As the digital transformation process has taken over the corporate world, companies willing to modernize and grow have increasingly sought the appropriate tools to manage their different sectors, one of which is the provider management system.
In this sense, the management software have proven to be exceptional tools for carrying out an optimized and productive management. The number of organizations opting for this type of solution to administer, control and measure the demands of their business is constantly growing.
After all, business processes, which, by nature, have always involved running routines, become more and more intense, given the constant transformations of an increasingly competitive market – and, in this scenario, technology represents a powerful ally in guarantee of the rigor necessary for the work to be conducted in a cohesive and effective manner.
Therefore, the implementation of management systems is a common need for all types of companies. However, different areas of activity demand different needs, due to their own particularities.
In this article, we decided to bring a complete guide to management systems for service providers. Internet. If you are in charge of this type of business, continue reading to find out how to use these technologies to your company’s advantage!
What is a provider management system?
We can define management software as a virtual platform to support the daily management activities of a company. It is an intelligent and automated structure, capable of optimizing from the simplest operations to the most complex procedures, providing assertive data and favoring accurate and effective decision-making.
It is important to emphasize that the full use of this type of tool is directly connected to a well-qualified team, familiar with the information, guidelines and internal culture of the company.
The union of these two powers invariably results in a massive reduction in bureaucracy and fluidity in conducting the firm's routine processes, which is favorable to achieving results and corporate growth.
There are expectations that are common to any type of business. regardless of doors or segment, any business profile must always be aware of the control and security of its processes; the integration between its sectors and activities; to optimized productivity; and solidity in management of your documents and information – and a good management system encompasses all these factors.
However, when we talk about a specific segment such as internet providers, we are also talking about very particular needs, so that the choice of system must be aligned with certain modules specific to this reality, such as:
- gestão financeira;
- mapping and monitoring of each piece of equipment in the company's assets;
- speed control, technology and specific conditions referring to each plane;
- management of information referring to employees, suppliers, POPs and subscribers;
- solid structure for prospecting and controlling customers and leads (CRM);
- general management of all areas related to the company's processes as a whole.
What are the benefits of hiring a management system for providers?
Implementing a provider management system offers a number of benefits to business operations and results. We highlight the main ones below.
Automated provider activity monitoring tools
With a provider management system, you can easily track all activities: signal status, CCQ, Ack, Noise, Tx, Rx and distance of all your customers.
The tool can also automate network management through integration with routers, in addition to being very useful for identifying preventive adjustments and ordering table data in order to identify possible network problems.
accurate geolocation
The geolocation functionalities make it possible for coordinates and customer status to be recorded – which enables fluid and intuitive support and favors strategic decision-making.
Rugged
The mobility factor is also a differential, since a good management system for internet providers allows their resources to be fully used via a mobile device – which is an extreme necessity due to the nature of this type of business.
task scheduling
Processes are extremely optimized with the possibility of scheduling the most diverse tasks, such as backup, network management, overdue notice for defaulting clients, IPxMAC synchronization, monitoring of transmitters and many others.
View provider indicators
The customized dashboard allows for an accelerated view of the provider's main indicators, providing fast and optimized navigation for each group of users.
Fully customizable website
The customizable Hotsite module is extremely advantageous, as it offers the customer a personalized experience capable of facilitating access to invoices, opening tickets, integrated modules, catalogs and a whole series of information and services.
The IXC provider management system – and its integration with ZapSign
There is a multitude of management systems for internet providers available on the market. In this sea of options, it can be quite difficult to find the ideal solution for your business. Therefore, we, at ZapSign, recommend the IXC: one ERP whose focus is to facilitate the management of internet providers.
Standing out for its high level of customization, IXC unifies all the necessary tools through robust function parameterization functionalities, adapting the system to your business rule. The IXC also has a very well-structured support, consisting of various training courses, Wiki, EAD courses and video tutorials in its Youtube channel.
Another advantage of IXC is its high degree of integration with other platforms – including ZapSign. Below is a complete walkthrough explaining everything about how this integration works:
Creating the Integration between IXC and ZapSign
Now let's see what steps are needed to integrate the two tools.
Step 1 – Create an access token (API)
The first step to integrate the IXC provider management system with ZapSign is to create your access token (API). To do this, access the IXC and tap on “System Settings”, then on “Users” and finally on “New”.
Next, you have to fill in the mandatory user data. Check if the button “Allows access to the webservice” is checked. If not, press the button.
Once this is done, just click on the “Save” button and close the window. When reopening the user profile you just created, you will already be able to view your IXC Soft account access token.
But beware: It is important to remember that, for the webservice user to have full access to the system, it is necessary to be in an administrator group, as the permissions and user logs for the webservice work exactly the same as a user logged into the system.
It is also worth noting that ZapSign's servers have a dynamic IP – therefore, it is necessary to allow access to this user by any IP.
If there is any doubt during this step, you can refer to the IXCSoft Wiki or list of common errors.
Step 2 – Hire an API plan through ZapSign
Then, you will have to contract an API plan through ZapSign. For this, you just need to fill in the contact form at the following link: https://zapsign.com.br/ixcsoft, so that our Commercial team can better serve you promptly!
Step 3 – Contact ZapSign finance
In this third step, you must send an email to [email protected] containing some information:
- the access token you generated during Step 1;
- your IXC host (ex. https://telecomnet.com.br);
- If you want the service to automatically send links to your client via email only or via WhatsApp (the first option has no extra cost, while the second has a cost of R$0,50 per shipment).
Automatic submission of contracts for signature from ZapSign to IXC
The integration between IXC and ZapSign allows condensing all functionalities in a single platform, guaranteeing a centralized management process. In practice, this works as follows:
- Once both platforms are properly integrated, ZapSign will perform, every 5 minutes, a search on the IXC for all contracts whose “Access Status” is type AA (Awaiting Signature).
- If the document does not exist, the contract is sent via API with the following definitions:
Document: The available PDF document is automatically downloaded in “Print>Contract” and the name of the contract is defined in the “Description” field;
Signatory: Both the name, e-mail and cell phone are pulled from the customer. The link to sign the document is automatically sent via email and/or WhatsApp (decision at your company's discretion) to the signatory.
- In IXC, a line is added directly to the customer's "Obs" field, as shown in the example below:
- After the customer signs the contract, the integration between ZapSign and IXC will immediately update the “Access Status” of the contract to A (Active).
In addition, a new line will be added to the customer's “Obs” field, confirming the signature of the document by ZapSign, and inserting a download link.
If you liked this content and want to know more about how ZapSign systems integration works, feel free to click here and get in touch with one of our experts!
