It has been a major educational piece for stakeholders. When you show them that spend has more than doubled in four years, they are often shocked. They simply had no idea.
Q. HOW DO YOU INTEGRATE TCO INTO YOUR SOURCING STRATEGY?
» It is now the bare minimum for my team. Every conversation regarding new products or services involves reflecting the reality back to the stakeholder. We might say,“ Yes, your budget is signed off, but you actually need an extra 10 % to afford the full life cycle of this service”. That’ s where we add value. We go back to the market and speak realistically to suppliers about what a three-year partnership looks like and what added value we are getting for that extra investment.
Q. ALLPOINTS FIBRE HAS BECOME QUITE STRINGENT REGARDING CONTRACT LENGTHS. WHAT WAS THE CATALYST FOR THAT?
» Historically, businesses make the mistake of signing contracts that are far longer than they should be. We work with some huge monopolies, and because no one was keeping an eye on the value, we found money pits where additional fees were racking up into the millions.
As a rule of thumb now, we won’ t sign anything longer than a 12-month term with a new supplier unless it is exceptionally strategic. We also insist on the right to terminate for convenience.
78 May 2026