CPE Management 101

Why Do A Serialized Reconciliation

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A serialized reconciliation provides detailed Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) information traceable by the serial number on each piece of equipment. Tracking by serial number also eliminates guesswork of CPE repair by creating a history for each CPE. Typical reconciliation reports provide detailed CPE counts, matches against the billing system, lists of missing items, wrong location or status and unknown serial numbers.

Why do a Serialized Reconciliation?

• Increasing operational and financial control
• Better forecasting and planning - accurate historical information is the premise for forecasting future needs. A solid forecast enables better planning especially budgeting. Nothing hurts an operations manager worse than coming in over budget.
• Better organized warehouses - knowing where everything is means less time spent looking for particular CPE and more efficient operations and a lowering of labor costs. Serialized reconciliations can be done with just a fraction of the manpower and far quicker.
• Increasing accuracy
• Flexibility for the unknown (large PPV events, new marketing campaigns) - Good counts allows for the storing of CPE for special events and promotions without the risk falling short of demand or committing supplies that are not available.
• Great purchasing with timely replenishment of inventory levels - carrying cost of inventory are lowered and more timely restocking will occur.
• Reduced CPE loss from technicians, contractors and repair vendors by knowing who is accountable for CPE.
• Better internal audit results - spot and regular audits will be quicker and can pinpoint where CPE is located.
• Identify work flow gaps where CPE loss occurs - by identifying missing and not on file CPE patterns will develop, enabling adjustments to work flow procedures to correct high variances.
• Reducing CPE Losses
• Reduction in lost CPE - elimination of opportunity theft and a reduction in missing/not on file CPE flows directly to the bottom line.
• Reduction in capital expenditures to replace missing CPE - lower theft means and a reduction of missing CPE means less capital expenditures are required to maintain supplies.
• Reduction in labor expenses replacing missing CPE - replacement of CPE costs more than just the physical unit. Less labor will be involved in ordering, restocking and investigating.
• Increases productivity by boosting morale - Reconciliations are no longer such a despised task. Faster more accurate reconciliations will reduce the stigma of a mundane task resulting in improved morale.