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Showing posts with the label personal history

What I Do - Telecommunications Procurement

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I joined AT&T in 1992 and did statistical forecasting of industry aggregates like voice traffic measured in minutes of use. That experience informed my view that big companies are necessary evils - necessary in that network economies of scale are real, but evil in the sense that governance by consensus results in mediocrity. I eventually ended up doing Layer 1 capcity sales agency work for Tyco Submarine's own network which was eventually sold to Tata Communications. Under Eric Gutshall's tutelage I learned the fundamental of sales including 'quick and accurate quotes' and never losing on price unless the rate of return was too low. Later I worked for him at Hibernia Atlantic whose network is depicted below. Today these five cables are part of EXA Infrastructure and really their crown jewels.  I am not a reseller. If you accept a network capacity proposal, your contract and service is with the underlying network operator who typically owns fibre or IRUs on fibre or