In the past ten years, I have worked with a variety of companies across multiple verticals supporting them with their IoT rollouts, with a particular focus in recent years on the security and healthcare industries. The critical nature of this business has presented some of the most exciting but also challenging opportunities. At Tele2 IoT, these challenges and opportunities are what have helped shape our business – we are always looking to constantly improve and innovate and provide the level of service and support that our large and complex customers need.
April 26, 2022
Questions You Should Be Asking Your Connectivity Provider
I am often asked why these businesses take the decision to work with Tele2 IoT with so many other players and flavours of IoT in the market. With this in mind, I took some time to reflect on the impact that Key Account Management has in this decision-making process and the types of questions you should be putting to anyone who you trust to manage your connectivity.
What happens the day after I sign that contract?
Before a contract is signed, often the key topics are the commercial setup and the technical capabilities, but in reality you’re going to work with that mobile network for the next three, four, five years – so having the day-to-day ‘life support’ will be just as critical. KAM is your entry point into that support and not just for those day to day queries but also the ongoing partnership that is required as your business grows and the industry changes. It’s important to consider what your in life support team will look like, is it a team of IoT specialists or a sales person with 100s of accounts and a generic helpdesk.
Who is my in-person life team?
Increasingly we are seeing even some of the largest operators utilising their IoT specialists in a presales environment and rely on their mobile account management and support functions for in life support. Have you met the team who will be the key part of the relationship in the months and years after the ink is on the paper – and how is your relationship?
How quickly can they adapt?
The IoT world can be fast paced and demand commercial and technical flexibility. What if my product uses more data than I thought, or you have a customer that needs something you hadn’t considered in the contracting process? Who will be your guide to finding the solutions to these and other challenges quickly and easily?
Will they be around for the good times – and the bad?
Often, we learn the most about our suppliers and partnerships in the most challenging times, whether it’s a technical problem or commercial negotiation. The reality is, you might get a lot of resources thrown at you on day one because you’re new, maybe you’re big and/or important, but what about 6 months or 18 months down the road – will you have that same level of focus and support?
How will they help me grow my business?
An IoT partnership should be about more than APNs, megabytes and SIM cards. Are they supporting you to grow into new markets and helping to develop your products to support the latest technology? Do they have support staff with knowledge in different areas that can add more value to the support you receive?
At Tele2, we view our Key Account Management team as pivotal to the success of both our own business, and our customers. We have invested strongly in our people to ensure we have industry experts who really care and have the freedom to innovate and adapt to the often-complex requirements that arise on IoT projects. The feedback from our largest accounts tells us that this level of support and expertise is pivotal to a successful partnership and should be one of the key considerations when taking the important decision on who you choose as your connectivity provider.
If you would like to learn more about how IoT can enable your business, please get in touch.
Simon Buckley
Key Account Manager
Tele2 IoT