A generic framework for CSPs' Digital Transformation

By definition, Digital Transformation is the journey of implementing changes associated with digital technology applications and integration of these applications into different aspects of human life, enterprise and society in order to solve problems, increase efficiency, create new business models and generate growth.

In this article, I will focus on a typical Communication Services Provider's (CSP) digital transformation towards a Digital Services Provider (DSP) through an actionable approach covering two main programs and attaining specific objectives via specific projects. The validity and applicability of this framework depends on the initial / actual status that a specific CSP is in at the start of the transformation.

Digitization as an enabler to digitalization

Though a bit confusing the interchanging use of both digitization and digitalization, I try to keep it simple and share my humble and over-simplified understanding. Digitizing is the process of getting any tangible or intangible object into a digital stream of data. Digitalization as per Gartner glossary is "the use of digital information and technologies to change a business model and provide new revenue and value-producing opportunities; it is the process of moving to a digital business". Back to our CSP transformation, the eminent first dimension of the transformation journey is Digitization / Digitalization. Despite this being a broad program in a CSP environment, I will try to cover the basic its streams:

Digitize the consumers:

• Digitizing the subscriber experience through the development of subscriber digital channels over the internet, the establishment of online customer care [chat box is trending] and boost social media presence (omni-channel).
• Develop digital products outside the classical standard CSP product offering shifting to cross vertical industries services such as Fintech [e-payment, digital currencies], e-health leveraging the emerging wearables devices and more.
• Develop new digital models to segment your premium as well as low consumption subscribers. Such models shall cover the different digital profiles illustrating the attitude towards pricing, services opt-in, digital appetite, etc…

Make your operating model digital:

• Redesign your business processes to make it compatible with your newly developed digital channels and supports the digital omni-channels. Ensure a business mindset shift from services centric to subscriber centric processes. 
• Revamp your organization model to be a data driven model in order to make it more collaborative, boundaryless, leaner and faster.  Dramatically reduce production to consumption cycle time.

Make your IT Digital: 

• Enable IT Cloud as hybrid or fully private (it is not common ("yet") to have a CSP IT fully on a public cloud) and deliver your IT as a service (XaaS).
• Perform social engineering in the organization by gathering user behavior and other analytics to increase efficiency and provide them better service. 
• Through the enablement of digital operation model discussed earlier in this article, foster the culture of crowd-sourcing among technical team, developers and IT service desk professional. 
• Ensure subscriber facing employees are equipped with latest technologies, exposed to insights of subscribers' big data and integrated to proper social media channels because these are the driver of the digital shift and are the digital ambassadors of the organization towards the customer base.

Modernization of network infrastructure and tools

This dimension of the framework will be covered as well in a generic way as it is highly dependent on the size of the network, the level of modernization, the budget availability, access to spectrum and the ecosystem in the market where a CSP operates.  The modernization shall cover the different CSP network sub-systems:

Network infrastructure:

• Transmission network is the place to start. It has to cater for high speed data traffic, high availability, redundancy and latency. The closer to fiber access, the more competitive you are. The more you consider IP level 3 capabilities the more flexible you are in terms of adaptation to new technologies in radio access (cloud RAN, x based interfaces for coordinated site behavior and x-hauling)
• Radio access network is the key enabler. A well optimized LTE Advanced technology at the radio access layer is the foundation for any digital transformation plan. It is the enabler of 5G both in NSA and SA phases and it is where the massive MiMo is introduced. A bold LTE-A radio network is adequate for the introduction of NB-IOT and other similar technologies
• Core network is the challenge. It is where the major shift from traditional CSP network architecture happens. The CSP adoption of Telco-Cloud (Cloud-computing) is the entry ticket to digital transformation at the core layer. In summary, it is about the Virtualization of traditional network functions NFVs (vEPC, vIMS, vSDM,…), full automation of IP services fulfillment through SDN, adoption of shared data layer across the cloud functions and the management of the overall network as a services via a network orchestrator.   These are the essentials based on which the promised 5G core capabilities and network slicing can be achieved. Without further elaboration, and based on the offered digital services and the underlying use cases, cloud computing at the edge of the network is getting inevitable.  

BSS convergence and real time charging:

• Initiate prepaid and postpaid systems convergence and apply real time charging of network traffic for all subscribers. Re-think the complete subscriber life cycle. Convergence and real time charging shall pave the way along the transformation journey to plenty of subscriber insight and consequently innovative digital offerings.
• 360 degree BSS integration by opening up the system to 3rd parties to provision, deliver and monetize the digital products and services and facilitated by a single subscriber management system. (SDM/SDP).

Services enablement: In addition to the technical services offered by the modernization of the network such as VoLTE, ViLTE, RCS and others, there is a need to introduce new digital platforms such as [not limited to]:

• Consider Bigdata and analytics to leverage every network and subscriber event at any point in time. CSPs can, on top of its bigdata repository, enable Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligent capabilities to increase efficiency and trigger new offerings.  Monetization of the data can take different forms depending on the CSP environment.
• Implement an Internet of Thigs (IoT) cloud-based platform that accommodates for the different IoT technologies (devices and mobility management, sensors provisioning and life cycle management). This platform shall provide an easy to handle API capabilities for 3rd parties to plug in their applications and serve their use cases.   
• Expand your business network via an integrated social media platform. A tight integration between the CSP business application and social media channels empowers the business and helps the brand to connect with subscribers directly.  It provides a way to understand and address your customer queries and questions instantly.
• Uplift customer operations from being services centric to customer experience centric. CSPs have to strongly consider a Customer Experience Management (CEM) platform that taps the subscriber's network and services data at every point of the value chain extending to the social behavior as well [thanks for the integrated social media platform recommended earlier].

To win the in the digital age, CSPs have to, immediately embark [if not yet started] the transformation journey. Failing to do so successfully will have serious implications on the sustainability of their business operations and growth.  This transformation requires a corporate strategy and vision/mission statements revisit and definitely a corporate culture adaptation to the new business model and value proposition making the top management leadership the key success factor for any CSP to DSP transformation.