AT&T and Télésystèmes Partnering in France

Abstract

How do you make the sale and satisfy a customer in another country who is interested in your product but wants the technology and support to be in that country? One solution is described in this paper. By joining forces, AT&T and TÉLÉSYSTÉMES (a subsidiary of France Télécom) were able to provide the technology—an AT&T NetMinder™ network‐traffic‐management system—and local support that meet the needs of France Télécom. Today, France Télécom's new international network management center uses a NetMinder system to monitor and control telephone traffic between France and the rest of the world. AT&T provided the knowledge, training, and technology that TÉLÉSYSTÉMES needed to support and enhance the system once it was introduced in France. Besides its ability to provide close customer support, TÉLÉSYSTÉMES contributed its knowledge of the customer and its experience in managing telecommunications projects. The blending of both partners' approaches to software development led to mutual process improvements. This paper discusses the partnership and cultural issues we faced and how we resolved them, the benefits that resulted, and the lessons learned.