Communications service providers (CSPs) manage an enormous amount of complexity in their technology footprint — it’s just the nature of the business. Organizations that grow through acquisition or are formed through mergers face even bigger potential challenges with their tech environment. Seamlessly integrating platforms, systems and applications that are critical to day-to-day operations is a major hurdle to clear.
Newly acquired entities may have legacy systems that need to be retired, replaced or integrated to a CSP’s tech stack. When merging two separate organizations, bringing both sides together onto a single, cohesive platform and a collection of shared uniform processes is crucial. At the same time, those systems — and billing systems, in particular — need to be effortlessly scalable so the broader organization can continue to grow and maintain high-quality service delivery.
Working with a telecommunications billing and OSS provider like IDI Billing Solutions can significantly streamline the seemingly daunting task of integrating disparate organizations across a shared billing platform while continuing to build for the future.
Streamlining tech integration during a merger or acquisition allows for a greater focus on continued growth.Consolidating billing systems with a best-of-breed approach
Adding a new company to existing processes, workflows and platforms is rarely a straightforward task. With CSPs, telecom billing systems often present the most potential headaches, given these platforms’ larger role within an organization and their relationship with mission-critical processes such as managing orders, rating usage, taxing, invoicing and managing customers throughout their life cycle.
Carrying over legacy systems creates silos and potentially reduces functionality in certain corners of the organization. In some circumstances, however, a newly acquired entity may have an existing platform that outperforms what the parent company has in place.
In this instance, following a best-of-breed approach may be ideal for selecting solutions to replace, upgrade or retain when integrating an acquisition. Pursuing a similar strategy enables CSPs to continually evolve and improve using the latest and best technologies available.
Sustaining growth with a scalable billing solution
Business growth and expansion cannot happen at the cost of service quality or the customer experience. Achieving that balance requires scalable, reliable and user-friendly solutions across the entire organization. Billing systems, in particular, need to continually evolve alongside a CSP’s needs to address the latest requirements and demands from both users and customers.
Organizations that grow through mergers and acquisitions — and do so at an aggressive pace — must prioritize flexibility, scalability and usability in their billing platforms. When a new entity is brought into the fold, the CSP will need to onboard numerous users with no prior experience navigating that system. Intuitive design and user-friendly interfaces enable organizations to streamline the onboarding process and bring employees up to speed as quickly as possible.
Having the flexibility to quickly rollout new services or incorporate acquired company products into larger service offerings is also essential for this business model to succeed. For CSPs, that requires a sophisticated billing system capable of supporting various types of telecom services across the entire service delivery cycle.
Finding a billing partner that will support continued growth
The needs of a high-growth organization can change in the blink of an eye. Forming strategic partnerships will ensure that CSPs are able to adapt to shifting market conditions, meet operational demands and deliver a consistently exceptional customer experience.
In addition to providing CSPs with a powerful billing platform in CostGuard Billing and OSS, IDI serves as a trusted business partner, offering support and guidance to navigate the most complex and difficult challenges that may arise. IDI also works hand in hand with stakeholder teams to enhance the CostGuard platform, expand its functionality and help manage billing, automation and workflow processes more efficiently.
By forging a strong and lasting relationship with IDI Billing Solutions, an organization can continue to grow while delivering a first-rate experience to its customers.
To learn more about choosing the right billing, automation and workflow solution for building a strong strategic partnership and the benefits that relationship provides, download IDI’s case study today.
