Field Notes on the Spend Nobody Owns.
Plain-English takes on Telecom, Technology, and Utility expense, written for the people who actually approve the invoices.
The 7% Problem: Why Your FY27 Technology Budget Is Last Year's Mistakes, Compounded
Take last year's spend. Add 7%. Cross your fingers. It is the most common way to build a Telecom and Utility line, and it budgets your mistakes forward with a raise. Here is what is inside the number, and what a roll-forward cannot see.
The Phantom Expense Tax: The 15-22% of Your Tech Spend That's Invisible by Design
Most multi-location enterprises overpay on Telecom, cloud, and Utility contracts. Not because they're careless, but because the bills are built to be unreadable. Here's where it hides.
Your TEM Software Is Working Perfectly. That's the Problem.
Expense-management platforms report the services you're paying for. They can't tell you which ones you actually use, and that gap is where the money is.
The Telecom Liability That Shows Up After Every Acquisition
When you buy a property or a portfolio company, you inherit its bills. They arrive in the seller's name, at the seller's PO box, for services nobody told you about. When they go unpaid, your lights go dark.