To Audit or Not to Audit?
That is the question…
At a high level, there are three types of audits: internal, external and IRS. Of course, you have no control over when the IRS comes around, but the right mix of internal and external checks can help you keep your costs under constant scrutiny while keeping your books in order — which can't hurt if Uncle Sam does decide to take a dive into your telecom records.
Let's take a look at internal and external audits, which you can control and use to monitor your telecom spend.
What Are External Audits? (Why They Aren’t Enough)
Often done on a contingency basis, external audits are sometimes conducted annually for a company’s financials. Unfortunately, with the complexity involved in telecommunications, detailed audits are typically done every three to five years and may still not reach every layer of telecom spend.
These brief snapshots of corporate and telecom activity aren't always accurate. Because they are a snapshot in time, they may miss important trends that occur due to seasonality or specific capital expenditures, for example. The problem is you can't really rely on infrequent audits to overturn every savings opportunity or highlight system enhancements that could increase transparency. Occasional external audits may also lack clarity into day-to-day operations and may perhaps treat the symptoms without curing a permanent problem.
External telecom audits review all telecom services billed by providers and verify that the services are installed, used, and billed at the right rates. These examinations may result in refunds or service changes to optimize an organization’s telecom service packages.
What Are Ongoing Audits?
Ongoing audits can be conducted internally or externally. considering the high price tag that comes along with telecom services, many companies opt to partner with telecom expense management experts such as Valicom to maximize savings and proactively prevent overspend and billing mistakes.
By providing a baseline diagnostic and continuing to review monthly billing, ongoing audit functions track variances and cut wasted assets and spending. This can also help you be better prepared for tariffs and taxes that are often over billed.
Here’s how building the audit function into your ongoing operations can benefit your organization:
Boost Visibility. Visibility and transparency are major issues when it comes to unraveling the intricate web of employee-owned devices, fixed hardware, and IT infrastructure. When infrastructure assets are changed, moved, added or disconnected, many organizations don't do a good job of tracking them accurately. That's understandable since many organizations these days are understaffed and overwhelmed. Continuous auditing can help tame your wild telecom ecosystem.
Increase Cost Savings. With regular auditing, enterprise level organizations can identify assets that are underused or unused. This helps maximize efficiency and cost-savings by ensuring assets aren’t wasted.
Minimize Disruptions. Conducting audits on a regular basis prevents massively disruptive annual or occasional auditing. Even if you get an outside agency to conduct the audit, it almost always takes an enormous amount of effort from your internal team to supply the information needed to conduct the audit.
Identify Trends and Outliers Quickly. Ongoing auditing can recognize patterns and trends that change. This helps you immediately identify trends that don't make sense, instead of waiting years to find them in an external audit.
Improve Network Security. When you have a good grasp on active versus inactive devices, it can improve your network security. This will make your cybersecurity chief happy and give you the information needed to identify security threats faster.
Who Are the Best Candidates for a Telecom Audit (Internal or External)?
All organizations can benefit from telecom audits, but they are essential to companies with:
Multiple locations, especially if that includes national and international offices
Companies going through an acquisition or merger
Firms that haven't changed location in a long time
During a telecom audit, the client will get an inventory of all telecom vendors, services used, and whether the service is needed, redundant or extraneous. You can also learn whether your company is using telecom resources to full advantage.
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Valicom is one of the top vendors in Telecom Expense Management. Let us help you track and manage your wireline and wireless assets so you don’t keep paying for devices, hardware, and telecom lines your company doesn’t use. Our services include:
TEM Services
Telecom Expense Management
Cloud Expense Management
Contract Management
IT Inventory Management
Invoice Management and Payment
Utility Bill Management
Contact us today to schedule a demo or consultation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: JEFF POIRIOR
Jeff brings 25 years of telecommunications and information technology management experience in voice and data networking, server support, and telephony and security; with a significant emphasis on customer service. Prior to joining Valicom, he was chief of the infrastructure support section for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Jeff was the vice president of operations for CC&N, overseeing telecommunications, help desk, data, and desk side support services. Prior to that, he served as the associate director of technical resources for Covance, responsible for managing systems and network operations supporting 1700 users in Wisconsin and Virginia. He has also led data center operations at Magnetek Electric, supporting mainframe systems, client/server applications, telephony systems, and computer-aided design. Jeff holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Cardinal Stritch University and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Phoenix. In addition, Jeff is a past board member of the Wisconsin Telecommunication Association.