Avrio Corporation Success Story

ICG Communications is one of the nation’s fastest-growing telecommunications providers, delivering voice, data and Internet access to small- to medium-sized businesses, long-distance carriers and internet service providers. ICG’s advanced communications infrastructure includes more than 4,767 fiber route miles and 67 switches, strategically located throughout major metropolitan areas in the U.S, and over 1.1 million access lines in service.

The Problem

With the tremendous growth in customer sales, ICG found it increasingly difficult to manually track incoming on-switch and re-sale orders. In order to ensure on-time installations and improve customer billing, ICG decided to implement a workflow system to help track all the order processing activities. To assist with the design and implementation of a custom workflow system, ICG selected Avrio Corporation, a leading FileNet® workflow consulting company.  

The Solution

Avrio Corporation developed a solution that tightly integrated FileNet’s workflow software with ICG’s existing mainframe systems for order entry and billing.  Under the re-designed system, Sales Order Coordinators used the mainframe system to enter service order data. The associated paperwork (e.g., LOA, Signed Contract, etc.) was scanned and indexed using FileNet® capture, and integrated with the mainframe data. From this information, the workflow system created a work item and established the order’s milestone delivery dates (e.g., Contract Due, Schedule Plant Test, etc.). Next, the workflow system distributed the order simultaneously to multiple ICG departments including: Translation, Voice Mail, E911, PIC/Care, Installation Coordinator, Provisioning/Engineering, and Tax. This solution greatly improved processing times by allowing different activities to occur concurrently.

The FileNet workflow system presented each department user with an electronic in-basket containing incoming orders. When an order was selected, the workflow system displayed supporting documents, mainframe order data, upcoming milestone dates and a custom checklist to ensure that certain activities were accomplished before sending an item to the next step. Additionally, the workflow system contained the ability to modify the current order specifications (e.g., add or delete features or lines) and to notify each department of the supplemental change (e.g., voice mail added). Alternatively, if a contract or milestone due date was in jeopardy of being missed, the workflow system would escalate the work item and notify all departments of the status. The features of workflow and online inquiry functions enabled all of ICG’s team members to be fully informed of the order status.

Avrio Corporation integrated ICG’s mainframe billing system with the FileNet workflow system. Data collected during order processing is electronically transferred to the mainframe, eliminating the need for manual key entry. This greatly improved the accuracy and timely generation of customer invoices, leading to increased revenues and a decreased staffing need.