Finding Run-Rate Waste Without Disrupting the Business

Tony:

Hello, I’m Tony Mangino from TC2, and this is Staying Connected—the podcast where we talk about what really matters to enterprise buyers navigating today’s technology and sourcing decisions.

I’m joined today by Jaime Hansen my colleague here at TC2 we’re talking about run-rate waste in network environments.

And specifically, how enterprise customers can find it, recover it, and keep it from coming back without creating operational chaos.

This comes up a lot in internet-first transformation programs. A company may be transitioning away from MPLS and adding DIA and broadband. Maybe wireless backup is part of the resiliency plan. Maybe the whole site model is changing.

All of that can create real value.

But here’s the catch: the old environment doesn’t always disappear just because the new one is installed.

Guest:

That’s exactly where the waste starts to hide.

A new circuit goes in, but the old one keeps billing. A site closes, but access charges remain active. A supplier applies the wrong rate. Or a backup service gets added for resiliency, but nobody later checks whether the surrounding commercial model still makes sense.

Individually, some of those items may not look dramatic.

Tony:

Right. One charge here, a forgotten service there.

Guest:

Exactly. But across a large enterprise footprint, those little items become real run-rate dollars.

Tony:

And they distort the story leadership thinks it is hearing. The transformation may be presented as delivering one economic outcome, while the actual billing baseline tells a more complicated story.

Why This Matters

Tony:

One thing I think is important here is that run-rate waste isn’t just a billing issue. It’s a control issue.

Guest:

Yes. And it’s also a visibility issue.

If the enterprise doesn’t know which services are active, which should be active, and which agreement governs them, then cost control becomes guesswork.

Tony:

And supplier conversations become harder.

Guest:

They do. The supplier has its billing view. The customer needs its own fact-based view.

That means knowing what should be paid, what should no longer be paid, and what needs to be corrected.

Tony:

This gets especially tricky during network change. Think about our example of a customer moving from legacy MPLS toward an internet-first model. Some overlap is expected. You may need parallel services during testing and cutover. You may need a controlled transition window.

That’s not waste. That’s planned migration cost.

Guest:

Right. The problem is when that temporary overlap becomes permanent.

Tony:

That’s the line. Planned transition cost is part of execution. Uncontrolled run-rate waste is a failure of follow-through.

Where the Waste Hides

Tony:

So where should teams start looking?

Guest:

I’d start with stranded services. These are services that no longer have a valid business purpose.

Maybe the site closed. Maybe the circuit was replaced, but the old access service was never disconnected. Maybe there are charges tied to a location nobody recognizes anymore.

Tony:

And sometimes people hesitate to turn anything off because they’re afraid it might still be needed.

Guest:

Understandably. Nobody wants to be the person who disconnects a live service at a critical site.

Tony:

So the answer isn’t, “Just cut anything that looks old.”

Guest:

No. That’s too risky.

The answer is evidence. Match the billed service to the inventory. Confirm the site. Check the contract. Talk to the operational owner. If the service isn’t needed, then build a controlled disconnect path.

Tony:

That’s a very different posture. It’s not random cleanup. It’s disciplined remediation.

Guest:

Exactly.

Tony:

Pricing issues are another big bucket.

Guest:

They are. A service may be valid, but the price may be wrong.

Maybe the negotiated rate was never applied or a discount is missing. Maybe the supplier is billing from an old schedule or amendment. Maybe a service component is priced outside the agreement or non-recurring charges were not addressed in the last renewal.

Tony:

And the pattern matters more than the one-off.

Guest:

Absolutely. If the same issue appears across a group of sites, the customer shouldn’t just chase a credit for one invoice. It should push for remediation at the source.

Recovering Value Without Creating Risk

Tony:

At the start of this episode I made the point about not creating operational chaos, that’s the real challenge.

Guest:

It is. Contract compliance and optimization should not put service continuity at risk.

You don’t want a savings effort to break connectivity at a plant, a branch, a contact center, or a distribution site. That would be a bad trade.

Tony:

So the work has to be thoughtful.

Guest:

Yes. First validate, then prioritize, then act.

And I know that sounds simple, but it matters. You validate the service against the contract, the invoice, the inventory, and the operational owner. Then you prioritize based on financial impact and business risk. Then you decide whether the action is a disconnect, a rate correction, a credit request, or a supplier billing-system fix.

Tony:

The process is intentional  – it’s the whole, not creating chaos thing.

Guest:

Exactly. A small charge and a major recurring overbilling issue shouldn’t consume the same level of effort. And a service at a critical location needs a different review path than a charge tied to a closed site.

Tony:

The supplier accountability piece is important too. Because a credit may feel like progress, but it doesn’t always solve the problem.

Guest:

That’s the point. A credit is useful. But if the same charge appears next month, the customer hasn’t fixed anything.

The better question is, what changed in the system so this doesn’t happen again?

Practical Buyer Questions

Tony:

For listeners who want to start looking for run-rate waste, what questions should they ask?

Guest:

Start with the site-level view.

What services are billing at each location? Is the site still open? Is the service still part of the approved design? Who owns it? Which agreement controls the pricing?

Tony:

Then look at change activity.

Guest:

That’s often where the waste begins. Change happens operationally, but the billing and contract records don’t always catch up.

Tony:

And what should customers avoid?

Guest:

Don’t treat optimization as a blind disconnect exercise. Don’t accept supplier data without validating it. Don’t chase credits while leaving the root cause untouched. And don’t wait until renewal time to clean up the baseline.

Tony:

Because by renewal time, the bad run rate may already be baked into the supplier conversation.

Guest:

Exactly. The cleaner the baseline, the stronger the negotiation.

Closing Remarks

Tony:

The key takeaway is that run-rate waste can be recovered without creating chaos, but only if the work is disciplined.

Enterprise customers need to connect contracts, invoices, service inventories, site status, and operational ownership. They need to separate valid transition cost from waste. And when they find a problem, they need to fix the cause, not just the symptom.

Guest, final thought?

Guest:

Run-rate waste, and the corresponding opportunity, usually sits in the gaps. Billing says one thing while the inventory says another. And operations has yet another view. The contract has the answer, but only if someone connects all the dots.

The organizations that handle this well don’t just ask, “Can we save money?” They ask, “What should still be here, what should it cost, and how do we keep the savings from leaking back out?”

Tony:

That is a great place to leave it.

To our listeners, if you would like to discuss contract compliance, run-rate waste, or how to recover value without disrupting service continuity, or if you’d like to discuss other technology strategy, sourcing and cost reduction needs with our guest, me, or any of our TC2 and LB3 colleagues, please give us a call or shoot us an email.

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