Telecom costs are typically 1 percent to 2 percent of a company’s sales – that represents real money for a multi-billion dollar global corporation. As such, effective negotiations and management of telecom contracts can have a measurable impact on a business’ financial performance.

A successful negotiation strategy is built on knowledge of mature and emerging technologies and market-based price and service standards, as well as effective use of contract terms and conditions to define goals and manage vendor performance. Another essential component of negotiation is defining thresholds and decision points for switching service providers – this, in turn, requires understanding the implications and potential risks of changing providers.