Analysis -ADT /
Tyco International
Combined years of Experience 150
There Is No Substitute For Experience.
You will not find a team of individuals that is more experienced or more
passionate about customer care and reducing the IT costs of our clients.
Why should you choose Optelcon?
• No Risk Fee Structure- Fees are a % of realized savings. No Savings, No Fees
• Better Results –Average IT, Telecom and Mobile Savings - 41%
• Better Value – Optelcon is more nimble and provides a better value than larger consulting firms
• Experience– Company-wide avg. industry experience – 21 Years Avg. industry experience
• Experience – Over $2.2B+ in contracts negotiated and spend addressed - $500M+ saved
• No Software – No complex, resource intensive software. We do all of the work.
• Ease –Optelcon only needs a copy of your invoices and contracts. We do the rest
• Speed – Optelcon gets real results in an average of only 2.4 months
• Life-cycle Management – Optelcon helps manage the contracts and spend over its lifecycle
• Addressable Spend – One Partner – Cost reductions with over 90 global IT vendors
3/4/2016 Confidential 21
“Thank You For Your Time”.
We look forward to adding value to your company’s
cost reduction initiatives.
3/4/2016 Confidential 22
Robert J. Pommer
Founder & CEO