The Agent Advantage

Indeed, after the move to Eden Prairie, McKernan continued to rely on Foster. “Every month for five months, our old service provider kept billing us for not only monthly service but also for phantom calls,” McKernan says. “I’d pick up the phone, call Jon, and he’d work it all out.”

A Friend Indeed

Considering the headaches traditionally caused by telecom foul-ups, the agent’s role as troubleshooter is a huge benefit for clients. Customers often complain about the way phone problems are handled, says John Unger, vice president and general manager in Minneapolis for Virginia-based XO Communications, a telecom service provider. “The service provider and the equipment provider tend to point fingers at each other, and the customer is stuck in the middle, often getting billed from both for service calls,” he adds. “The agent takes ownership of all that and gets the two vendors to work together to resolve the problem.”

“Agents are not middlemen, they’re advocates,” Agar says. “With all of the change in the telecom industry, it’s unlikely you will have the same sales rep, customer service rep, or support team going forward, even in larger organizations. That can put provider relationships at risk. Working with an agent ensures stable relationships between your business and your telecom providers.”

Minimizing service headaches was a major goal for Tim Moore, vice president of operations at Stillwater-based Central Bank, when he decided to find a new telecom service provider. He enlisted CA Communications to help with the transition. “Working with a telecom agent allows me to take care of the responsibilities I have for the bank without having to spend time dealing with phone issues,” Moore says.

CA was able to take a lot off Moore’s plate. “We probably saved Tim 50 hours’ worth of meetings and reviewing options by going out and finding what would best fit the bank’s operational and financial needs,” says John Beesley, the director of CA’s network solutions group. “We then helped Tim through the contractual process with Qwest, the carrier he selected.”

Moore is grateful for the ongoing support. “The maintenance piece—how to get the help you need from a big provider—has been a thorn in my side for a long time,” he says. “But now, if we have a question or issue with Qwest about our data or voice lines, we just call John, and he gets it taken care of.”