CenturyLink is a large telecommunications company that provides broadband, voice, wireless, and entertainment services. They were facing challenges with their product catalog and ordering systems due to having multiple siloed product catalogs across different business functions. To address this, CenturyLink implemented a new product catalog architecture using Selectica as the new rules engine and integrating with MDM and other systems. This improved the customer experience by enabling easier access to product and pricing information for call centers, reduced order fallout rates, and increased speed to market for new products. It also improved operational efficiencies by automating processes and reducing maintenance costs of the previous mainframe-based system. Overall the new architecture delivered significant business value and benefits to CenturyLink.

1. Billing and Product Catalog
for Bundled Offering
Session Number 3577A
Teresa Jacobs, VP Data Warehouse and
Business Intelligence, CenturyLink
Arvind Sathi, Lead Architect Information
Agenda, IBM SWG

2. 1
Agenda
• Telecom and MDM
• Case Study
• Data Governance

3. 2
Service Providers are moving through a complex multi-phase transformation.
Customers are buying services and devices not connectivity technology. The
LOB definition will become aligned to the market vs. the networks.
Phase 1
Independence
Phase 1
Independence
Wireline
Wireless
Broadband
Satellite
LOB specific ordering
Network siloed by
service
Customers know what
they want
Phase 2
Bundles
Phase 2
Bundles
Same as Phase 1
with added process
and function to
collect the bundle
details
Phase 3
Interdependence
Phase 3
Interdependence
Phase 1 &2 plus
cross product
validation and selling
Single brand
emerges, customer
view of order
Wireline
Broad
band
Phase 4
Service Driven
Phase 4
Service Driven
Voice
Wireline
Wireless
VoIP
Video
Satellite
IPTV
Program.
Games
VDSL
Internet
DSL
Games
Dial
Re-orient ordering to
respond to customer
needs vs. SP products
Introduce option for
consultative selling
Third party services
Phase 5
Converged
Phase 5
Converged
Decouple the
network from the
service
Device / Transport
Services
Voice Service
Television
Internet
Services
Games
Security
Calling Card
Transport
Wireless
Satellite
IP
Services
VoIP
IPTV
Wireline
Broadband
Satellite
Wireless
Devices

4. 33
How many product catalogs should you keep?
Customer
Billing
Network 7
3
6
2
5
4
1
Area Descriptions
1 The catalog from the point of view of the customer.
2
The catalog from the point of view of billing. Includes unit rating, and all pricing, taxing and
discounting rules.
3
The product from the point of view of network including provisioning and fulfillment. Building blocks
for functional products.
4
Product information in customer product and orders, as information is conveyed from order entry to
provisioning.
5 Product information for communication with billing system.
6 Network information conveyed to billing, including traffic, mediation and third party feeds to billing.
7
Profitability view. Matching of Customer, Revenue and Costs to determine product and customer
value.
Major Product Catalogs
Typically, telecom service providers have between 50-100 product catalogs covering the
above 7 functional areas across multiple geographies and merged entities.
However, an enterprise customer may seek a solution across many of these regions
requiring enterprise-wide product catalog synergies.
The target architecture must include the total number of target product catalogs as well as
the strategy for federation across these catalogs – standards, centralization vs. federation,
synchronization mechanism.
The roadmap must specifically address how the other catalogs will be capped or
decommissioned.

5. Typical Business Challenges Associated with MDM
Resulting Business Problems
• Trusted information is not available when & where
needed
• Inflexibilities make the business slow to respond to
changing requirements
• Cost of managing IT is too expensive
• The full value of information is not being leveraged
– Inability to understand the value
of the customer
– Inconsistency in product data
across systems – slow time to
market
– Missed revenue opportunities
– Inconsistent customer service
across channels – poor customer
satisfaction

6. Typical Business Drivers Associated with MDM
Improve strategic
decision making &
business agility
Improve customer
service and
customer intimacy
Comply with
regulatory
requirements
and reduce risk
Enter new markets,
introduce new
products, gain new
customers
Lower operational
costs
Cross-sell & Up-sell
Master Data
Management
4 Primary DriversSample Business Objectives

7. 6
Revenue as a Business Driver for MDM
• Identify cross-sell, up-sell opportunities
• Customize product offerings and bundles
• Introduce new products quickly
• Identify high value customers
Revenue
Compliance
Agility
Cost
Benefits

8. 7
Agility as a Business Driver for MDM
• Consolidate data from silos
• Integrate new systems quickly
• Meet demands of new business channels
• Grow with the business
• Identify key relationships and hierarchies
Revenue
Compliance
Agility
Cost
Benefits

9. 8
Cost as a Business Driver for MDM
• Automate manual business processes
• Reduce data errors
• Eliminate excess mailings
• Identify risk (credit)
Revenue
Compliance
Agility
Cost
Benefits

10. 9
Compliance as a Business Driver for MDM
• Reduce risk
• Control access to data
• Adhere to SOX regulations
• Manage customer privacy preferences
Revenue
Compliance
Agility
Cost
Benefits

11. A Case StudyA Case Study……
• Who is CenturyLink?
• Improving the Customer Experience with Data
• Case Study
Business Drivers
Approach
Architecture – Pre & Post
Results
Program Summary

12. 11
Third largest telecommunications company in the U.S.
Broadband, voice, wireless, and advanced
entertainment services under the CenturyLink Prism
TV and DIRECTV brands.
Data, voice, and managed service to business,
government, and wholesale customers.
Customers range from Fortune 500 companies to
families living in rural America.
Headquartered in Monroe, LA and is included among
the Fortune 500 list of America’s largest corporations.
Who IsWho Is CenturyLinkCenturyLink??

13. CenturyLinkCenturyLink Is An Industry Leader!Is An Industry Leader!
12
Pro forma 2011 annual revenues of $18.5 to $18.8 B*
15.1 million access lines
5.4 million broadband customers
1.7 million video customers
210,000 route mile national fiber network
Committed to being broadband leader in markets.
Global leader in managed hosting and
cloud services through Savvis, a
CenturyLink company.
* Pro forma for FY2011, including purchase accounting adjustments

14. HIGH IMPACT PROJECTS
Improving the Customer Experience with Data:Improving the Customer Experience with Data:
Integrated Customer
Data for IVR
Usage Analytics
for Revenue Assurance
and Fraud Detection
Cost / Profitability
Analytics
Product Catalog
for Ordering & Billing
CenturyLink embarked on many projects which use
customer and product data to…
Improve the Customer Experience
Improve Operational Efficiencies
13
Integrated Desktop for 360
View of Customer
o

15. Product CatalogProduct Catalog –– Business DriversBusiness Drivers
14
Business Symptoms…
- High Average Call
Handling Time
- Long Training
Cycle Time
- High Percentage
of Order Fallout
- Low Net Revenue
Per Call
- High Rate of
Employee Churn
- Slow Speed to Market
Primary Causes for
Key Symptoms
Required
Capabilities( War Room Staring Point)
Multiple Systems per
Business Function
Bill Explanation
Difficult & Lengthy
Product / Promo Info
Difficult to Access
Bundled Quotes
Manually Calculated
USOCs & FIDs
Extremely Complex
Bill Charges Mismatch
Charges Quoted
Multiple Product
Catalogs
Easy Access to
Current Promo Info
and Competitive
Marketing Data
Accurate Quoting
for Products,
Product Bundles,
and Discounts
Increased Speed to
Market for Product
Introduction
English-Based
Product Offers
Easy Ordering
Process with Minimal
Key Strokes

16. Approach:Approach:
15
INCREASING VALUEINCREASING VALUE

17. Previous Architecture:Previous Architecture:
Input InterfacesInput Interfaces
Service
Orders
Service
Orders BillingBilling 3rd Party3rd Party TollToll BillingBilling
TaxingTaxing Journal
Interface
Journal
Interface
Discounting InterfacesDiscounting Interfaces
AccumulationAccumulation
DiscountingDiscounting
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Rate QuoteRate Quote
Online
Order
Online
Order
Partner
Order
Partner
Order
Bill Period
Determination
Bill Period
Determination
Proration
of MCRs
Proration
of MCRs
CDE Bundled ServiceCDE Bundled Service
CDE
CDE Databases
=
1. Input Interfaces are Hard Coded and Multiple instances exist for the various inputs.
2. CDE had 11 outages in one year due to rule complexity beyond its design characteristics
3. CDE ran on the mainframe and was difficult to maintain due to late of tools in that environment.

18. New Architecture:New Architecture:
Service
Orders
Service
Orders BillingBilling 3rd Party3rd Party TollToll BillingBilling
TaxingTaxing Journal
Interface
Journal
Interface
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Call Center
Order
Rate QuoteRate Quote
Online
Order
Online
Order
Partner
Order
Partner
Order
Bill Period
Determination
Bill Period
Determination
Proration
of MCRs
Proration
of MCRs
CDE Bundled ServiceCDE Bundled Service
CDE
Engine
(Selectica)
CDE
Engine
(Selectica)
Threshold
Validation
Threshold
Validation
MDM4PIMMDM4PIM
Micro WFMMicro WFM
AggregationAggregation
Discount QualDiscount Qual
Discount AppDiscount App
ProrationProration
Output InterfaceOutput Interface
Bill FormattingBill Formatting
Allocation
Journal Interface
Allocation
Journal Interface
Accumulator (ETL) - Informatica ETL Rules
Services
NEW CDE
CDE
PortalCDE
Databases
- Restructured Services
- Off The Shelf Software
- New Services / Rules

19. 2010 2011Before
# of Promos… 470 600
Increased Capacity for More Promos!Increased Capacity for More Promos!
49
A story ofA story ofA story ofA story of…………
IT Delivers Direct (and dramatic) Benefits to the Bottom LineIT Delivers Direct (and dramatic) Benefits to the Bottom LineIT Delivers Direct (and dramatic) Benefits to the Bottom Line
Rules
Generation ApproveDefine
Fast Track
Implementation
Research / Analyze / Monitor
Release Based
Implementation
COBOL DB2
New Rules Engine / CDE Simulator AddNew Rules Engine / CDE Simulator Add
MDM
Selectica
Java
Oracle
Research / Analyze / Monitor
CDE
Simulator
90% of Promos Went Here
10%
Increased Fast Track Throughput,Increased Fast Track Throughput,
90%
10% of Promos Here Now
Avg Cost Per… 92%
decrease
$$$$
DecreasedDecreased AvgAvg Cost Per Promo!Cost Per Promo!
76%
decrease
Avg Cycle Time
Per (In Weeks)…
60%
decrease
DecreasedDecreased AvgAvg Cycle Time Per Promo!Cycle Time Per Promo!
X X X X X
X X X X X
X X X X X
X X X X X
50%
decrease

20. Program SummaryProgram Summary: Significant Business Value: Significant Business Value
INCREASING VALUEINCREASING VALUE

21. 20
Data Governance

22. 21 |21 |
Requirements for Implementing Data Governance
Data Governance is a critical component of an MDM program.
Active,
Committed
Champions
Cost Savings
Faster Development Time
Accurate Reporting
Reusable Component-
Driven Development
Process
Business Processes Information System Processes
Data
Stewardship
Organization
Benefits
Data
Management
Organization
Data GovernanceData Governance

23. Data Governance – Critical Success Factors
CapableImplementation
Ownership
Leadership
• Executive Support & commitment to
transforming actions
• Committed resources
• Managed expectations
• Clear accountability and
commitment to resolve data issues
• Measurable results
• Appropriate level of involvement
• Recognition of data as a corporate
asset
• Support cross company stewardship
community
• Tools
• Skills and training
• Support processes and technology
Critical Success Factors

24. Product Information Management - Reference
Architecture
Design Operations Analysis
Workflow
Change
Console
Activity
Monitoring
Dashboard
Discounting
Engine
Configuration
Engine
Product
Data
Product
Rules
Analytics
Engine
Modeling /
Simulation
Reporting
Feedback Loop
Data
Model
Discovery ETL
Matching
Cleansing
Change
Management
Internal / External Sourcing
Customer
Billing
Network 7
3
6
2
5
4
1

25. My book has some additional details in the MDM
chapter
http://www.mc-store.com/5137.html

26. Please Note:
IBM’s statements regarding its plans, directions, and intent are subject to
change or withdrawal without notice at IBM’s sole discretion.
Information regarding potential future products is intended to outline our
general product direction and it should not be relied on in making a
purchasing decision.
The information mentioned regarding potential future products is not a
commitment, promise, or legal obligation to deliver any material, code or
functionality. Information about potential future products may not be
incorporated into any contract. The development, release, and timing of any
future features or functionality described for our products remains at our
sole discretion.
Performance is based on measurements and projections using standard
IBM benchmarks in a controlled environment. The actual throughput or
performance that any user will experience will vary depending upon many
factors, including considerations such as the amount of multiprogramming
in the user's job stream, the I/O configuration, the storage configuration,
and the workload processed. Therefore, no assurance can be given that an
individual user will achieve results similar to those stated here.

27. Acknowledgements and Disclaimers:
© Copyright IBM Corporation and CenturyLink 2011. All rights reserved.
– U.S. Government Users Restricted Rights - Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by GSA ADP Schedule Contract
with IBM Corp.
IBM, the IBM logo, ibm.com, are trademarks or registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation in the United
States, other countries, or both. If these and other IBM trademarked terms are marked on their first occurrence in this information with a
trademark symbol (® or ™), these symbols indicate U.S. registered or common law trademarks owned by IBM at the time this information
was published. Such trademarks may also be registered or common law trademarks in other countries. A current list of IBM trademarks
is available on the Web at “Copyright and trademark information” at www.ibm.com/legal/copytrade.shtml
The information contained in this document is not a CenturyLink offer for services or equipment. Any services and equipment will be
provided only through an effective agreement, between CenturyLink and customer. CenturyLink product or service names and
the marks that comprise the CenturyLink logo are registered trademarks of CenturyLink Inc. in the U.S. and certain other
countries.
Availability. References in this presentation to IBM products, programs, or services do not imply that they will be available in all
countries in which IBM operates.
The workshops, sessions and materials have been prepared by IBM or the session speakers and reflect their own views. They are
provided for informational purposes only, and are neither intended to, nor shall have the effect of being, legal or other guidance or advice
to any participant. While efforts were made to verify the completeness and accuracy of the information contained in this presentation, it is
provided AS-IS without warranty of any kind, express or implied. IBM shall not be responsible for any damages arising out of the use of,
or otherwise related to, this presentation or any other materials. Nothing contained in this presentation is intended to, nor shall have the
effect of, creating any warranties or representations from IBM or its suppliers or licensors, or altering the terms and conditions of the
applicable license agreement governing the use of IBM software.
All customer examples described are presented as illustrations of how those customers have used IBM products and the results they may
have achieved. Actual environmental costs and performance characteristics may vary by customer. Nothing contained in these
materials is intended to, nor shall have the effect of, stating or implying that any activities undertaken by you will result in any specific
sales, revenue growth or other results.

28. Communities
• On-line communities, User Groups, Technical Forums, Blogs,
Social networks, and more
– Find the community that interests you…
• Information Management ibm.com/software/data/community
• Business Analytics ibm.com/software/analytics/community
• Enterprise Content Management ibm.com/software/data/content-
management/usernet.html
• IBM Champions
– Recognizing individuals who have made the most outstanding
contributions to Information Management, Business Analytics, and
Enterprise Content Management communities
• ibm.com/champion

29. 28
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