Special Services Automation

Operation, administration, and maintenance activities in a typical Special Services Center (SSC) cost an Operating Telephone Company about $6.5 million per year. This paper proposes a strategy to improve the productivity of telco special services employees by moving beyond today's mechanized Operations Systems to automation of activities in the SSC and related work centers. This strategy has a goal of work 'flow through,' the automatic movement of a work item from customer request to initiation or restoration of service without manual intervention.