Balance Scorecard for AT&T

It has been quite a while since I blogged but I have been very busy with my classes. In my financial management class, I had to develop a balanced scorecard. The balance scorecard developed by Harvard researchers Drs. Robert Kaplan (Harvard Business School) and David Norton. According to the Balance Scorecard Institute, “The balance scorecard is a strategic planning and management system that is used extensively in business and industry, government, and nonprofit organizations worldwide to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. In this case, I used the status of the wireless battle over the iPhone between Verizon and AT&T to map out a strategy to beat the competition.

Here is a link to the final project: http://www.box.net/shared/go5bt9eqll

FCC RELEASES NEW LOCAL TELEPHONE COMPETITION DATA. Third Collection to Comprehensively Include Interconnected VoIP

New competition telecom data

View more documents from NaShawn Branch.

The Real Reason Clients Need a Business Plan‏

Sales of 3DTV sets are off to a slow start

Less than 10% of the people who have heard about 3D television sets expressed interest in buying one, according to a Leichtman Research Group survey that found 80% of respondents were familiar with the technology. "With modest consumer demand for 3D-capable TVs, the potential growth of 3DTV will rely on a continued push of 3DTV by manufacturers and retailers, as well as the fact that about one-fifth of all U.S. households purchase a new TV each year," said analyst Bruce Leichtman.Click here to see the full article at Home Media Magazine

HOW TO RECEIVE A BROADCAST TV STATION IF IT IS DROPPED FROM YOUR PAY TV SERVICE.

Cable operators and other pay TV service providers, such as satellite operators, carry local television broadcast stations based on contracts with the stations. When these contracts end, the parties generally extend or renew these contracts. The process by which the contracts are negotiated is known as “retransmission consent.” In almost all cases, agreement is reached and stations continue to be carried without interruption. On some occasions, the pay TV service provider and the station fail to reach an agreement, and the pay TV service provider is required by law to stop carrying that station until an agreement is reached. These are private agreements, though federal law requires the parties to negotiate with each other in good faith.

What can I do if a local broadcast television station is no longer available on my pay TV service?(Click here) for the answer to this important question from the FCC.

Happy Holidays

Smart Phone vs. Black Berry for Small Business

There used to be a time when the Blackberry was the phone of choice for corporations. In fact, Blackberry has 43% of the “corporate” market share. Recently, new Smartphones are gaining market share in the small to medium business arena. New business applications make the smart phone a cool alternative.

According to CNET, the best five smart phones fall into two categories: Android and iPhones. The top five smart phones are the Samsung EPIC 4 (SPRINT), Apple iPhone 4 (AT&T), Motorola Droid (Verizon), T-Mobile G2, and Samsung S (click here for article)

Android has over 80,000 apps and according to Small Business News, the top Android app that small businesses should be paying attention to is Layar. (Click here for the full listing)

iPhone boasts over 300,000 apps and according to American Express Open Forum, the top business app is Quick Office Mobile Office Suite. (Click here for full list)

Blackberry released a new Smartphone called the Blackberry Torch. Its touch screen features give a wink and nod to both iPhone and Android users. Although the Blackberry does not have as many apps as the Android and iPhone, it does possess a good catalog of apps appealing not only to the business world, but also for personal fun. It is also plans to compete with the iPad with its new tablet called, “Blackberry Playbook”

Do you think that smart phones can compete with the blackberry in the small business marketplace?

Keep Achieving,
NaShawn

How to Hire a Management Consultant

NaShawn Branch: telecommunications Management Consultant Brochure

Telecommunications Financing Options for Small Business Telecom Companies

Author: Andrew Stratton

If your small business were a grocery store or automotive mechanic shop, most every lender in the U.S. would immediately understand your business model. If you were to approach them looking for a line of credit, they would be able to rather quickly determine if your business is able to receive some small business financing from them or not. However, as the owner of a telecommunications company you know that this is not always the case for your industry. Traditional lenders just simply do not understand how telecom companies do business and the intracacies of telecommunications funding.

If you are a large multi-national telecom company, funding abounds for you just simply because of the huge amount of revenue your business generates month after month. However, if you are a small telecom business, obtaining that line of credit can be much more difficult. When you approach a traditional lender for funding, you will likely find that they do not understand your business model and telecommunications financing in general. It is not in the traditional banker's interest to work with telecommunications businesses with receivables that are all small amounts with many customers. Generally, your receivables take 45 or more days to receive after delivery of services. Because these billing issues are unique to the telecom industry, traditional lenders do not fully comprehend the fine details and tend to choose to deal with businesses in more traditional roles.

Once your small telecommunications business is on solid ground, and you are looking to expand your market base, there are three options readily availablec to you for obtaining small business financing. These three options are: factoring, asset based solutions, and investment capital. Let's take a quick look at each of these options:

Factoring: Factoring is a financing process which allows your company to borrow money against its receivables; your receivables are used as the collateral for the loan. The down side to traditional factoring is that this type of funding generally comes with high interest rates. By finding a lender with telecommunications financing experience, you can sometimes find a lower rate. This makes factoring a strong consideration only if you are able to locate a specialized lender with telecommunications financing experience.

Asset Based Solutions: Asset based funding solutions involve using your existing contracts, equipment, and other assets, as the collateral for your funding. This can be a good option to consider if you have a lot of assets or large contracts to leverage. However, if you own a very small local telecom company, your company may not have the assets or contracts to make this form of funding work. In that case, investment capital may be a good option to consider.

Investment Capital: If your business is open to the idea of investment capital, versus a traditional line of credit, investment capital can be a win-win situation for everyone.

While finding small business financing can be challenging in the telecommunications industry, it is not impossible. When it is time for your small telecom company to expand you should consider factoring, asset based solutions, and investment capital as possible options. Whatever your decision may be, as long as it fits within your long-term business plans, then you are sure to succeed.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/telecommunications-financing-options-for-small-business-telecom-companies-178962.html

About the AuthorThermo Credit, LLC is a financial services company focused exclusively on telecommunications financing. Our objective is to serve established companies that need capital to expand their operations. Learn more about Thermo Credit at http://www.thermocredit.com.