Digital Transformation is the new Telecom

In some circles, Telecom is a dirty word.  But not Digital Transformation.  Digital Transformation has a broader view on technology and impacts business goals.

Welcome to the new era of Telecom.

John Chambers from Cisco said that if companies don’t go Digital, they won’t exist in a meaningful way in the next decade.  That’s why many companies view digital transformation as a necessity for survival.

Cloud is another word much sexier than telecom.  It provides agility and new consumption/pricing models.  Most milleanals don’t know that cloud is the spawn of telecom.  Datacenters, IP Connections, Security.  Remember Frame Relay, ATM and colocation?  Legacy telecom concepts that are the foundation of cloud.  We used to draw clouds on whiteboards to describe those technologies.

I have telecom running through my blood.  My father was with NY Telephone for many years and took an early retirement in the mid 90’s when we were both at NYNEX.  Back then, the telecom industry consisted mostly of voice and some data (T1’s, T3’s and Sonet).  NYNEX’s HQ was at 1095 A of A for many years and now it’s a Salesforce.com building.

Ironic?  Definitely.

Here are 5 reasons why Digital Transformation is the new telecom:

  1. The network is everything – When I was in sales for Cisco Systems, almost every IT Leader told me the network was everything to them.  Their voice, data, internet, and critical applications run over it.  In many cases, if the network goes down, the business is down.
  2. Telecom is one dimensional – The term Telecom is limiting – most people equate it to network services.  And network services can be quite painful with implementation and service.  That’s the main reason people equate telecom with pain.  Unfortunately, the industry hasn’t done a good job of changing everyones perception of Telecom.  But Digital Transformation and Cloud are sexy.   Truth be told, MSP’s like CenturyLink are the most powerful Digital Transformation and Cloud partners because of their foundational WAN offerings (The Network is Everything).
  3. Telecom is not just networks – It isn’t 1996 anymore, it’s 2018 and Telecom Companies have diversified for many reasons.  The main reason is that carriers have figured out how to add tremendous value to their clients beyond providing reliable networks. It also opens up new revenue streams for them.  For example, CenturyLink has a deep Security and Professional Services Portfolio centered around Big Data, Hybrid IT and IoT.
  4. Telecom companies are now MSP’s – Managed Service Provider’s like CenturyLink provide managed services around Network Management, Big Data, Enterprise Software, IoT and much more.  This is in addition to transport, voice/UC Solutions and IP.
  5. Digital Transformation is more powerful – Digital Transformation  covers every technology element of your business – hardware, software, cloud, communications, security and telecom.  These technologies enable companies to gain the competitive advantages needed to thrive.  CenturyLink can support you on whatever you are on your digital journey.

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