Are Telecom Tools Becoming Trendy? (Part 2)

In my previous blog, I outlined a trend involving high-end telecom vendors providing users with razor-sharp tools aimed at engineering needs.

Have you ever tried to use a wrench to hammer down a nail? It’s not so easy. It’s a simple case of needing the right tool for the right task. To be successful, telecom tools must meet some specific requirements including:

• A user-friendly interface
• Accurate calculations or documentation
• Easy to update and maintain
• Results-logging features
• Multilingual capabilities
• Customizable

Naturally, new tools imply a learning curve for the users; hence, they must provide a beneficial service to validate their need. The potential benefits for the users are:

• Considerable time saving
• Trusted results
• More complete documentation for projects
• Higher efficiency
• Better interaction with vendors

The users must invest some time to assess and learn the tools if they suit them. To assist them in this process, a proper description should be provided by the publisher, along with ongoing support from the vendor during the initial stages of the learning process. Feedback from the user is a key component in the relationship, but vendors should reply promptly. The vendors trailblazing to release these assets can also benefit from:

• Better customer relationships
• Fewer repetitive queries from users
• Accurate use of their solutions, generating fewer field issues

To improve success, any tool must rely on a multidisciplinary team able to glance at the options with a holistic approach. Let me pose an example to you: there is a tool that calculates the theoretical possibilities of second-, third- or fifth-order passive intermodulation (PIM) products or “hits” in the frequency bands. A good programmer with a shallow knowledge of RF technology might do shabby work without the assistance of a skilled RF engineer. None of them will know how to promote the tool when it’s launched. To develop an effective tool, you’ll need a team of at least:

• One or more subject matter experts to provide the technical directions (inputs, algorithm, desired outputs)
• One or more programmers to code the knowledge from the experts
• A usability expert to work out the interface
• Technical support to help the users
• Web marketing specialists to place the tool on the website and promote it properly

That’s precisely our strategy when facing a new project. We already have a tool to further illustrate the above example: Band and Block PIM Calculators.

What other tools are you looking for? Leave a comment below and I will be sure to respond.