Nowadays, network service providers face many challenges, such as operational redundancies, poor supply chain reliability, and increasing support load.
Although these pressures are implacable, there is always a solution to every problem. This article will highlight what major network operators are doing to overcome these hurdles and which time-proven solution enables warehouse managers to focus on what matters most for business success.
The state of the telecom industry at the threshold of 2023
Telecom enterprise service providers operating in 2022 demonstrate a growing interest in addressing the needs of the enterprise-size segment. A big shift in the software industry and the global dissemination of IT companies are some of the key drivers that will shape the growth of the telecommunications services market in the years ahead.
What do telecom enterprise services market players expect in the upcoming 2023? The participants tend to consistently react to similar market stimuli and seek multiple opportunities for growth due to leveraging various telecom technologies.
Future Market Insights analysis report revealed that global sales of the Telecom Enterprise Services Market in 2021 were held at US$ 202.9 Bn. The projected market growth during 2022-2032 is expected to be significantly higher than ever.
Сloud technology development is the most obvious trend because it has been steady for the past few years. In addition, voice-based services technology is expected to be the highest revenue-generating segment, projected to grow at a CAGR of over 3.6% from 2022 to 2032. Thus, the global telecom enterprise services market is anticipated to rise steadily during the forecast period.
Current network challenges facing the telecom industry
Remaining competitive is no easy task in such a fast-growing field. Notable cloud technology and communication advances have brought software and IT cloud companies into the telecom business. The alliance between the two industries shaped several trends. The top of them within the telecommunications sector include:
5G adoption. 5G provides several benefits, including greater transmission speeds and lower latency. While the technology is lucrative from a capabilities standpoint, its adoption will require carriers to invest in and install new hardware and technology to support it. There should be a flexible service separation for network segments, which, in turn, will enable a host of 5G-dependent applications.
Legacy software. With overall digital transformation, replacing an old ERP for large enterprises with a steady workflow means starting over. Moreover, sometimes it requires capital investment or major disruption to adjust newer technology to the legacy installed base.
Labor shortages. Demand for warehousing staff is increasing as more people are required to serve the labor-intensive e-commerce sector, picking small home-delivery orders. As the baby boomer generation is retiring, it's proving difficult to attract Millennials and Gen Z to warehouse jobs that typically involve hard physical work and long hours.
Internet of Things (IoT). The 5G technology, in turn, led to the development of IoT. The Internet of Things automates and supports digital conversion for several industries, and 5G technology will allow the use of new applications due to increased bandwidth and reduced latency.
Connected devices' popularity makes network service providers optimize their powers to sustain the growing number of device connections best.
Shifting consumer needs. Consumers continue to adopt cloud technologies with the connectivity they need. Telecommunication companies need to figure out how to adapt their offers to market demands and how to provide timely maintenance while ensuring reliable and quality communication.
Fortunately, the software market offers new high-tech solutions designed to increase security, reduce costs, and maximize uptime. Related: Traditional or Digital Marketing: Which has the Best ROI?
The manifold benefits of SAP S/4HANA
It does not require much effort to make a network provider aware of the volatility and uncertainty that any organization needs to face in terms of the economy throughout its existence. To combat this important concern comes SAP S/4HANA that not only helps business executives have greater control of the situation with clearer real-time data but also positively affects both the internal and external working processes of the company.
An SAP S/4HANA is a ready-to-run cloud ERP solution that delivers the latest industry best practices and continuous innovation in an enterprise landscape. It combines 5G, the IoT, edge computing, AI, and machine learning technologies that enable businesses to connect and monetize a sensor-based world.
Why does your telecom enterprise need SAP S/4HANA:
● More independent, cost-effective, and scalable infrastructure.
● Reduction in IT management overhead and revenue stream diversification.
● Cost-effective – only pay for what is needed/used.
● SAP S/4HANA allows you to scale up or down easily within minutes.
● ML-based algorithms automate and guide users through complex processes, thus eliminating manual entry.
The SAP S/4HANA AI-powered scheduling, planning, and dispatch solutions allow for running more-efficient field service operations. In fact, it is a one-stop destination for all telecom enterprises to boost their return on investment(ROI) and process efficiency at scale. There are some of the features it provides below:
- Omnichannel inventory and order response
- Supply chain planning dashboards for network equipment
- Holistic data analysis, steering, and reporting
- BI platform enabling connection with S/4HANA data from Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
The move to S/4HANA can become the needed amount of life-giving moisture for addressing immediate challenges. The telco industry's advancements worldwide are expected to play a decisive role in providing architectural options to competitors.
In a nutshell
S/4HANA natively integrates with line-of-business solutions and includes the most advanced technologies, such as AI, machine learning, IoT, and advanced analytics. Given the industry trends, it is explicitly designed to meet the target market’s challenges with solutions. The modernized IT landscape is tailored to the newest technologies available, which allows not only to migrate to the new platform from scratch but also improve engineering change processes within existing SAP solutions.