By Todd Larsen – CEO,  Limitless Technology ~ Cost Reduction Specialists

So, it’s the end of the year…

Not  a bad one. Business has improved, interest rates have remained low, the market has done extremely well, and the economy is slowly recovering. Goods things all in all and you can feel a certain change coming. 

And then you look at your P&L. Does it reflect this years tide? Does the bottom line look as good as it could have or should have? Was there any more that could have been done? Could more have been sold, expenses reduced, delivery made more efficient or products manufactured for less cost? Questions that have been most likely bouncing around in your mind since beginning budget planning for 2014.

Ok…so questions arise to help ensure profits next year soar. Right? Planned for everything, up turn, downturn, right purchased, right trend, right color, right size, right service model, right price….everything. No doubts, no concerns, no worries. Right?

Hmmm…most likely the perfect scenario but, not the most probable one. If you are like the majority of owners and executive leaders, you worry if all the plans are correct and will be executed in a way that ensures the most profitable growth. 

So is there is one thing you can do to ensure higher profits? The answer is yes, lower costs! I am not advocating lowering service quality, or purchasing inferior goods; I am a proponent of lowering the costs of what you already are buying. Sounds simple. Just pick up the phone, call your vendors, and tell them you want the lowest price for the  best product and service. Done. You call, they jump, bring you better products, lower prices and instantaneously you improve profits.  

Unfortunately most likely not, but it’s not for lack or trying. However, do you know how to negotiate the best offering for a particular product or service? Are there questions in your mind like…

– Where do you start? 

– What’s reasonable? 

– What’s good? 

– What price is right?

– What terms are best? 

– Am I protected against business trends? 

– Are my contracts flexible?

Quite honestly there an endless stream of questions and doubts. Ok…so how can I get all the questions answered, and moreover, improve my vendor positioning while improving my price points, flexibility and profitability? The answer is easy, but it’s not. Sorry to be ambiguous but that is the truth. In order to have the best positioning and pricing you will most likely need to look for a resource outside your company which has the skills, knowledge and experience to help you gain this positioning. Ok…now the tough question. Who do you trust? I believe when you can answer that question, you are on your way to having your problem resolved. First lets look at some points you should inspect when selecting a “trusted advisor”.

– Does the firm have inside industry experience?

– Do they have several written testimonials from other companies in your industry?

– Will they quickly provide a list of references?

– Can they show you a proven process to ensure success?

– Do they offer a money back guarantee? 

When you find that trusted resource, which can provide the above answers and position you best with your vendor, the questions will go away and peace of mind will take their place. You will allow them the opportunity to help lower your costs and provide the bottom line results your were looking for at the end of this year, last year and the year before. And this way when you look at next years P&L, you’ll know you could not have done anything more in those areas to be more profitable. 

Now… it’s an end of the year.

www.limitlesstechnology.com

I find it very intriguing, more often than not, managers will “buy” speculated cost savings that they have ample experience showing them they do not turn into real savings while at the same time they will reject speculated earnings.

In supply chain this phenomena is very vivid: companies invest time, effort and money in saving costs – uniting batches, full truck load, inventory reduction and many more initiatives are taken to save cost, focusing primarily on “cost per unit”. Cost per unit saved, in many of the cases does not turn into real savings.

On the other hand, initiatives that can improve availability and increase sales, are rejected with the claim that “it is not certain that the positive effects will materialize”.

Although there is a very high certainty that the cost savings will not materialize, and high probability that the increase in sales will, the common choice is to go for the cost savings.

It will be great to hear your thoughts about why?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mickey,

I believe the argument should not be either or, but should but a nice blend/mix of both. You cannot turn a blind eye to cost savings, to focus attention on sales growth. Nor should you only look at cost reductions, without having a plan to use those cost savings to increase distribution, sales, productivity, efficiency, etc.

That stated, cost savings increase the bottom line profitability of a Company NOW. There is no waiting, wondering, or hoping the investment made towards increasing sales was a correct choice. And even when the sales initiative has been made, you still need to go back and make sure you cut unnecessary costs from the new model…hence to be as profitable as possible.

Remember…find efficiencies, reduce costs, increase margin, & apply profits to good uses.

Posted by: Todd Larsen, CEO of Limitless Technology~Cost Reduction Specialists

 ~ Cloud adoption has risen based on a variety of factors such as; increased improvements in hosted VoIP solutions, along with the need to reduce capital outlay.

The ROI, TCO and MRR price points when looked at in total (soft and hard costs combined) with the right provider also returns significant cost value.  Another cause of higher adoption can only naturally be based on the OPEX Vs CAPEX proposition in a tumultuous economic time.

Reduction in upfront and overall total costs will always be a growth driver.

However, transparency is the biggest challenge in moving to cloud computing, not security or price. Yet, IT departments not only have to ensure cloud deployments comply with external and internal regulations, but they need to be able to prove that compliance to auditors and regulators. Security may be second to transparency, but it is still a key consideration for companies moving to cloud in pursuit of greater IT agility and flexibility for rapid response to business challenges.

For most organizations, the move to cloud provides the opportunity of increased security as cloud providers typically invest more in security and have greater staff and intelligence resources. While most companies are adopting a step-by-step approach to cloud starting with non-critical elements, some that have already moved all applications and infrastructure to the cloud. Cloud does not necessarily meet all requirements necessary for sound business choices, so organizations need to look at what areas of the business cloud can improve operations, functionality, efficiency, as well as, consider the cost benefits that could be gained.

Most cloud providers are serious about what they are doing and encourage high standards in the industry. Still wise choices must be made so that “dating” the solution’s possibilities, doesn’t end up in a marriage that “hogs” resources, time or cash.

Limitless Technology~CRS

Delivering expert results on: telecom auditing, telecom contract management, telecom expense management, and telecom billing optimization services. Bottom line…We improve Bottom Lines.

www.limitlesstechnology.com

US Based Executives ‘question business value’ of tech spend.

Recently I was exposed to a survey taken by multiple senior finance executives regarding their opinions and facts surrounding the cost of IT and communications. Overall the “gist” of the information gathered clearly shows technology is needed,  but do not believe they are getting the types of info they need, and the spend or “burn rate” was grossly negligent to the ROI.

Below are some of the highlights or the articles finer points.

After reading…what are you opinions or thoughts on high communication spend rates or the mismanagement of technology costs in business?

• Senior finance executives say their companies are weak at converting business spend to technology value.

• Almost none of those surveyed (3%) rate their companies as “excellent”, according to a new survey of more than 150 senior finance executives by CFO Research in collaboration with consultants AlixPartners.

• The survey also finds that more than two-thirds of financial executives (66%) give their companies a “C” or “D” grade when it comes to measuring financial returns from discretionary IT projects, such as big data ones, designed to improve or add to a company’s business and profits. Only 5% gave their companies an “A”.

• Meanwhile, at the other end of the IT spectrum, the survey reveals that “keep-it-running” IT costs – non-discretionary support and maintenance systems – are cannibalizing funds available for business-improving IT.

• A plurality of respondents (49%) estimates that, over the past two years, their company has maintained approximately a 70-30 ratio of keep-it-running to improve-the-business IT spending, and of that amount, a solid majority – 63% – believes that their company’s spending is weighted too heavily toward keep-it-running IT services, and that a greater share should be directed to improve-the-business IT projects.

• The survey goes on to show that, despite massive IT investments in recent years, companies are not getting enough of the kind of information they need to successfully run and grow their businesses.

• “The message from CFOs and other senior finance executives is loud and clear – companies are spending too much on IT, and they’re not getting the business information that they truly need,” said Meade Monger, managing director at AlixPartners and co-lead of the firm’s Information Management Services unit.

By Todd Larsen CEO Limitless Technology~CRS  April, 10th, 2013

Limitless Technology~CRS

Delivering expert results on: telecom auditing, telecom contract management, telecom expense management, and telecom billing optimization services.

www.limitlesstechnology.com

US Based Executives ‘question business value’ of tech spend.

Recently I was exposed to a survey taken by multiple senior finance executives regarding their opinions and facts surrounding the cost of IT and communications. Overall the “gist” of the information gathered clearly shows technology is needed, but finance executives do not believe they are getting the information they need, and that the spend or “burn rate” would be grossly negligent to the ROI.

Below are some of the highlights or the articles finer points.

After reading…what are your opinions or thoughts on high communication spend rates or the mismanagement of technology costs in business?

• Senior finance executives say their companies are weak at converting business spend to technology value.
• Almost none of those surveyed (3%) rate their companies as technologically “excellent”, according to a new survey of more than 150 senior finance executives by CFO Research in collaboration with consultants AlixPartners.
• The survey also finds that more than two-thirds of financial executives (66%) give their companies a “C” or “D” grade when it comes to measuring financial returns from discretionary IT projects, such as big data ones, designed to improve or add to a company’s business and profits. Only 5% gave their companies an “A”.
• Meanwhile, at the other end of the IT spectrum, the survey reveals that “keep-it-running” IT costs – non-discretionary support and maintenance systems – are cannibalizing funds available for business-improving IT.
• A plurality of respondents (49%) estimates that, over the past two years, their company has maintained approximately a 70-30 ratio of keep-it-running to improve-the-business IT spending, and of that amount, a solid majority – 63% – believes that their company’s spending is weighted too heavily toward keep-it-running IT services, and that a greater share should be directed to improve-the-business IT projects.
• The survey goes on to show that, despite massive IT investments in recent years, companies are not getting enough of the kind of information they need to successfully run and grow their businesses.
• “The message from CFOs and other senior finance executives is loud and clear – companies are spending too much on IT, and they’re not getting the business information that they truly need,” said Meade Monger, managing director at AlixPartners and co-lead of the firm’s Information Management Services unit.

By Todd Larsen CEO Limitless Technology~CRS April, 10th, 2013

Limitless Technology~CRS

Delivering expert results on: telecom auditing, telecom contract management, telecom expense management, and telecom billing optimization services.

www.limitlesstechnology.com

CRAMMING IS ILLEGAL – and reprimand-able with full recovery of false charges in some cases.

“Cramming”: Is when monthly charges pop up on your telephone bill for services that you never approved such as voice mail, paging, or club membership, it’s called “cramming.”  This seems to happen on all services but far more often on cellular billings, landline, long distance and 800 number services too!

Here one way it happens…You or someone in your Company may be asked to return a missed call because it’s ‘Your lucky day’ and you or they’ve won a trip to some exotic location. When you/they make the the call, an automated system is activated and you are unknowingly enrolled in a club or program, and the charge then appears later on the phone bill.

The “cramming company” or “individual”  may not need to do anything except take or  pick one of your phone numbers out randomly and place false charges on your bill through your local telephone company, claiming that you/they agreed to buy  these “mystery” services.

Bottom line is…Look at your bill closely every month. Charges for optional services should be itemized and state the name of the company providing the unknown service, how it is described and its phone number. If you or someone in your Company did not order or approve the services, call that number and insist that the services are canceled and the charges removed from your bill.

Also,  putting a third party block on your phone service accounts could save you a lot of angst. It’s often free and it does not let any third party add charges to your phone bills. Should you be unsure of how to do these processes and requests, give us a call and we can help. (866) 504 4050.

Delivering expert results on: telecom auditing, telecom contract management, telecom expense management, and telecom billing optimization services.

Bottom Line…We Improve Bottom Lines.

www.limitlesstechnology.com

(866) 504 4050

However, there is a group out there that has a head phone obsession. They pay hundreds of dollars for the ear phones the have the perfect sound and comfort. Neither of these groups are what I want to focus one, I want to focus on the group that doesn’t want to spends hundreds on ear phones but also want something a little more comfortable than a small piece of plastic shoved in their ear.

For that group of people, Grado iGrado-Behind-the-Neck Stereo Headphones is the good that will satisfy your wants. Grados go around the ear instead of inside it and are cushioned for comfort.

Instead of having the cords laying in front of you, like the iPhone, and wrapping around bags, clothes, and even door handles and ripping them out of your ears (yes, that has happened to me) Grados wrap around your neck and have one non dangling cord.

They also produce a high-quality natural sound that allows you to hear the sharpest of sounds in music and the clearest language for audio business books.

The best part is that they only cost $50 retail! So, spend a little bit more money and, I promise, your ears will thank you.