The business world is in a constant struggle between two opposing forces: quality and cost. In the search for the quality at a competitive price, American businesses have expanded their operations beyond U.S. borders. We have all heard the Total Quality Management (TQM) talks before. That success is best achieved by constantly increasing customer satisfaction while continually lowering real costs. Being more efficient than the competition is what can ultimately give a company the advantage it needs to get on top and stay there. The question that each business strives toward is learning where you can create those extra savings without skimming on quality.

 

As important as budget analysis is, there are certain fixed costs that every company must endure; especially, it seems, in the field of communications. While abroad, it is necessary to remain in contact with headquarters. This creates a bit of a conundrum; since while a business traveler searches for savings abroad they have to generate considerable expenses at home.

Usually out of convenience, corporate travelers bring their American cell phones overseas. However, there are hefty roaming fees and long-distance charges associated with using a local phone abroad. The result is an average bill of $1,000 to $3,000 in cell phone charges while traveling.

As an alternative means of reducing communication expenses, some organizations have opted for renting international cell phones or purchasing prepaid SIM cards. These options capitalize on local rates when making and receiving calls within that specific country. However, it is still expensive to call North America or make other international calls. In addition, traveling to more than one country per trip will once again end up costing hefty roaming charges when using a rental or prepaid SIM card outside of their original “home zone.” When looking at the fine print, the majority of these services come with a whole bag of surprises, such as, expiration of prepaid credit, monthly usage plans with minimums and overrun rates. To top it all off, service is usually only provided in the local language.

 

There remains another option that corporations are beginning to discover that combines convenience, quality and low cost together into one simple package: A Global Cellular Service. SIMphoneE, from Montreal, Canada, has taken a unique approach to international corporate cellular travel, by providing clients with one phone and one number for most travel destinations in the world, without the roaming charges. For many destinations, including all of Western Europe, incoming calls are not only free but unlimited while international calls are a mere fraction of the cost compared to roaming with the North American cellular plan. Additional features include voice mail, conference calling and call forwarding. There are no monthly fees, no minimums and therefore no obligations.  This results in an average savings of $500 to $1,000 per trip. 

In terms of practicality, corporate customers are provided with a European number which is theirs to keep indefinitely and can be used in future travel plans. In order to ensure that all calls are received while abroad, users typically forward their local cell phones and business lines to their global phone number.

In order to provide clients with exceptional global cellular service, SIMphoneE bases its product on proven technologies that have been widely implemented in Europe and have recently been introduced to North America. The result is a high-quality cellular service at a fraction of the cost and with the hassle-free simplicity and reliability a business traveler would expect.

Reconciling the difference between quality and cost can be a tricky task; but visible, repeatable and measurable action as a means of continuously improving processes makes it possible, even when it comes to cell phones. With a Global Cellular Service, the savings generated from each business trip accumulates substantial capital that can be refocused to other areas of the business, such as customer satisfaction. With cellular services such as SIMphoneEs, concepts such as TQM move from classroom to boardroom with the measurable savings to prove it.