Hard times remind us of need for ethics

In the 1980s, insider trading scandals hit Wall Street and a number of savings & loan institutions were compromised by malfeasance, causing a costly industry-wide collapse. In more recent years, terms such as “Enron,” “WorldCom” and “subprime mortgage meltdown” have become synonymous in the public mind with business corruption and the consequences to the public and economy at large when the full impact of the damage hits home.

Essentially, whenever boom times in America are burning the hottest, the temptation among many to cut corners to exploit additional opportunities always grows. Many succumb to this temptation, and it’s only when the country hits a downturn that we’re reminded yet again of what happens when powerful institutions stray from their mandate to compete aggressively but within legal parameters.

The country is in another of these down economic cycles presently, and yet again, the significance of good business ethics has been hammered home. Viewed through this prism, the work of Bob Glassman and Home Team Communications is even important.

Throughout his career, Bob has aggressively and honestly advocated for his clients in terms of taking care of their voice and data communications needs. We’ve recounted examples here on the blog of instances where Bob has gone to bat for a client without anything tangibly in it for him or HTC. In so doing, he’s proved that even in the cutthroat world of business, a good deed can be more than its own reward, because he has engendered fierce loyalty in return – as evidenced by the passionate testimonials we have recounted here.

Those who know Bob Glassman and Home Team Communications the best are on pins and needles waiting for the release of Commtrol in early June. They know that any product that ties together fully, and somehow manages to improve on, a lifetime of work on Bob’s part must be something quite special indeed. We can honestly promise you that every aspect of Commtrol – from coordinating HTC’s business advocacy efforts to the streamlined management of voice and data communications service to the illumination of telecommunications needs going forward – will be unlike anything the market has ever seen before.

Consumer services for business

It's very common to think of consumer advocacy simply as benefiting end users -- purchasers of products who are trying to avoid deficiencies in their acquired items. But, contrary to that mental image, consumer services do indeed exist for businesses -- and Bob Glassman's Home Team Communications group exemplifies the example better than anyone.

We've documented previously -- on this occasion -- and this one -- and this one as well -- that Bob and HTC go the extra distance for clients, even when there is nothing tangible to be gained in a given situation. The loyalty furnished by HTC is not dependent on short-term or convenient considerations -- it's a constant component of the business, because Bob wouldn't have it any other way.

In so doing, HTC functions as an advocate for businesses much in the same manner that consumer entities perform for individual buyers. This inventive approach bestows immense competitive advantages on their clients, who can achieve vast efficiency.

And it bears repeating in this space -- this level of service has been furnished even before the launch of Commtrol. Once this product, the culmination of so much hard work (and currently, beta testing), hits the streets in early June, current and future clients of HTC will benefit like never before.

Commtrol’s vast capacity for cost containment

Businesses face constant challenges in terms of trying to keep their voice and data communications costs in line. Service providers are always keeping them on their toes with various practices that are not necessarily in the best interests of the companies receiving the services.

Home Team Communications can take proactive methods in many cases to prevent these costly practices from occurring in the future and can also set up a personalized plan to insure peak efficiency. This is an optional part of the Commtrol comprehensive set of services.

HTC can either empower you or we can establish a comprehensive plan to maximize control of your voice and data network facilities. The latter option provides a custom-designed program that essentially lets HTC set up and maintain your existing database of voice and data facilities as well as serving as the liaison to your service providers. Either way, we will save you a ton of labor hours and aggravation.

Also, Home Team can design a personal and detailed strategy for your company’s ultimate cost containment and survivability planning.

This includes a detailed network design and development of a process to allow the most efficient management of your network (especially if you have a wide area network or multiple offices). We can also create a design of the route and alternative route of your voice/data lines from the phone company’s central office. Also, we can advise you on the setup of your equipment (phone system and data hardware) room in terms of power, ventilation, demarc location, space planning, ergonomics, and cleanliness, as well as establishing procedures to maintain the area.

Finally there is someone you can TRUST- Home Team Communications and our Commtrol program, which will be rolled out in early June.

Additional testimonials

Yesterday, we shared with you statements from satisfied clients of Home Team Communications. Their positive experiences only whetted their expectations for the release of Commtrol in early June. Today, we present some perspectives from the exact same perspective.

From the CEO of a technology company: “Bob Glassman and Home Team Communications are people I have come to trust for all aspects of our voice and data communications management, for several years. Today, it is extremely difficult to find an organization that can consistently combine both ethics and expertise. [Our firm] has consistently been able to derive extreme value from this relationship.”

From the chief business manager of a good-sized Midwestern school district: “My relationship with Bob Glassman dates back almost twenty years and has continued because of his firm’s honest work ethic and the value gained by being able to turn over our voice and data circuit decisions to Home Team Communications. The elements of trust and expertise are the overriding reasons why HTC performs consistently. We are excited about their release of the Commtrol web tool to even enhance the level of support and provide even more savings.”

Enthusiastic recommendations come from entities of all shapes and sizes. The thought process in all cases is the same and is very sound: if Bob Glassman and Home Team Communications have been able to deliver great service and value to us up to this point, how much better will everything be once Commtrol hits the streets?

Testimonials about Home Team Communications

Aside from Bob Glassman and Home Team Communications, the creators of Commtrol, the people most qualified to assess the new Commtrol product are the ones whose businesses have dealt with Bob and HTC over the years. They are the ones who have reaped the benefits of many of the elements that have gone into the production of Commtrol. Until the actual product hits the market in early June, theirs is the best outside perspective available. As such, we present some more testimonials on the work of HTC and the expected benefits of Commtrol.

Here are comments from a CEO whose firm is a leading owner and operator of corporate data facilities both domestically and overseas: “I am very please to have known and worked with Bob Glassman for over twenty years. He possesses deep experience in corporate voice and data communications, and has the creativity and determination to create the optimal program to manage all aspects of voice and data circuits. I am excited about the potential of his Commtrol program to significantly upgrade the operations of any company that values their network connectivity and cost structure.”

And to demonstrate the flexibility in terms of the scale of the application – here’s a statement from a village clerk about Bob’s work with her small municipality: “The Village has used Bob Glassman as its sole representative and advisor with our voice and data lines for close to twenty years. During that whole time, he has always been of worth to us because of his objectivity, insightful and current view of the telecommunications industry, and consistent, 24/7 support. We are excited about Home Team Communications’ release of its Commtrol web tool which should allow us to even be more pro-active over our cost containment as well as support, which in our case is crucial, having a police and fire department.”

Bigger businesses or smaller ones, public sector or private – it matters not. Home Team Communications has demonstrated an ability to get the job done for clients of all stripes and Commtrol will now be the icing on the cake.

Commtrol product description

We have discussed many different aspects about the new Commtrol product in the lead-up to the early June launch. The question of what it does specifically is certainly very relevant and we'll tackle it right here.

Commtrol is an Internet-based program that masters an area that is critical, but generally overlooked facet of a successful voice and data communications operation: the basic relationship with your voice and data circuit providers. It will reshape and revolutionize an area normally taken on by the person who “grabbed the short straw”:

^ It will document the exact voice and data services which are being purchased. Immediate returns are usually found here, between unused lines/circuits, slamming, cramming and other costly predatory products that are found in a majority of accounts.

^ It provides the ultimate method of minimizing any and all outages with your telephone and Internet services. Home Team Communications has close to one hundred years of direct experience…of which much has been spent determining the absolute best methods of fixing what every client tells us is the most adverse business condition they can potentially encounter. Our intense thought processes cover every possible outage…and HTC has cultivated and nurtured the top contacts at almost every major provider. This only happens when you have proven experience and we dare anyone else to challenge us.

^ It tells you when all of your voice and data contracts expire. What are the prudent options that you should look at… ahead of time? When should this be done? Are you subject to costly conversion to month to month rates or the time consuming of dealing with “evergreen” clauses? We address these questions for you.

The usefulness of Commtrol and Home Team Communications is by no means limited to these matters, but they provide a very useful starting point for understanding how transformational Commtrol can be for your business.

Our track record: past is prologue

As we've been starting to lay out on the blog this week, the Commtrol product represents the culmination of decades of work on the part of Home Team Communications and Bob Glassman. We're going to be communicating several different elements about Commtrol, HTC and Bob leading up to the early June product launch. Today, we're going to revisit some past accomplishments on behalf of grateful clients to demonstrate Commtrol's capacity to help businesses in powerful ways once it is on the market.

These grateful words come from the mouth of a telecommunications director for a public agency in Northeast Ohio:

"I have worked with Bob Glassman and various members of his related staff since 1990. During that time, he has always been consistent regarding his desire to do only what is best for his customers. During the mid nineties, he worked tirelessly with me to retrieve a mid five figure refund from a large, regional phone circuit vendor. What was most impressive is that he spent countless hours knowing that personally, he wouldn’t receive one penny of the returned funds. He always works for what is right- a rare quality in the telecommunications business. Since the mid nineties, Bob wanted to produce a tool to document all voice/data circuits (and eliminating all unnecessary lines), providing the best tools to reduce any outages, and manage contracts in the most efficient manner. Home Team Communications Commtrol tool has been well-thought-out and should provide real value."

This gentleman draws a straight line between his past experiences with Home Team Communications and what he expects of a future with Commtrol:

"I have worked with Bob and his Home Team Communications staff for over a decade. As the person running the operation of an Alarm Central Office monitoring station, we have to protect the lives of sometimes up to 100,000 clients and countess more people. We have found Bob and his organization as the only voice and data firm that always acts more like a business partner…on a 24/7 basis. Also, Home Team has found and retrieved thousands of dollars of overcharges from our local line provider. Trust is everything in a business relationship and in my years in the alarm business, I have never had representation as quality as what they have consistently provided us. I am looking forward to the Commtrol tool to enhance their already great service."

There's a very good reason that we're interspersing background about Bob and Home Team Communications with descriptions of the Commtrol product as we move closer to the early June release: because one cannot receive the full picture without both aspects of the narrative. The product itself is sensational and will aid in the efficiency of businesses greatly, particularly in the realms of managing and reducing voice and data network costs and hassles. But any invention, great though it may be, is worthless without the personal commitment and integrity of the people behind it. It is necessary to witness examples of the positive ethos of Bob and Home Team Communications in order to fully appreciate what their wonderful new product can do -- and the above examples illustrate this point eloquently.

Commtrol mission statement

Any entity worth its salt can enunciate its mission statement in a manner that is straightforward and easy-to-follow. Home Team Communications is certainly able to do just that. We are reproducing it here in an attempt to help you get a better handle on the capabilities that have gone into comprising the Commtrol product. Certainly, in the lead-up to the early June Commtrol launch, we will continue to get across as many different elements of this story as we possibly can.

COMMTROL MISSION STATEMENT

Implement a web tool that will simply and uniquely provide definitive value in voice and data circuit (network) cost containment and reduction by:

^ Distinctively documenting all voice and data facilities,

^ Providing the optimal method to minimize all phone and data circuit outages, and

^ Managing all contracts in an exclusive, intelligent and objective manner.

Advocacy for clients and tangible results

Previous columns here have mentioned the vital role that client advocacy plays with Commtrol and Home Team Communications, the company behind this revolutionary new product for helping to manage voice and data services. HTC's Bob Glassman takes his role as a watchdog for his clients quite seriously and puts every ounce of his considerable capacity for determination to work for them.

While Commtrol represents the culmination of Bob and HTC's inventive work over the years, different elements of what will constitute Commtrol have been apparent in their work over this period of time. We'll be highlighting those components here on the blog, because they are extremely relevant to the story of this unprecedented new product and every bit as much so as the tangible benefits opened up by Commtrol once it's released to the public in early June.

One such example of how the advocacy element of Commtrol manifested itself in the past occurred in an episode with a Regional Bell Operating Company out in California. A client of Home Team Communications signed up for a telecommunications plan that was to total $485 per month for two years. Somewhere along the line, the vagaries of the billing process ended up with the client facing a charge of $560 per month. It was time to get Bob Glassman on the case.

What this client found was that every company should be so lucky as to have someone as loyal and dogged as Bob on the case. The RBOC's initial inability to get the matter resolved immediately as it should have been only fueled the fire. In short order, the watchdog had his bone in the form of a RETROACTIVE reduction in the charge to $430 per month over the remainder of the contract.

As previously mentioned, this space will contain more examples moving forward regarding the track record of Home Team Communications and Bob Glassman -- for they tell the tale of how Commtrol emerged and how it and the approach behind it will help businesses achieve telecommunications efficiency in a manner previously incomprehensible.

Scope of distribution

As we mentioned during our introductory post here on the Commtrol blog, the product is targeted largely at the Northern Ohio market in its early stages. But it's worth pointing out that Home Team Communications has worked with, and will continue to work with, national and international companies with offices spread out all over the earth. The common denominator is that they all have a presence of some kind in Northern Ohio. So it should be understood that the effectiveness of Commtrol is not, nor will it ever be, limited to this single geographic area; it's simply the region targeted first at the outset.

Indeed, on a case-by-case basis, Home Team Communications has offered, and will continue to offer, products and services on a national basis, particularly when it comes to helping clients recoup monies lost to fraud. HTC's Bob Glassman takes his role as an advocate very seriously and considers his ethical approach to business resolution to be the cornerstone of his, and Commtrol's, effectiveness. Subsequent testimonials on this blog will illuminate the doggedness Bob has displayed on behalf of grateful clients.

As we move forward towards the early June launch of Commtrol, we'll illustrate examples of Bob and HTC's record of commitment to the businesses that they have worked on behalf of, and we'll demonstrate how this approach stands apart in an increasingly cutthroat world. Additionally, we'll be speaking at length on how Commtrol promises to revolutionize the process of managing voice and data network costs, both wired and wireless.

We're now only two weeks away from the momentous launch of Commtrol and this week, we start to roll out some of the aforementioned specifics. The excitement of being a part of a significant invention like this is palpable to us and we look forward to continuing to share the story with you.

Welcome to the Commtrol blog!

Welcome to this new corner of the blogosphere dedicated to disseminating information about Commtrol! This revolutionary new piece of "webware," which debuts in early June, promises to deliver unprecedented means of efficiency to business owners managing voice and data network accounts, both wired and wireless.

This project is the culmination of a lifetime of work and development by Cleveland-area entrepreneur Bob Glassman, whose efforts in recent years as a business advocate for Home Team Communications have prepared him for this moment. In its initial stages, Commtrol will be targeted largely at the Northern Ohio market as Home Team Communications brings its resources to bear on companies within a targeted radius; later, as conditions permit, Home Team Communications anticipates moving to wider points of distribution. But for any customers in any location at any time, Bob Glassman has amply demonstrated that he is a man uniquely poised to help companies achieve more efficiency.

With the dramatic downturn in the American economy over the past year and the widespread domino effects felt by what began as the subprime mortgage meltdown, companies everywhere have felt a profound urgency to streamline their operations and manage costs in a very serious manner. For Bob Glassman, longtime veteran of an economic market which never really pulled out of the last recession and has been in worse shape than the rest of the country for decades, these tough times pose no challenges he hasn't seen -- and helped guide other enterprises through -- many times before. Now that the culmination of his life's work in the form of the Commtrol product is poised to hit the market, companies in Northern Ohio (now) and across the country (eventually) will be able to manage their vital telecommunications efforts in a manner incapable of even being imagined previously.

On this blog, we will lead up to the release of Commtrol in late May by providing various aspects of the story that are most useful to businesses. We'll break down elements of this product and how it helps entities stay on top of their costs -- and needs -- in a most helpful manner. We'll share the impressions of others who have benefited from the efforts of Home Team Communications previously. And most importantly, we'll communicate the ethos of the company, which separates it from so many in this ruthless, anything-for-a-buck day and age.

We look forward to hearing feedback on Commtrol and answering any questions that people may have. We urge you to check out the temporary home page and to bookmark this blog and keep coming back often for more information about this revolutionary new product.