Author
Ricardo Diaz
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.
