Automating

Your Business

The Solution Frameworks (NGOSS)

The TM Forum has developed a suite of frameworks and best practices that have become the industry standard for the automation
of a service provider’s business and support processes and systems. These Solution Frameworks (NGOSS) enable users to analyze
their business operations against industry processes, applications and information standards. They also provide the keystones
to procure, develop and implement a comprehensive OSS and BSS environment that will support the needs of the new converged
Service Providers.

The key elements include:

• The Application Framework (TAM)

• The Process Framework (eTOM)
• The Information Framework (SID)
• The Integration Framework (TNA)
• The Solution Frameworks Methodology
• Interfaces and APIs

The benefits of the frameworks may be viewed

two interrelated, perspectives:

Business Systems

The evolving environment in which modern communications
and Service Providers do business puts new demands on their
operations. To be successful in the new converged market, a
Service Provider must be able to develop and deploy new
services much more quickly, and with the quality of service that
their customers now demand. To achieve this, processes must
become more efficient and automated through the integration of
processes, information and systems.
The frameworks supply the provider with a complete toolkit
that enables it to understand and (re)engineer its business
processes, and integrate its information flows and business
support applications.
The Frameworks are the industry’s only true standard for the
development and deployment of easy-to-integrate management
system components. Provided as a “toolkit,” they define
a comprehensive, integrated framework for developing,
procuring and deploying operational and business support
systems and software.
The toolkit comprises specifications and guidelines built on
industry consensus in key business and technical areas.
By employing a “lifecycle” approach to development of
management systems, Service Providers and their suppliers
get a clear definition of business processes, specification
and architecting software, as well as systems to automate
those processes.

Who Needs the TM Forum’s Solution Frameworks?

Across the communications supply chain, management systems have solved many problems, but it has presented many challenges
that will affect the future. Each of the major players in the supply chain seeks a new approach to management, and in many cases
possesses complelling reasons to do so.

In the financially sensitive markets of today, Service Providers need cost-ef fective management systems
implementations. These systems must automate complex business processes to solve operational issues
in the short term, and show rapid returns for the investment. In addition, Service Providers require a
Service Providers long-term strategy for their IT systems. The management systems in many businesses today were put
together without a long-term view, and ar e now proving difficult to expand in accommodating more complex
networks, services and automated processes.

The Software Vendor marketplace has blossomed to mor e than 400 companies. This expansion means that in
each market sub-segment, numerous companies are competing for the same business within the Service
Provider community. This competition, along with price pressure from other Service Providers, are driving
OSS Software
Software Vendors to reduce development costs to maintain profitability. In addition, the OSS marketplace
Vendors
comprises a conglomeration of companies that solve niche problems. As a result, Software Vendors
struggle to fit into the management puzzle presented to them by each Service Provider customer they engage.
 While custom integration projects are typically the boon of system integrators (SIs), mounting
pressure from the Service Providers to cut costs puts the SIs into a position where they must make their
projects more predictable and repeatable to retain margins not possible with custom projects. SIs are
looking to reuse elements across projects, and to use fewer staff members to accomplish their goals.
System Integrators
In addition, with the large number of software suppliers in the industry and Service Providers using an
ever-increasing variation of software components, SIs are forced to continually learn how to integrate
new elements into complex IT environments.

Equipment Vendors are extremely influential in the world of management systems. Often, Service Providers
rely on the management systems from their preferred vendors to do much more than manage their own network
elements. And often, equipment vendors see the value in becoming a one-stop-shop for their customers—
offering a broad range of solutions. In addition, equipment vendors are often faced with bidding
Equipment situations where they are putting their equipment into a pre-existing multi-vendor environment with
Vendors established management solutions.

In all these cases, providing Frameworks-based solutions enables the ability to integrate their hardware and
systems with third party Frameworks-enabled systems fast and easily, deriving substantial business benefit.

Go to the following URL for full more information of TM Forum’s Solution Frameworks Program :
http://www.tmforum.org/BestPracticesStandards/NGOSS/1911/Home.html

The TM Forum has developed a comprehensive set of case studies that explain how the frameworks have been leveraged by stakeholders
in the industry. Please go to http://www.tmforum.org/casestudies to see how we can help you or add to our to add your companies case
studies to our library.