Carrier Access Billing & Order Management
Carrier Access Billing & Order Management
Our Team.
With our “Managed Services” suite of solutions, JSI proudly continues its 60-year tradition of providing clients with all of the resources and support that they need to succeed – both in their day-to-day operations and during periods of rapid, unexpected growth. Take a moment to learn more about how JSI’s Managed Services suite – which notably includes our Carrier Access Billing & Order Management services – can provide you with the critical resources that your company needs to scale its operations quickly and efficiently.
Our Services.
To learn more about the range of essential services that our team offers, please select any of the following service groupings for additional insight and details:
- Carrier Access Billing;
- Network-to-Network Billing;
- End-User Billing; and
- Customer Service Products.
Carrier
Access
Billing
We do not take a cookie cutter approach to the access billing process because we understand that no two companies’ CABS needs are the same. Whether you’re billing LECs, CLECs, interexchange carriers or wireless providers, we can offer an effective solution.
Given the complex nature of access billing in the current telecommunications industry, it has become particularly critical that service providers are matched with a CABS system that meets their specific needs. We can offer you the option of using one of our platforms or your own existing system, and we can help you determine which option works best for your situation.
Whether switched access, special access, or interconnection charges, JSI's reconciliation procedures ensure that all usage is billed, and billed at the proper rates. Our processes look at every ordered product or minute-of-use and then verify that the billed amounts are correct.
Companies want to be assured that the access bills they are generating are accurate, and they want to be assured that all charges are appropriate. JSI's reconciliation and bill validation processes can give you those assurances.
• Verify usage from all vendors, including internet, cable, and wireless providers
• Reconcile all usage from receipt, through mediation, to the bill
• Verify minutes-of-use billed
• Verify all interconnection, recurring, and non-recurring charges
• Verify usage for special services, such as 8xx
• Reconcile inventory with billing
• Ensure that you are maximizing your access revenue stream
• Provide a detailed assessment of our findings, and offer solutions where applicable Notably, we will also take the mystery out of so-called Phantom Traffic. The fact is, this elusive traffic can be tracked and identified. The first step in tackling this issue is knowing where to start, and JSI is here to help you with that process. In particular, our processes will:
• Identify terminating traffic
• Compare EMR/EMI to switch records
• Provide detailed records to support the billing of newly-identified usage
• Provide usage data related to wireless providers for negotiation purposes
• Provide jurisdictional information
• Generate client-specific reports
Our process includes identifying a system that takes into consideration your future needs and growth, while also integrating with your current hardware and operational procedures. The appropriate support systems will help to maximize the efficiency of your back office operations and enhance your overall productivity.
JSI's goal is to match you with a product that provides both timely and accurate access bills. Once that solution is in place, JSI will test your system to ensure that it is fully operational. Further, if a problem were to arise, then our team would be available to assist you.
It is important that all usage – whether recorded by you or received from other sources – is recorded accurately; however, getting that usage to the customer’s bill is the ultimate goal. That’s where your mediation platform comes in; if it’s not effective in converting your switch records, you could see a potential loss of billable usage, and ultimately revenues.
Whether you prefer a standard EMI format or you require a custom format, JSI will work closely with you to eliminate the guesswork from the mediation process and will ensure that your call records will go through the appropriate conversion for billing.
Companies want assurance that the access bills they are generating are accurate; they also want assurance that all charges are appropriate and that all appropriate charges are billed. JSI has established bill validation processes that can give you those assurances.
We can work with you to ensure that:
• Charges reflect the appropriate tariff or ICA rates
• The appropriate carrier-specific jurisdictional factors are applied to usage
• Usage levels are within normal parameters – and if not, identify the reason for any anomalies
Through its bill validation processes, JSI can help you avoid unnecessary disputes, and verify that your usage is properly managed all the way from the switch to the bill.
JSI has the ability to serve as your company's ICSC department. We have experts on staff with years of ASR experience, which would give your company an advantage. If JSI became your ICSC department, we would:
• Work with carriers so that correct orders are received, validated, and tracked
• Coordinate with other companies and departments for service activity
• Communicate with your billing group for completed orders with accurate rating
Access Order Management:
JSI will help you to define an access order process that will manage all of your orders from receipt, to implementation, to billing. We will define standards designed to prioritize orders and establish timeframes for completion, resulting in an efficient and effective order management process.
If you are an ILEC, we can:
• Train your staff in the proper handling and disposition of access orders
• Develop company-specific processes designed to ensure the effective internal handling of orders, including tracking and pricing mechanisms
• Flow order information to CABS vendors on your behalf
• Issue specific ASRs on your behalf for the provision of the local, interLATA, and intraLATA networks
If you are a CLEC, we can:
• Notify carriers of your switch deployments
• Track and follow up on your access orders
• Work with switch translations personnel to ensure that orders are transmitted properly
• Issue ASRs on your behalf and manage them through the interconnection process with the ILEC
• Submit local service requests and oversee the management of the service
• Prepare and oversee provisioning plans to ensure that all services are coordinated and managed properly
Service providers need to establish a documented process flow that ensures validation of all orders prior to implementation, and JSI can help you get that process in place.

Network-to-Network
Billing
Whether you are a new provider in the carrier’s carrier arena or a seasoned provider looking for billing assistance, JSI has both the experience and expertise to ensure that your bills are correct and submitted on time. Whether switched access, special access or interconnection services, JSI’s network-to-network bill management procedures ensure that all usage and facilities are billed correctly. Our processes look at each ordered product and verify that it is being billed properly.
Our Network-to-Network billing program emphasizes quality control. To ensure accuracy, we work directly from your customer database to generate your monthly bills. Specifically, we:
• Run trial bills each month
• Apply rates and any applicable adjustments including prorations and credits
• Review trial bills for accuracy and then submit them to you for approval
• Generate the actual bills
• Mail or email customer invoices
• Run company-specific reports, including Accounts Receivable reports
JSI will work with you to implement a program that provides exceptional oversight while incorporating your specific network-to-network billing needs. Our End User Audit process:
• Scrutinizes all of your billing information
• Ensures that billed amounts are reflective of product rates
• Compares billed rates to tariffed/published rates
• Ensures that individual bills reflect ordered products and services.
• Starts with the service order and ends with the customer bill
• Includes a detailed summary of our findings and recommendations, where appropriate
While the audit process provides useful information to the provider and is often the catalyst for corrective action, it is also an important factor in determining your customers’ level of satisfaction with your service.

End-User
Billing
Offering the “must have” products and services becomes a moot point if you do not bill for them, or if your billing is fraught with errors. Subscribers will quickly jump ship if they find they are spending too much time with customer service personnel trying to resolve billing issues. And your accounting staff will quickly let you know when the balance sheets are anything but balanced. Well-defined order management procedures, in conjunction with a fully operational and accurate billing system, are the linchpins in a robust end user billing operation.
Our End User Audit process:
• Scrutinizes all of your billing information
• Ensures that billed amounts are reflective of product rates
• Compares billed rates to tariffed/published rates
• Ensures that individual bills reflect ordered products and services.
• Starts with the service order and ends with the customer bill
• Includes a detailed summary of our findings and recommendations, where appropriate
While the audit process provides useful information to the provider and is often the catalyst for corrective action, it is also an important factor in determining your customers’ level of satisfaction with your service.
Deciding whether to supplement or replace your current system depends on the capability of the system, and its effectiveness in properly billing ordered services. JSI has both the knowledge and experience to walk you through the decision-making process and help you find the system that fits your budget and meets your needs.
Our End User System Selection processes include:
• Documentation of your current end-user billing requirements
• Review of your current system’s capabilitiesDevelopment of a needs assessment
• Preparation of proposals for the enhancement/upgrade of existing systems
• Preparation of proposals for the purchase of new billing systems
• Implementation of end-user billing systems
JSI will work with you to identify an end-user billing system that will sustain you through the rapid growth and expansion that characterize today’s marketplace. And if it is determined that new support systems are needed, we will guide you through the selection and design process, all the way to implementation.
If your company is not razor-focused on the order management process, and if your company is not processing orders with a sense of urgency, your customers and ultimately your business may suffer the consequences. Our thorough analysis of your order management processes will allow you to determine the effectiveness of your current order procedures.
We will track the order:
• From the point of origination
• To provisioning:
• When the service is implemented
• If the ordered service is provisioned
• Through the bill system:
• If the ordered products/services are billed
• If the proper rates are applied
• To the customer’s bill
We will help you establish a documented process flow that requires validation of all orders prior to implementation, and results in the successful billing of products and services. JSI can also assist you with the LSR process. Whether you are generating or processing LSRs, we will confirm that the orders meet industry standards, and comply with FCC regulations relating to the local competitive environment. We will help you implement procedures that ensure you properly manage the provisioning process from start to finish.

Customer
Service
Products
Of course, your perception of how you are responding may be quite different than that of your customers. JSI can help you grade your customer service operations by conducting a detailed Operational Assessment that incorporates on-site observations of your customer service operations, review of process documentation, and one-on-one discussions with your customer service personnel.
Through our on-site observations and review of your procedures, we can identify the positive aspects of your customer care processes, but also shine a light on any areas that need improvement.
Specifically, we:
• Analyze a broad range of your CSRs’ skills sets
• Gauge the CSRs’ knowledge of product/services and related pricing
• Assess your CSRs’ relationship with their customers
• Assess your Customer Service personnel’s ability to identify customer needs
• Evaluate your CSRs’ ability to make product recommendations
Once our on-site assessment is complete, we provide a detailed written analysis compiling all of the information obtained from our review of documentation, our observations, and our discussions with personnel. This comprehensive report includes recommendations on how to effectively improve customer care processes, as well as how to reinforce the positive components of your customer service operation.
• How to provide customer-focused service
• Projecting a positive attitude
• Honing communication skills
• Developing product knowledge
• Knowing your customers (and what they want)
• How to sell
• Up-selling
• Cross-selling
• Regulatory Issues
• CARE
• CPNI
• Current hot-button issues
• Tariffs
• State
• Federal
• Local
All of our training can be customized to your specific needs and can be presented in a group setting or in a one-on-one environment.
