TELECOMMUNICATIONS AUDIT!
Telecom Audit and Cost Management
Telecommunications is a large portion of any enterprise expense budget. It is a well known fact that there is a huge amount of wasted money due to suboptimal telecom cost management, which could easily be prevented through various techniques including telecom bill auditing, inventory management, and usage/rate optimization.Telecom AuditAt the core of telecom auditing is software used to store contract data, interface with telecom invoicing systems, perform the auditing function, and report the results.Why Have a Telecom Audit?Telecom services bills can be very complex and it is very easy to miss a billing errorThe process itself will help the enterprise better understand their own telecom service needsMany outsourced telecom audit companies make the process a "no-brainer", with nothing to lose on the part of the enterpriseThe Telecom Audit ProcessPrior to utilizing telecom audit software, all contract information must be put into the system. In addition, leading systems will be able to track equipment owned, leased and used, along with rate plans.Telecom audit software should be able to handle both EDI inputs as well as manual invoicing from telecom companies to enable efficient processing of invoices. Once input into the system, the core function of the software is to audit the telecom bills against contracted rates and tariffs. Exceptions are automatically highlighted in reports, facilitating manual and/or automatic remedy with the billing agency.
Leading telecom audit systems will be able generate a variety of reports including exception reports, inventory reports, status reports, and be able to interface with enterprise ERP systems.How to go about audit?The telecommunications audit begins with gathering the previous months bills for both local and long distance service. If your telephone company provides your Internet service, you will need a copy of this bill also. A collection of bills for three or more months will give a better idea of calling patterns and other necessary information to help in your audit. If the bills don’t list each number individually, one can request the same from the operators at a very nominal cost. An itemized bill will list each telephone number separately along with any related charges.Your next step is to list each telephone number along with the associated costs. If you have several lines, make sure all are in use and what they are used for. If your not sure where each line goes or its use, you can perform a call test. Simply call each unfamiliar number to identify where it is answered. If you get a ring/no answer, try calling at various times during the day until you either get an answer or determine the number is unused at your facility. Document all numbers and locations and make note of any numbers that appear to be unused.Next, look at the type of service you have on each number. If you are making a minimum number of local calls, you might be able to use a basic service where you pay a flat rate plus the nominal per call rate. High use numbers that make local calls should have unlimited service. Sometimes, lines are set up for basic service only to later be used as high usage lines resulting in huge bill appearing at the end of the month.To summarize, you can save money if you look closely at your telephone bills before paying them. If you make changes, be sure to follow through with changing your telephone service. There are some instances where a telephone line was set up on the basic per minute rate and later used as a modem line for Internet access. The person using this Internet access chose to sign on in the morning and off in the late hours of the evening resulting in huge monthly phone bills. These costs are relatively easy to overlook on phone bills that range in the thousands of rupees.FOR MORE RESULTS SCROLL DOWN…
Please read instructions completely
prior to running the audit.www.tamu-commerce.edu
