2007 saw major changes as the ITU has handed the reins over to a new Secretary General and the Telecom Market has been replaced by the MICE Market (Media, Internet, Communications and Entertainment). Metro Ethernet has arrived and communities Globally are embracing the "without boarders" vision and making it a reality.

The Telecom revolution did happen, we saw it before our eyes in the excitement of YouTube, Facebook, Skype and other tremendous innovations!. In many ways this revolution has been good and changed the global way of working forever. The revolution of how people perceive, receive and transmit information - be it by Voice, Fax, Mobile, Data or the Internet has changed our lives forever. Now we think in terms of VoIP, e-commerce and media-commerce rather than paper transactions.

We demand instant and open communication wherever we are in the world, - and thanks to the new technology it is doing so at a lower cost than ever before. The ITU is leading the way and LEA Consultants are proud to be a part of the 15 Year Vision launched in Hong Kong World Telecom. Jeff Pulver and the team at VON are paving the way in new technology and new ideas.

MICE and IMS vendors are innovative in the way they are addressing the new markets with vision and ideas. FemtoCells are being seen as the new technology freeing us from wires and tethered services.

Content and Media, once dismissed by Telecom Operators in the same manner as software was dismissed by IBM, is now considered the new battleground for mobile. Adult media, games, videos, iPOD broadcasts , music and news are all considered "revenue earners" as 3G seeks the next "killer application". The “Killer App” has turned out to be “APPS” itself – with the new applications market being led by iPhone and other companies such as Nokia catching up fast.

How new users such as YouTube and Skype Video will change the panorama of Telecoms has yet to be defined; but it will for sure. Over the last 5 years we have seen some of the biggest names in Telecoms struggling to survive - and in 2006 one of the Giants "Marconi" failed and was been absorbed into another venture. CIENA have now completed the takeover of parts of Nortel – and Motorola seeks new ideas. What has emerged as an exciting new Landscape of small, fast growing, exciting innovative companies which has heralded new applications and technology never envisioned by the most accurate of soothsayers.

It is now the age of Entrepreneurs who are embracing change and enabling it to go further, faster and with more dynamism than ever before.

The stock market and Venture Capitalists demanding a strong return on investment (ROI) and, as such, we're seeing a strategic 'shift' from buying market share to focusing on delivering profitable services and content by means of new technology such as VoIP The new telecoms era with MICE, Wireless, AIN, Bluetooth, OSS VoIP and Femtocell Technology is becoming stronger by the day as all of these technologies contribute to enhance the bottom line.

The launch of iPhone in November 2007 with AT&T in the States and 02/ T-Mobile in Europe has opened up the integration between wireless and PSTN and taken customer experience to a whole new level. We are on the cusp of a new generation of communication, thinking and implementation. Companies such as Vonage, Skype and The Cloud are trailblazing new standards of service, flexibility and fulfilling customer needs as never before.

Companies are now being driven on sound fiscal principles - which is a good thing, but a focus should also be on training, research and development. The trend now is to automate not mechanise because it is felt that this investment will result in direct line profits. It must always be remembered that there has to be investment into Human Capital Management and skills training - for where else can the leaders and engineers of tomorrow come from? To neglect this is short term thinking at its finest, in the medium term it threatens our very industry.

At LEA Consultants, we too have been changing. In November 2008 our Global Contact Management Systems - EnGuage - was launched together with single numbers to contact our teams in Asia, Middle East, USA and the EU- and more changes planned for next year 2010 as our Middle East Office opens in Saudi Arabia.

The provision of high quality, highly reliable and profitable services supported by an elite workforce gives winning companies the edge - and that's we fit in. LEA Consultants are the only true Global Telecoms Recruiter for the Global Telecoms Market.