Using Telecommunications for Competitive Advantage—the Approach of the European Multinationals

This paper looks at the business drivers facing European companies and the way these drivers are changing their use of telecommunications. The findings are based on Ovum’s European Telecommunications Users Panel. This consists of over 100 international and multinational companies providing information to Ovum five times a year on their changing use of telecommunications.The paper looks at trends from the telecommunications manager’s viewpoint. It identifies three main forces which affect him: the business strategies of his organisation which, with improvements in economic climate, are moving from cost cutting to global business expansion.the changing information systems requirements of his organisation, where the demand for high bandwidth data services is growing rapidlythe changing patterns of supply of telecommunication services—in terms of products available, price and quality of supply. Here competition is changing the situation rapidlyOverall the paper shows that the role of the telecommunications manager in Europe is changing. Up until now the telecommunications manager has dealt with the operational and technical issues involved in running a private network for his company. Now he is adopting more of a strategic, business oriented role in which he matches business and information system needs to the most effective telecommunications solutions, selected from a range of competing suppliers.