Best practice for automation

Network Lifecycle Automation: Linking workflows across planning, testing, and operations to enhance productivity and efficiency

Telecom organizations have historically operated in silos, each focused on specialized domains such as planning, design, network rollout, testing, operations, and engineering. Each team focuses on a discrete phase of the network lifecycle. To do their job, each team uses dedicated software systems, built and configured precisely to support their siloed mode of operation.

The resulting tangle of applications creates complexity for procurement and IT. The systems often do not talk to each other as integrations are costly and complex. As such, there are multiple manual handoffs of information between teams and departments.

With the advent of 5G and the complexities of virtualized and disaggregated networks, service providers need a new mode of operation that can automate processes across the entire network lifecycle, ensuring service and customer experience while minimizing operating costs (OPEX) and maximizing the return on investment (ROI).

This Omdia whitepaper examines four use cases for Network Lifecyle Automation, including:

• Smart CAPEX
• Integrated planning and testing
• 360-degree assurance, including 5G network slicing
• Cross-domain troubleshooting

Written by James Crawshaw, Practice Leader, Service Provider Transformation, at Omdia, the report concludes with clear recommendations as to why Operators should implement automation holistically across the entire network lifecycle.