Increasingly, enterprise IT managers are learning that adopting third-party network maintenance is not only exponentially less expensive, it also alleviates a mountain of administrative headaches associated with managing SLAs from multiple OEMs.
If your telecom, healthcare organization or enterprise is thinking about migrating from original equipment manufacturer (OEM) maintenance to save money and virtually eliminate labor-intensive administration, you’re not alone.
A little insider ‘heads-up:’
Clearly, the OEMs would rather you not know that third-party maintenance exists. When you break this news to your OEMs, they will promptly deliver a plethora of reasons why you should stick with them (obviously). Don’t buy this verbiage until you’ve had a few meetings with third-party network equipment and maintenance services.
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“Once we moved to Worldwide for system maintenance,
our costs were reduced by about 75 percent.
We saved thousands of dollars from day one.”
Global Telecom
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One of the biggest compliments we receive from new clients is their realization that we ultimately provide a higher level of end-to-end service, supported by lifetime-guaranteed equipment —at a significantly lower cost.
This success is attributed to our field-experienced OEM-Certified Engineering and Operations team, who has amassed decades of experience designing, configuring, testing, troubleshooting and repairing network equipment.
Your equipment OEM is in the business of manufacturing hardware and motivated to charge exorbitant fees for system maintenance in order to nudge customers to buy new (often unnecessary) products. Conversely, Worldwide Services specializes in providing higher quality, end-to-end network maintenance, at a markedly lower cost.
During your search for the best third-party maintenance service provider, we’ve outlined some tools to use which will help refine your search and help you choose the right third-party partnership for your network.
1. Schedule potential service provider meetings four to six months before your current agreement expires.
Take a look at your OEM service line agreements and when they will be up for renewal. This will provide a clear time frame for how long you have to conduct a proper vetting to find the right maintenance provider. Six months is an ideal period to complete candidate research, hold a phone meeting and then move to a live presentation. Doing so will also allow your team to have ample time to prepare for a seamless and error-free transition.
2. Speak directly with the technology team who will be handling your system on a day-to-day basis, not just the sales team.
At Worldwide, we have found that introducing our engineering team and technicians to a new client’s work team establishes a positive relationship even before work begins. As you narrow down the selection process, ask the candidates to bring along some of their engineers to discuss the scope of the project. Again, any reputable service provider will be happy to do this.
3. Ensure they have product inventory and field-experienced manpower close to your domestic and global sites.
Most enterprises have data center operations in multiple sites (and often several countries). Your new maintenance provider should have distribution centers and certified staff near all of your locations to optimally troubleshoot and replace products in the shortest time possible.
4. Ask for client references
Reputable, experienced third-party maintenance organizations will be happy to provide customer references with whom you can speak. The provider should also be able to put you in touch with a client reference who has a similar operation in size and scope to your own.
5. Unlike working with an OEM, your third-party SLA can be customized
One of the biggest complaints about OEM relationships is the lack of flexibility of services. Why pay for something you don’t need? Every network is unique just the way every organization is unique. A third-party maintenance provider will create a program that includes just the products and services you need, and nothing more.
6. Consider a phase-in transition approach
Starting with a segment of your network can be less stressful to the system than a full and immediate changeover. This isn’t possible during a merger or acquisition IT migration, but it can be a great alternative for businesses who are undergoing a less dramatic network maintenance transition.
7. Recognize that third-party maintenance can co-exist with OEM programs still in place
You’ll always find that flexibility is a keystone to third-party maintenance providers, including an occasional need to work in tandem on some networks, while a TPM is tested or during the transition, for example. We frequently work alongside OEM partners to provide a complete maintenance solution.
One End-to-End Hardware Equipment Maintenance Contract
NetGuard third-party maintenance protects and maintains all of your OEM brands under a single contract and save more than 50% over OEM SLAs.
Our field-experienced engineers and technicians have deep expertise in managing most OEM brands including:
Cisco ∙ Alcatel-Lucent ∙ Arris ∙ Fujitsu ∙ Ciena ∙ Nortel ∙ Tellabs ∙ Nokia ∙ Ericsson ∙ HP ∙ Dell ∙ NetApp ∙ Juniper∙ Brocade∙ Avaya ∙ Oracle ∙ F5 Networks∙ Harris
Our global service and inventory centers make it possible for us to reach every geographic market within 24-48 hours. We guarantee four-hour on-site service, provided by certified engineers and technical experts with have amassed 30+ years of technical expertise.
Our field-experienced engineers welcome an opportunity to learn more about your telecom, healthcare system, optical transport, enterprise, telco or cable system.
