As the growing need for IP-based equipment increases, installations at the field level have become less complex when managed properly. This allows ITS contractors to install multiple technologies and expand their repertoire of capabilities.

This increased ease of IP installation at the field level has caused many inaccurate perceptions in the industry. One of the foremost of these is that there is a decreased complexity in the management of field deployments on a nationwide or global scale. This misperception has caused a growth in the number of firms specializing in a variety of services utilizing local resources on a national and global basis. The down side is that not all firms offering nationwide and global rollout services are true technology rollout companies and even in the cases that they are, their expertise, processes, methodologies and support abilities may vary considerably.

This article will take you through several basic areas which you should be aware of when engaging firms that perform nationwide and global rollouts.

What is a Multi-site Technology Rollout?
A multi-site technology rollout is an initiative to perform the same process across dozens, hundreds, and thousands of geographic locations over a defined period of time.

What is a Technology Rollout Company?
A technology rollout company is an organization with its core business in multi-site, multi-service, multi-technology rollouts with established processes and methodologies in place to perform nationwide (and global) field deployments of a varying scale of magnitude. This is versus 1) companies (or consultants) that are proficient in a specific technology and service a specific geographical area or 2) solutions providers with core competencies that lie outside the expertise of field deployments (i.e. system design, engineering).  

The Technology Rollout Categories
While the information in this article applies to all Rollout Categories, it is important to note that it will be discussed primarily in relation to the most common type of rollouts, Category 1.

The following chart details the breakdown of each Rollout Category.

The Problems with Nationwide Technology Rollouts

The primary issues that exist when working with a technology rollout company can be broken down into three areas:

• Same Sales Pitch
• Rise of Incapable Organizations
• Growth of the Problem

1. Same Sales Pitch
For the last decade, traditional technology rollout companies have primarily relied on presenting the same sales pitch criteria for establishing competency. This, from the customer perspective, comes in the form of the technology rollout company claiming three key points: 

1. Single Point of Contact for the Customer
2. Nationwide Contacts (contractors)
3. Software Application to Manage Rollout

Although this sounds very plausible, this is what causes a lot of firms trouble.

On the other end, the contractor or field partner is also provided a sales pitch. According to a Concert Technologies Partnership survey of nationwide field contractors, 80% states that the Technology Rollout Company contacted them. This “sales pitch” includes "The Promise of “The Dream" with common language from the technology rollout company such as:

• “We do a lot of jobs in your area”
• “There are more jobs to come”

2. Rise of Incapable Organizations
Due in part to the oversimplification and inaccuracy of what is required to successfully complete multi-site technology rollouts on a nationwide and global scale, there are often various scenarios of companies attempting to complete these projects. The following list shares some of the common examples.

• Technology Rollout Companies with initial capabilities, but fail to deliver over the life cycle of the project.
  
• Solution providers imitating a Technology Rollout Company
  
• Unethical companies
  

3. Growth of the Problem
The problem will continue to grow without awareness of the situation. After all, 62% of contractors surveyed stated that they have performed work for three or more Technology Rollout Companies in the past year. This increase is based on two primary trends in the world today: the current economic crisis and the increased use of IP technologies.

Decreased Employees + Increased Outsourcing = Increased Technology Rollout Companies

The second part of problem growth is that field installations are becoming easier through the use of IP Technologies. This allows for multiple equipment and technologies to be installed with use of the circuits.

Results of the Problem
If the problem continues to grow and more and more technology rollout companies emerge, the results are going to become even more evident. These include:

• Payment Problems
  
• Job Loss
  
• Lawsuits or No Legal Action Taken
  36% of contractors surveyed stated that they did not take any action when they were unpaid by a technology rollout company.
• Replacements
• Reputation Damage

A Guide to Determining the Answer

All of the issues detailed above result in a project with high risk of failure if there is not a proper set of methodology and processes in place to perform technology rollouts on a nationwide or global scale.

Technology Rollout System of Methodologies
Today's Technology Rollout System is a comprehensive, multi-technology, multi-service, multi-site system designed to meet varying project requirements in an ever-changing Information Transport Industry.

• Formalized processes and methodologies for efficiently deploying technology nationwide and globally.
• Designed to meet project requirements in an ever-changing technology industry.
• Comprised of four key parts.

It is comprised of four parts: Process Structure, Rollout Services Model, Internal Resources, and Partnerships.

Part 1: Process Structure

Various Process Structures are employed by technology rollout companies to facilitate the management of multi-site nationwide and global projects. The primary Process Structures and their advantages are explained below.

1. Centralized Single-Tier
   The customer uses a technology rollout company that directly manages field technicians through a direct partnership.
   
2. Centralized Multi-Tier
   The customer uses a technology rollout company that hires subcontractors in a tiered hierarchy to manage field technicians.
   
3. Rent-a-Tech
   The customer or technology rollout company uses a Rent-a-Tech company in a shared management effort of field technicians.
4. Internal Employee
   The customer or technology rollout company uses internal employees for project management and field technicians. In Internal Employee Process Structures, additional external local field technicians are likely to be required due to the number of sites and costs associated with employing sufficient internal field technicians to handle nationwide or global rollouts.
5. Additional Structures: Hybrid
   A number of variations of the four basic structures may exist as a hybrid structure. They will have associated advantages and disadvantages on an individual structure basis.

The following diagrams depict each Process Structure along with key benefit comparisons.

Comparison Summary

As one can see, the Centralized Single-Tier Process Structure provides superior benefits for a Category 1 Rollout such as maximized communication speed and minimized labor costs when employed as part of a Technology Rollout System.

Part 2: Rollout Services Model
This model, with its nine components, integrates and consolidates all activities and processes for the entire rollout project into a single, more efficient and powerful engine. The nine key components are:

1. Project Management
2. Circuits
3. Equipment and Technology
4. Cabling
5. Site Surveys and Estimates
6. Nationwide Warehousing
7. 24/7 Maintenance
8. Billing
9. Solution Support

Deployment Methods
As with the Process Structure, the rapid deployment of multi-technology, multi-service, multi-site rollouts requires a defined Deployment Method in order to maximize efficiency. The various Deployment Methods utilized by technology rollout companies are explained in this section.

1. Local Multi-Service
   The technology rollout company minimizes the number of local field technicians to deploy multiple services in as few truck rolls as possible. Each technician specializes in multiple services and is managed and supported by the technology rollout company.
2. Single-Service Multi-Resource
   The technology rollout company uses multiple local field technicians. Each technician specializes in a single service.
3. Non-Local Service
   The technology rollout company uses a single group of technicians as its field force. These non-local technicians travel to each site from a central location. Each technician may or may not specialize in multiple services.
4. Additional Methods: Hybrid
   A number of variations of the three basic methods may exist as hybrid methods, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

The following diagrams depict each Deployment Method along with key benefit comparisons.

Comparison Summary

From the comparison above, one can see that the Local Multi-Service is the most efficient Deployment Method for Category 1 Rollouts through its use of a minimized number of technicians to complete multiple services in the fewest truck rolls. This provides the benefits of accelerated deployment speeds, enhanced communication flow and reduced labor costs.

Part 3: Internal Resources
Internal Resources consist of the technology rollout company’s internal operations, network infrastructure, web-based application software, training and company culture. Benefits of these aspects can include real-time project status reports, minimized administrative time and costs, and convenient asset management and recovery services.

The Rollout Delivery Team
Though the actual titles of these key roles may differ depending on a company’s internal naming conventions, the critical role that they serve should not vary. Each job is essential to the overall management and success of your technology rollout.

• Program Manager
  The Program Manager provides overall support and quality assurance to each assigned project. The Program Manager oversees projects to ensure they are completed to the customers’ specifications. This position also guarantees the consistent level of expertise and speed for all projects.
• Project Manager
  This role serves as the customer’s single point of contact. The Project Manager manages all aspects of the rollout from interaction with the customer to the Project Facilitators that manage the onsite local resources. There should be multiple Project Managers within a given rollout company’s configuration. This role should report to the Program Manager.
• Project Facilitator
  Project Facilitators manage all aspects of the local site resources including scheduling, onsite job performance assurance, communication with each site’s point of contact and interfacing with material management. There should be multiple Project Facilitators within a given deployment company’s configuration. This role should report to the Project Managers.
• Warehouse Manager
  This job, along with the warehouse team, manages all equipment and materials responsibilities for each rollout including shipping, SLA warehousing requirements and configuration. A technology rollout company may elect to provide a separate operations unit to provide configuration services. The Warehouse Manager should report to the Program Manager.
• Technology Manager
  The Technology Manager, and their technology team, provides management functions for the web-based application software and electronic transfer of customer data. This role should report to the Program Manager.
• Partnership Manager
  The Partnership Manager with support of the partnership team is responsible for the recruitment and quality of the partners utilized by the technology rollout company. This person should report to the Program Manager or Project Manager.

Rollout Delivery Team Configurations
If the basic Internal Resource job requirements of the Rollout Delivery Team are not met, then the capabilities of the technology rollout company should be in question. Thus for the purposes of the following information, these necessary positions are considered critical.

• Unified Resource
  The Rollout Delivery Team consists of a Project Manager, Project Facilitators, Program Manager, Warehouse Manager, Technology Manager and Partnership Manager. The Project Manager can utilize Project Facilitators as needed including using Dedicated Project Facilitators depending on project requirements.
  
• Limited Resource
  When any critical job roles are unfulfilled, the Rollout Delivery Team Configuration is considered to be limited. The chart below indicates the impact of not having a Project Facilitator(s) present.
• Dedicated Resource
  The Rollout Delivery Team consists of a Project Manager, Dedicated Project Facilitator, Program Manager, Warehouse Manager, Technology Manager and Partnership Manager.
• Non-unified Resource
  The Rollout Delivery Team consists of a Project Manager, Dedicated Project Facilitator, Supervisor, Warehouse Manager, Technology Manager and Partnership Manager. The Supervisor serves as the direct report of the Project Manager, but the Supervisor’s primary role is outside of the rollout project.
• Hybrid
  A combination of the Rollout Delivery Team Configurations may exist with associated advantages and disadvantages.

The following diagrams depict the Rollout Delivery Team Configurations along with key benefit comparisons. The actual number of Project Managers, Project Facilitators and other resources utilized to maximize rollout efficiency will vary from those indicated by the confines of the Rollout Delivery Team Configuration Diagrams. Additionally, the roles of Warehouse Manager, Technology Manager and Partnership Manager are considered to be fulfilled in each of these examples.

Comparison Summary

Only by utilizing the Unified Resource Rollout Delivery Team Configuration for Category 1 Rollouts will you be assured that the rollout has the most efficient deployment possible. This efficiency relates not only to costs and time, but also to the communication flow and assurance that all aspects of the project are completed to the customer’s specifications.

Part 4: Partnerships
Technology rollouts on a nationwide and global scale require local technicians to perform onsite work. Thus, the importance of understanding what types of partnerships are available and the means in which they are managed by a technology rollout company.

Types of Partnerships
There are three types of partnerships for technology rollout companies.

• Companies
  While all serve a purpose in providing rollout services, a local company employing individual technicians provides the resources, redundancy, and scalability as needed for your project.
  
• Individual Technicians
  An individual technician working as an independent contractor may be unable to provide the necessary advantages detailed above. They may also lack the local requirements (e.g., licenses, insurance, equipment) necessary to provide all required services.
  
• Staffing Firms
  In terms of Staffing Firms, there are limitations as to the types of rollouts for which they will provide technicians. With their 1 day or less timeframes, Category 1 Rollouts are simply too short for a Staffing Firm’s business model to provide cost-effective services. 

The following chart compares these partnership types along with associated benefits

Technician Communication Channel
The Technician Communication Channel defines how the technology rollout company manages and communicates with each onsite technician. The following information compares the primary Technician Communication Channels.

• Direct Tech Communication Channel
  The technology rollout company engages the local partner company but directly manages the field technicians or supervisor at each site location.
• Indirect Tech Communication Channel
  The technology rollout company allows the local partner company to communicate directly with each field technician. The local partner company communicates with the technology rollout company upon site completion and/or for support.
• Single Tech Communication Channel
  The technology rollout company does not use companies as partners and instead opts to partner with each technician directly.
• Hybrid Tech Communication Channels
  A combination of the Technician Communication Channels may exist with associated advantages and disadvantages.

The following diagrams show the Technician Communication Channels and compare related benefits of each.

Comparison Summary
By utilizing the Direct Tech Communication Channel for Category 1 Rollouts, it will ensure that technicians are managed and supported directly by the technology rollout company that is employed by the customer. This provides quality assurance and work performance that is not inherent in other communication channels.

The Direct Tech Communication Channel can also be used for a Category 3 Rollout in which a project management representative from the technology rollout company would be present onsite to manage the technicians directly.

 SUMMARY

By having a set of guidelines to understand the Process Structure, Deployment Method, Rollout Delivery Team Configuration and Technician Communication Channel, you will be better equipped to ensure the technology rollout company you engage with is both efficient and professional. From a contractor perspective, this means less risk of not being paid and more chance of additional work in the future (as the company will have a solid business model and reputation). As a customer, this information will make certain that your project avoids missed deadlines and increased project costs.

While there are always additional factors to consider, the information detailed in this article serves as a starting point for education and awareness of how a technology rollout company operates. Only time and experience will tell whether or not the relationship you establish with a technology rollout company will be mutually beneficial for you as well as them.