Page 8 - Telecom Reseller October-November 2016

8 Telecom Reseller BOCCAMAZZO
INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT)
It goes without saying that the IoT market will continue its incredible growth trajectory into 2017. Not only did research rm Gartner predict last year that the IoT would consist of 4 billion connected devices this year—a 30 percent increase from 2015—but that this gure would climb to 20.8 billion by 2020. More objects
and devices will gain connectivity capabilities, which will either lead to greater network strain and performance issues or more innovative operational capabilities.
Not only do we predict continued massive growth for the OTT services market (which is expected to experience a 17 percent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) between now and 2020), but we expect to see more emerging players in this space. Additionally, we expect to see more consumer-focused OTT messaging services (like Snapchat) become more business- centric.
5G TECHNOLOGY
While it’s a common belief that 5G won’t be publicly rolled out until 2020, we believe that strategic developments will be released before then. Right now we’ve seen major players like
KOXLIEN
As a trending phenomenon in recent years, telehealth and telemedicine have been recognized by much but not all of the medical community and government regulators and lawmakers as an e ective antidote to growing health care needs
of rural and urban families. A May 12, 2016, study conducted by KPMG showed that one- fourth of health care providers o er telehealth and telemedicine services. e study said the programs “are nancially sustainable and are improving e ciency, patient volumes and
loyalty by lling gaps in medical specialties or helping chronically ill patients... Telehealth...
is gaining credence in urgent care settings from mobile devices...retail clinics or for psychiatric assessments in an emergency department.” It noted that telemedicine “has a long history in radiology and for remote, underserved patient populations where specialists are needed for their clinical expertise, but it is gaining greater use.”
Digital broadband accessibility, complexity of
FCC Universal Service Fund process, uncertain
Medicare reimbursement, opposition from some
state medical boards, lack of parity for telehealth
services across state boarders, archaic laws
and regulations, and other obstacles have been
AT&T reveal their plans to get the ball rolling in 2017. For example, in a recent presentation, AT&T SVP of Wireless Network Architecture and Design omas Keathley said that the company recently agreed on “a detailed work plan for Release-15, the rst release of 5G speci cations,” for next year.
MOBILE PAYMENTS
About 20 percent of Americans currently use mobile pay solutions like Apple Pay or Samsung Pay; however, we expect that number to increase in 2017 as awareness of and trust in mobile payment services grows.
VALUE CHAIN
PARTNERSHIPS
As technology continues to advance, and as customer expectations grow, we predict to see more companies collaborating in the form of value chain partnerships.
More companies will identify and capitalize on this opportunity in order to support each other and maximize operations, improving the customer experience (CX) (a er all, the CX is becoming organizations’ greatest competitive di erentiator today).
is being made by the telehealth industry and medical profession to change those restrictions. In a Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Rule released May 2, CMS encouraged states to use telemedicine, e-visits, and other innovative technological solutions to meet network requirements. Coincidentally, CMS has been liberalizing its reimbursement policies for telehealth and telemedicine, a er dragging its feet for a number of years.
Meanwhile at the state level, a number of state medical boards, legislatures, and regulators have been aggressive in moving telehealth policy and procedures along. State regional compacts have been signed to make it easier for physicians and health care providers to work across state lines under one license. As of 2015, 47 states and Washington, DC, provided reimbursement for some form of live video in Medicaid fee-for- services, the Center for Connected Health Policy reported in April.
Is telehealth cost-e ective? At the federal level CMS and the director of the Congressional Budget o ce have speculated that telehealth’s economic impact has yet to be proven, but at the same time ATA has reported that most of the peer-reviewed research about cost-e ectiveness
continued from page 1
DIGITAL MIGRATION
When it comes to the topic of digitization, we like to let the numbers speak for themselves. Research shows that nearly 80 percent of businesses perceive digital transformation as their top strategic priority this year.
We expect this gure to grow in 2017 as businesses work to restructure their core architectures and reprioritize their budgets to keep up in today’s digital era. One huge move we expect more companies to make next year is the mass migration from archaic copper lines to digital frameworks.
SECURITY
We expect to see the emergence of network security solutions that are designed to more optimally meet the needs of today’s next- generation networks. Considering the growing number of connected devices that leave networks inherently exposed or insecure, we expect this heightened level of security to better safeguard sensitive data and defend against all kinds of sophisticated hacking methods (i.e. DDoS, cyber extortion, etc.)
What do you expect to see for 2017? e more you know, the better prepared you’ll be. ■
continued from page 3
of telemedicine that is based on large sample sizes and follows sound scienti c rigor consistently nd that telemedicine saves patient, provider and payer money when compared with traditional approaches to providing care. Common sense would concur, as anecdotal evidence grows
from healthcare providers demonstrates. And then there is the high cost of emergency room visits of over $100 billion annually, much of which is incurred in the absence of telehealth and telemedicine. e median ER visit costs 40 percent more than what the average American pays in monthly rent.
As for its telehealth’s impact on Accountable Care, telehealth service providers see it as
a strong inducement for collaboration and cooperation through the entire continuum of
a patient’s health care. By de nition, telehealth requires close coordination at all levels of care, from the patient and the attending physician at
a local level to the specialist and tertiary hospital many miles away, as patient treatment progresses. e statistics show that patient outcomes are improved, lives are saved, and costs are reduced. Telehealth can be a win-win-win proposition for all involved. ere’s no doubt that it’s a God-send for rural families. ■
October/November 2016
SALVATO continued from page 4 its greatest quality. Unlike traditional contact
center productivity, e ciency or talent development solutions, it rarely fails to elicit the attention and enthusiasm of senior executives drawing them directly into the employee engagement process and serving as a catalyst to update outmoded performance management systems.
While drama, mishaps, miscommunication and personality con ict (albeit contrived)
are desirable in producing reality television, they are far less captivating in the reality
of the workplace. ese risks are mitigated when employees are equipped with accurate performance intelligence, e ective support tools, multiple channels of communication and entertaining ways to play, cooperate and thrive.
Ty Pennington’s home makeover adventures, like so many other reality shows, made the ordinary interesting. Similarly, gami cation
has captured the business limelight because it brings performance management to life — gives it personality that is visual, dynamic, social, compelling and yes, fun. It democratizes intelligence by integrating traditionally siloed databases and reporting dashboards into a complete and accurate performance analysis resource available to all.
It has the potential to “ atten” the organization, too – unifying purpose, mission and support from the front-line through the C-level. Gami cation can create friendly, competitive or collaborative bonds between senior executives and front-line employees while maintaining consistent alignment with business purpose that would be di cult, if not impossible, to achieve on an enterprise scale otherwise.
Aggressive competition, customer churn, innovation and disruption, high rates of workforce turnover and so much more place tremendous strain on telecommunications providers. ough there is no simple solution to these challenges, gami cation o ers a fresh approach to performance management that has not only demonstrated impressive e ectiveness in addressing telecom contact center demands, but has uniquely captured the attention of employees at every level.
Business pressure across the telecom sector will undoubtedly increase, so isn’t it time to compose that casting call? Among the growing community of quali ed, inspired gami cation solutions vendors exists the extreme makeover dream team that can help transform your contact center organization into the customer and employee experience dynamo you’ll need to succeed in today’s economy--without the scripted drama of reality TV. ■
encountered in recent years. However, progress
26
Telecom Reseller
March/April 2014
Higher Education + Technology = ACUTA
As a CIO, it is important for
me to be a part of a group of people who strive to con nually evolve as knowledgeable technology professionals.
I know of no be er organiza on to be a part of than ACUTA.
Keith Fowlkes Director of Informaon Technology Services and CIO Centre College
• Professional networking at its best happens at the face-to-face events and via the listserv/community. We provide opportunities to connect with people who can help you succeed.
• High-quality education features presenters at seminars and conferences who are experts in the eld.
• Valuable publications bring critical information to you in a timely, pro-active way.
• Online resources give you access to solutions that will help you meet the needs of your campus faculty, staff, and students.
• Professional development opportunities abound at ACUTA, giving you experiences that will help you grow professionally and advance your career.
www.acuta.org Questions: Call Amy at (859) 278-3338.
Connecting Campus IT Professionals with Ideas and Solutions
Join Today!
GANGA
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device that could be purchased by employees. IT will need to determine which devices it is able to support.
• Geo-Fencing: It may be that security, or data use needs, require policies to gov- ern devices used within prede ned geo- graphical areas. Different regions gener- ally have different laws.
• Bandwidth Throttling: Organizations must determine how to allocate employ- ee demand for bandwidth across a broad swath of locations, roles and usage vol- umes.
create some legal issues. Risk reducing
GROWING IT BUSINESSES
policies must be developed.
AND CAREERS
• Responsibilities: Does an employee using a device with corporate apps and data have a responsibility to protect the device? What if precautions are not taken to protect the device?
•
• Privacy: What measures will a company
take to protect the privacy of the employee?
• Look for the second part of this article
• Rights: The legal rights of employees and organizations differ from country to
• Business Support vs. Personal Support:
Training
Insights
country, so p+oTloicoyls may have to be altered
on a country-to-country basis.
Liability: Who is liable for the loss of pri-
vate data when protocols aErevefnotlsl+owed?
Advocacy
BUILD YOUR BUSINESS AND CAREER
Communities
Organizations must determine the extent
device.
CompTIA is the voice of the world’s information technology (IT)
industry. Asanot-for-profitassociationwhoservesmorethan60,000
to which they are willing to provide
corporate IT channel members and registered users, we are
Standards
committed to supporting the success of businesses across the IT
where we will detail the next three essen- tials for a successful BYOD policy. %
technical support for an employee-owned
channel by providing free access to tools, education, research,
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Join today at CompTIA.org/register
• DeviceLoss:Devicelossortheftisafact of life. Therefore, an organization should have a plan for protecting (or wiping) a lost device.
• Reimbursement: How will employees be reimbursed for devices and/or data
Inc.
Connect and Communicate