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How long has NSA been conducting sourcing engagements?
The partners of NSA formed NSA in 2012 but the working relationship dates to 2001. We do very little active marketing, relying primarily on referrals by our clients.
How many engagements has NSA completed?
Some gauge experience in an accumulated number of years, but telecom does not work that way. With over 35 years of wireline experience and 20+ years of wireless market knowledge. Averaging approximately 10 engagements per year, wireline is over 350 and mobility is over 120 completed engagements at a variety of management levels.
What is the largest spend amount NSA has analyzed?
The largest spend NSA actively reviewed is $300 Million in combined wireline and wireless spend. The smallest is slightly less than $500K and the most common spend is between three and six million dollars combined wireline and wireless spend.
What is the average ROI for an NSA engagement?
NSA guarantees its results, we are not get paid by the vendors, only by our clients and typically send the first invoice when the new carrier contracts are signed. Our clients become “friends of the firm”, allowing us to stay engaged through the contract implementation process and beyond, normally off the clock. It takes time, but no implementation is completed 100% on the first try.
Why should we pick NSA?
We know what we are doing, nothing goes out without a partner review and an approval from our client. We don’t leave broken glass to get the best deals, and we are compensated on the deal you agree to not just the best financial solution for us.
We take our client’s needs personally and predict the minimum result we expect to achieve before engaging in an active project.
We also conduct a complimentary no-obligation review to be sure your timing and the potential upside is going to be financially beneficial for both of us. Waiting some period can be to your advantage, and sometimes the timing is more challenging.
Why can’t we do this on our own?
Frankly, most carriers want an enterprise to do this on their own. They provide a contract with twenty pages representing hundreds of online contractual requirements which most clients do not read, they offer minimal savings calculating you will take because changing vendors is difficult, and usually negotiations start just too late to have any real impact.
What guarantee does NSA provide?
Always a great question… we are asked this question more and more in particular over the last several years. Honestly, it depends. We agree to guarantees, and your results will be estimated based on the current situational analysis, the status of your contracts, performance on previous agreements from both sides. One sourcing projects we typically provide a 5:1 savings guarantee with actual results exceeding this number.
The last time I used a firm like yours for this type of work, it just did not work out?
A thorough understanding of the current environment, a solid, well defined Statement of Work, engagement by both parties, and the use of verifiable and agreed upon data is the foundation for any project. Our personal involvement guarantees you access to our decision makers at any time.
What type of time commitment will be required of my staff?
We limit the time requirement of your staff, after all, isn’t this one of the reasons you are considering hiring an outside firm? Our research indicates we save your organization about 1,500 hours of FTE input if the negotiation was managed internally.
The amount of time investment is completely up to our clients. We will collect as much, or as little data as you permit. Normally, we are not compensated by the hour, so allowing us to collect the data and ask for your team to confirm our findings is most of the time commitment.
During the engagement we will ask for the project lead and a small team of their choice to attend a weekly status call of 30 minutes to no more than an hour depending on the issues to be resolved and clarified.
What type of information does NSA require?
We require a non-disclosure agreement, we provide letters of authorization to be sent to your vendors, and we need access to all contracts, pending proposals and require guest access to all vendor portals. We also request information regarding the Carrier account team(s) supporting you.
Our hope is your records include more than the front page of a paper invoice, but we can work through those issues as well.
How do we know there are savings?
Another frequent question, your enterprise approves the baseline, verifying the inventory and the rates uncovered during our audit. The Baseline/Inventory is presented line by line, element by element in an easy to read format.
Throughout the process, negotiated rates are applied to the Baseline rate elements, once finalized, savings are calculated comparing the Baseline spend to the New spend. As the rates are applied, we audit these against the newly contracted rates, staying engaged until the contractual rates are implemented correctly, the disputes filed, and credits applied. Most contracts implemented incorrectly, our involvement past contract execution makes sure your new rates are implemented and billing correctly. This can take several billing cycles, but we do the checking reducing your team time again.
There are a lot of firms that do what you do, so?
Yes, there are, we are very selective about the engagements we accept, doing an initial analysis to ensure we can both be successful. Not being paid by the hour by the hour, or starting before knowing your situation, we set ourselves apart from larger “machine” or “factory” firms, many of which may maintain referral or agency agreements with the Carriers.
NSA is not paid by the vendors or take offered compensation, meals, etc. We work for you and are paid by you based on the results of our negotiation.
Why can’t I just buy a Benchmark online and negotiate myself?
You can, in reality your spend is going up, and those spending too much are probably included in your benchmark data.
Have you ever wondered why the “favored nation” pricing everyone thinks is a guarantee comes back close to what you are currently paying? There is a reason the profits of the carriers and their revenue continues to climb year over year and it is not because everyone is getting the best deal, it is because most, 95% that do not use an outside firm are not getting the best deal.
Sure, it appears rates are dropping, but the combination of discounts, base prices, and the Terms and Conditions needed to stabilize those rates as well as providing protections associated with technology changes, market changes, and business changes are all critical to providing financial benefit over time.
Does your team need this additional distraction while working to meet your internal needs and goals?