JacobsRimell (JR), a leading provider of customer-centric IP service fulfillment solutions, recently unveiled guidelines for a unified approach to telecommunications information management for all service providers as they face a number of systematic changes in the industry. The white paper, entitled “Telecom Information Management and Analysis (TIMA): Challenges and Solutions,” describes how an important strategic priority for service providers is to create an operations infrastructure that allows them to roll out new services much more rapidly, and with fewer errors, than in the past.

According to the white paper’s authors Dr. Lorien Pratt and Nancee Ruzicka from Stratecast, a Division of Frost and Sullivan, an effective data management strategy — not a functional focus will drive the operationalization of next generation services and, in turn, ensure profitability and subscriber satisfaction. The effective management and delivery of next generation services is only possible using an information driven OSS.

The paper also describes JacobsRimell as a TIMA (Telecommunications Information Management and Analysis) thought leader. As the telecommunication industry moves from a technology to a service-based industry, the focus on customer data is a high priority for many service providers. According to Pratt, “JacobsRimell supports its service provider customers with a data management infrastructure focused around maintaining customer information in the service fulfillment process. A service providers’ ability to manage high volume, subscriber-centric fulfillment information is a competitive differentiator.”

David Jacobs, CTO and Co-Founder of JacobsRimell, said: “To survive in today’s competitive telecommunications environment, service providers must improve the customer experience through new and converged products while significantly reducing complexity at all levels. Service providers who consciously engage in an information engineering strategic planning process centered on the creation and maintenance of a unified telecommunications object model will realize a significant competitive advantage by being able to make faster more reliable customer-centric decisions.”

JacobsRimell has also provided guidelines in the conclusion of the white paper to ensure success in implementing a more effective information management strategy. These guidelines include the following:

1. A board level sponsor and funded core (non silo) management and IT strategy, design and implementation team is fundamental.

2. IT management needs the authority to veto the “incremental advantages” of IT project which represent a short term, seemingly easy ‘fix,’ but which retain and reaffirm the silo strategy.

3. A corporate level, across the ’silos’ strategy means good education and awareness strategies are important.

4. Convergence for subscribers and products (services) will mean governance, roles and budgets will need to be re-assigned.

5. Core systems owners need to be reassured that their systems are critical and will be given funding for upgrades necessary to support the convergence project.

JacobsRimell has nearly a decade of experience working with some of the most demanding multi-service operators in the world, helping them mix and match old and new components of their network infrastructures to make possible the short and long term delivery of advanced services. Amid the sea change occurring in the telecom industry, JacobsRimell knows how to build truly successful information driven OSS solutions — solutions that will support leading operators’ efforts to not only effectively deliver bundled and converged services and targeted offerings, but also greatly increase adoption rates for maximum competitive advantage.
The white paper is available on www.jacobsrimell.com.

Light Reading and JacobsRimell co-sponsored a Webinar on “OSS Information Architecture for Next-Gen Services” and is available on Light Reading’s website: http://www.lightreading.com/webinar_archive.asp?doc_id=27994

About JacobsRimell
JacobsRimell is a leading provider of service management and fulfillment solutions for communications service providers enabling them to support the continuous creation and delivery of residential and business products independently from underlying technologies.

JacobsRimell’s solution (APSâ„¢) is based on a unique, patented subscriber centric data model that allows operators to rapidly develop and manage multiple products and services simultaneously, (Voice, Video, Data and blended services) significantly increasing operational efficiencies.

Operators with JacobsRimell’s solution can increase adoption rates by being able to create personalized and targeted offerings that can be subscribed to and turned on by customers themselves. With around 12 million voice, video and data subscribers in the world’s largest Cable MSO’s managed using JacobsRimell’s solution, operational performance, scalability and convergence are confirmed.

Founded in 1997, JacobsRimell (www.jacobsrimell.com) is headquartered in London with offices in the US, and Europe. JacobsRimell is a privately held company financed by leading telecom venture capital firms Advent International, DN Capital, eTechnology VCT and Fidelity Ventures.