Archives for February 2017

Ten fallacies about broadband service quality assurance

Since broadband is an immature business and quality-assured services are rarer than rocking horse manure, many fallacies abound in the resulting information vacuum.

We are all UMs on the journey of life

No matter how grown-up any of us is or feels, we are all vulnerable inside, and seek reassurance and refuge from worry. How can businesses up their game on engineering positive feelings and avoiding bad experiences? Maybe we can glean some insight from how airlines treat their most precious cargo, children travelling alone.

Is your broadband network “upside-down” too?

The newness of broadband means our ideas of how packet networks should be built have yet to withstand the test of time. How can we know if our professional knowledge is wisdom or folly?

The Tao of Telecoms – A blueprint for a ‘lean’ business transformation

This is my “Tao of Telecoms”, the synthesis of my last decade working with (and learning from) a number of leading practitioners in network and management science. It is a first draft, and thus imperfect, over-long, incomplete and possibly even incomprehensible in places.

Where are all the telecoms performance TICs?

As industries mature they develop quality management systems, and a dedicated sector offering testing, inspection and certification (TIC). Given the importance of user experience and hence service quality in telecoms, why are there apparently few or no TIC organisations for network performance?

Does telecoms have a penis problem?

In a male-dominated industry run through hierarchical masculine domination games, the feminine gets squeezed out. This stains the telecoms industry with a residual “penis problem”.

Workshop in London

I am co-hosting a private workshop on the impending and overdue revolution in quality in telco and cloud. If you wish to be considered for the invitation list, respond to this email by the end of the week.

The confusion of science, engineering and technology

My experience of working with the innovation arms of many equipment vendors and telcos tells me there is a basic confusion around science, engineering and technology. Understanding the difference, and which is limiting progress, is often a key to future success.

LinkedIn or LockedIn? Why I deleted my account

LinkedIn has violated my personal mores for ethical business behaviour, so I have deleted my account. Here’s why I did it (regardless of the short-term cost to myself and my career).

How to make money from telecoms

Are you a schmuck ripe for ripping off at the telecoms network casino? If you want to win at a game of chance, it’s really helpful to know which side you are on, the rules, and the odds. The abandonment of proper engineering has left the telecoms industry wide open to attack by people playing “network […]