Telecom Process Improvement

Operational Complexity at Scale

A national telecom provider with over 5,000 field service technicians was struggling with the operational complexity created by a decade of acquisitions. Duplicated systems, conflicting processes, and fragmented technology platforms were driving up costs and degrading service quality simultaneously.

Internal transformation efforts had stalled due to competing stakeholder priorities and a lack of clear process ownership. Leadership recognized they needed an independent partner to diagnose the problem and drive implementation.

Process Before Technology

IBG began by mapping the full operational process landscape across the merged entities — a six-week exercise that revealed over 200 distinct process variants for core workflows that should have been standardized. The diagnostic identified four primary cost drivers:

• Redundant dispatch systems requiring manual coordination across legacy platforms
• Inconsistent first-call resolution protocols driving repeat visits and customer escalations
• Inventory management fragmentation creating parts shortages in high-demand service areas
• Unclear decision rights between field operations and central dispatch creating bottlenecks

IBG designed a unified operational model that standardized processes across all entities before recommending any technology changes. Implementation was sequenced across three geographic regions to allow for learning and adjustment before full rollout.

27% Cost Reduction. Better Service.

The 18-month engagement delivered a 27% reduction in operational costs — primarily through reduced repeat visits, improved dispatch efficiency, and inventory optimization. Customer satisfaction scores improved concurrently, demonstrating that cost reduction and service quality are not inherently in conflict when process design is done correctly.

The provider now operates on a single unified process model across all legacy entities, with a governance structure that makes future operational changes dramatically faster to execute.