lationship Models Just as relationships between marriage partners can have different models for how they operate, SO too can we see many differences in the way service provider/consumer relationships work. Some telcos want to be the sole supplier of all of the consumers' telecommunications needs. Others just want to provide one or two specialized services. Some consumers are looking for the provider with the lowest cost with little concern for anything else, while others would rather have a dependable provider that they can count on for the long haul. Indeed, with SO many models for the provider/consumer relationship, it is no surprise that there is SO much confusion. As a matter of fact, no real clarification of the churn management issues can hope to succeed until the telco makes a decision about what kinds of relationships it wants to have with its customers. eXcellence in Telecommunications The Telco Churn Handbook Are You Equipped to Do The Job? How many times have people gotten involved and married before they were really old enough and ready to make such a big decision? How many marriages run into problems because the people taking part in it are not really equipped to do what it takes to make the marriage work? Readiness is a key ingredient for success. Can You Deliver the Goods? The subject of readiness in the telecommunications business can be a sensitive one. There are stories of telcos that have opened up for business and signed up customers, only to find that they did not have the network capacity to meet their customers' needs. Such situations are unfortunate and are usually unintentional and eventually taken care of. But what about when the telco organization is unable to respond in the way that the customer expects to be responded to? Organizational competence and readiness is a major reason for customer relationship management problems in the great majority of telcos. Communication Once you know who your customers are and have decided how you want to relate to them, it is then time to establish t