Teltek Sales, Inc Raises the Standard for Telecommunications Distribution
Teltek Sales, Inc., a Philadelphia, PA based telecommunications distributor, has changed, forever, the standards by which distribution companies will be judged. Last year, the executive management team at Teltek, realized that their company had much more to offer their customers than solely selling products at a competitive price. Shortly after that realization, a massive change occurred at Teltek, causing a major shift in their approach to market. This article focuses on three of Teltek’s many substantial changes; (1) their renewed commitment to inventory, (2) their extensive technical knowledge and (3) their constant efforts towards utilizing new technology in telecommunications distribution.
Teltek’s extensive warehouse space (70,000 square feet) located on the corner of Parkside and Belmont in Philadelphia is tangible proof of their commitment to inventory. In today’s environment of “just-in-time” supply, an inventory as extensive as Teltek’s would not be hailed as an accomplishment, that is, unless you happen to be a Teltek customer. Teltek’s recently appointed Operations Manager, Marc Savage, a former underground manager for a major telecommunications contractor, has made a strong commitment to having product available for customers. He explains, “We do forecast and use historical data to aid us in making inventory decisions, but more importantly, we listen to our customers, salesmen, and the industry itself, to ensure that our levels and variety of product are always appropriate.” Teltek’s customer weighted decision process, in regards to inventory leads into the next topic, technical support.
Teltek’s staff is primarily comprised of employees with past telecommunications field experience. “Supplying products at a competitive price is not enough anymore,” Bob Thompson, the Executive Vice President, explains, “In this age of explosive growth in our industry, we have found that there is a greater need for technical assistance among our customers.” The vast majority of Teltek sales force come from the operations side of the industry. In addition, Teltek has a technical support department that consists of a fiber splicer, a network engineer, a bridge specialist, and an outside plant engineer. Based out of their Philadelphia office, these specialists are available for travel to any customer location. Teltek’s technical support team provides training and engineering resources to their customers. They also provide the training for their inside sales staff. To further their commitment to technical growth, Teltek is just a few months away from unveiling the “Teltek OSP Catalog”. The Teltek Catalog will be a tremendous engineering and field asset, containing chapters of detailed technical information and product manuals to supplement their products. “This catalog is the first of its kind,” states Bob Thompson. “Teltek is committed to the success of our customers, and this catalog is another step towards making their organizations more efficient operations.”
Teltek’s recent commitment to technology is massive. Phil Seeherman, CFO comments, “Teltek, in terms of technology, has positioned itself to operate as a much larger company.” He adds, “Our executive management team has planned our technological growth to outpace our physical growth. Projects such as sales automation, customer integration and third party access through the world wide web, will continue to simplify and streamline our entire sales and distribution process.”
“Teltek will continue to be a leader in this industry; that is a fact,” Bob Thompson states. “We will continue to make the investments necessary to increase our value to all telecommunication customers. The days of merely supplying product, which is often drop shipped from a factory, rather than inventoried, are over.” He continues, “In order to compete in today’s market, a telecommunications distributor must be totally committed to all facets of the process. Our customers demand it, and they deserve it.”