Q. What is the Catalyst Program?
The Catalyst program is unique in that it provides a framework for vendors to work with service providers to create TM Forum standards-based solutions to both current industry problems and anticipated future industry needs. The Catalyst program emphasizes TM Forum’s commitment to move from paper to product and has evolved to become a premier demonstration pavilion within the Management World Conference. Catalyst Projects are typically 4-6 months in duration.
Q. What is a Strategic Catalyst?
A Catalyst project is deemed to be strategic if it is aligned with TM Forum's strategic plan and fits with the use case or demo scenario identified as a focal point of the Management World Americas conference. Strategic Catalysts are assigned a dedicated TM Forum Mentor to provide guidance on the areas of Frameworx to be developed or demonstrated. Strategic Catalysts will also be given presence on the main conference agenda as well as their regular Catalyst booth.
It is expected that Strategic Catalyst teams will be tightly mentored and need to be very specific with requirements, completion of a project charter and agreed set of deliverables. The requirements of the Strategic Catalysts will vary depending on the phase of the Catalyst and the direction the Strategic area is working towards. Team Leads and mentors will work closely together to define the exact set of Catalyst deliverables.
Q. When did TM Forum introduce the Catalyst Program?
The TM Forum ‘Catalyst’ program was devised in October 1997 at the first Management World event, and was designed to facilitate a different way of creating ‘standards’ rather than just pure documentation. The program "catalyzed" teams to develop solutions and a combination of pragmatism and hard deadlines allows teams to arrive at solutions that really work in a short timeframe.
Q. Where do Catalyst Projects fit into TM Forum's Collaboration program?
The TM Forum Collaboration Program consists of over 50 projects and teams that address areas from high level thought leadership to the development of frameworks, guidebooks, technical reports, interfaces, models and more. Catalysts projects are used to demonstrate real world implementations of some of the best practices and standards produced by these teams - showcasing the business benefits that can be achieved as a result of implementing standards-based solutions.
Q. What is the purpose of a Catalyst project?
The purpose of a Catalyst Project is primarily to demonstrate the business value that can be achieved from implementing standards-based solutions, to encourage implementation of standards and best practices in real products in the market. A very useful by-product of Catalyst Projects is the validation of the state of readiness of the standards material, and Catalysts frequently produce change requests for the standards based on their findings.
Q. What are the benefits of participating in a Catalyst?
Virtual R&D
- Learn how your solution works with others in the industry in a hands-on environment
- Collaborate on best practices
Rapid and Cost Effective Results
- Catalyst projects take place over a set amount of time, so results are typically guaranteed in less than 6 months
- Service providers get the results they want without the constraints of an RFP process and huge budgetary investments in their labs
- As a result, Service Providers gain invaluable knowledge as to where they should make key investments
Develop Working Relationships
- Service providers gain exposure to a variety of vendors and can directly influence product development
- Vendors get real requirements first hand from service providers
- Formal business relationships and partnerships frequently develop due to trust built up over the project lifecycle
Marketing Exposure - Substantial Management World exposure via dedicated presentation times, show guide, signage
- Extensive pre- and post-event marketing opportunities (web, Inside newsletters, press interviews, press releases, etc.)
Q. What is the sequence of events for Catalyst participation?
The general process for launching a Catalyst project begins with an open call for participation made by TM Forum to member companies. Proposals are drawn up by TM Forum members based on market needs. Service Providers are vital for defining and or validating the business requirements. Submissions are received within an agreed timeframe and reviewed by TM Forum staff and advisers. Approval to participate is granted based on the proposal meeting specific criteria including filling industry gaps and alignment to TM Forum strategic objectives. Teams involved in approved Catalysts meet face to face at TM Forum Action Week, during and after which the Catalyst team plan and implement the development, integration and testing of the solution. The results are demonstrated live during TM Forum's Management World. Final documentation is produced and is either published as standalone documentation or fed back to the appropriate collaborative teams for further development. The general timeline for the Catalyst Program shows the high level timeframe for each Catalyst season.
Q. What type of projects does the Catalyst program cover?
Catalyst project content can be quite varied, including:
- Proof-of-Concept projects that explore the feasibility of an idea or concept. Results of these types of projects will be used to determine if further study is required to develop the idea into a solution.
- Technology Exploration projects prove out technology as a basis for future solutions. These projects have an emphasis on applying new technology.
- Specification Validation projects test specifications developed by TM Forum working teams or industry bodies to see if they are implementable based on real product development and integration. The project team will report any findings back to the specification development team. Using this pragmatic approach contributes to the development and market uptake of tried & true standards.
- Supplier Proving Ground projects prove that a service provider-chosen set of vendors can work together to build an end-to-end solution to the defined problem area. These types of projects may also aim to demonstrate the interoperability of the off-the-self products.
Q. What are the outputs of the Catalyst program?
The outputs of a Catalyst project range from Whitepapers, Case Studies, Best Practices, Lessons Learned as input to other teams through to Interface Specifications, Models, Frameworks & Reference Code.
Q. What is Forumville?
Forumville is TM Forum's expo space at the Management World Conferences and is designed to be a one-stop-shop for learning about TM Forum's business and technical frameworks, best practices, guidelines and standards. Forumville includes TM Forum Theaters and multiple Catalyst project booths and includes live demonstrations, tours and presentations. Forumville allows visitors to gather information on how TM Forum standards and best practices can come alive and benefit our members' businesses.
Q. What is TM Forum Action Week?
TM Forum Action Week is the best opportunity for all approved Catalyst teams to meet face to face to begin work on demo scenarios, agree on roles and responsibilities and meet with TM Forum’s Catalyst Program Management, Logistics and Marketing staff who will provide additional information. Typically, it is scheduled four months in advance of the Catalyst Project showcase at the Management World event.
Q. What level of resource commitment is required to participate?
The actual commitment required from a participant in a specific project varies and is unique to each project. Commitment is agreed upon by all of the project members. However, in addition to fulfilling technical duties (definition, design, implementation and testing), participants are expected to be involved in the team marketing and showcase efforts and may be asked to support one of the key project roles. Participating companies must be TM Forum members in good standing with payment of membership dues.
The project must have resources to fill the mandatory roles of:
- Team Leader, responsible for project management
- Service Provider Champion, responsible for providing requirements and monitoring to ensure the requirements are filled
- Logistics Manager, responsible for integration & staging testing, and ensuring the equipment is shipped to the location on time
- Marketing Leader, responsible for creating & executing the team’s marketing communication plan, creating the team’s datasheet and press releases, and making sure the team takes advantage of the marketing opportunities offered by the TM Forum
- Document Editor, responsible for the creation and content of the Catalyst documentation.
Q. What are the requirements for a Catalyst team?
A Catalyst team consists of at minimum, four industry vendors and a single industry champion. The most successful Catalyst projects are those with a number of committed champions clearly driving the requirements and four or more vendors.
Q. What is the role of the Catalyst Champion?
The Catalyst Champion is usually the role of a service provider, MSO, defense agency, enterprise or other end user organization. The champion leads the project team to articulate the burning issue, provide input to project requirements and define how a solution needs to be developed in the real world. Many Catalyst projects are initiated by their project champion.
Q. What is the role of the Catalyst Participant?
Within Catalyst teams, there are a number of roles that need to be filled, e.g. marketing lead, document editor, systems architect and so on. A project lead will be identified to pull the project together, ensure deadlines are met and that the team delivers on time and that all necessary elements are covered.
Q. What are the specific requirements for a Catalyst participant?
A Catalyst participant must be a TM Forum member in good standing. This means that membership fees must be up to date at the time of application's submission and at the time of the show exhibit. In addition, all outstanding invoices must be fully paid or participation may be denied.
Q. What is the role of a TM Forum Catalyst mentor?
Each Strategic Catalyst is assigned a dedicated TM Forum staff Mentor who helps the Catalyst in an advisory capacity to ensure they stay on track, achieve their goals and contribute the most back to TM Forum's suite of Best Practices and Guidelines. The Mentor ensures that functionally the Catalyst does what it set out to achieve. Mentor duties include:
- Review and feedback on Catalyst submissions
- Advice as needed and provision of suggestions or ideas for improving the Catalyst
- Monitoring of relevant Community activity to keep abreast of the team’s progress.
- Review team presentations, marketing collateral, signs, etc. for Forumville
- Review of team's outputs to ensure they are of a sufficient quality & merit being regarded as a contribution.
- Raise cross-project linkages to relevant parties where appropriate.
Q. Where can Catalyst teams promote their projects to the industry?
Catalyst Projects and participating teams are listed on the TM Forum Catalyst internet web page. Once a Catalyst team provides more details on the project, the information is made available on their own specific catalyst web page.
Q. What is the investment fee for Catalyst participation?
For Management World 2012 in Dublin, Ireland, Catalyst Demonstration participant companies pay €4,500 (Euros) plus Value Added Tax for each Demonstration team they participate in.
Catalyst Service Provider Champions do not pay for their championing of Catalyst projects.
Q. Is there a volume discount where a vendor participates on multiple Catalysts?
Where a vendor participates on multiple Catalysts, a 50% discount is given for the 2nd and subsequent Catalysts.
Q. What does a Catalyst team receive for their investment?
Each Participant Company will receive the following for each team they participate in:
- Two (2) complimentary Conference Passes are provided to invite their clients and prospects.
- Two (2) complimentary Exhibitor Passes per participating company, will be provided for company representatives to man their exhibit space. Daily lunch is included with this pass. Additional Conference or Exhibitor passes can be purchased for other staff members via the Management World Website.
- Two (2) Expo Plus passes will be provided for issue to clients and prospects only. These passes cannot to be used for internal staff.
- Each Demonstration team will receive space within TM Forum’s Forumville area in which to present their demonstration. In order to achieve consistency in terms of the overall look and feel as well as messaging, this space will be under the design control of TM Forum’s Marketing Department. Each demo space will be equipped with appropriate furnishings, audio-visual equipment, Internet access and room for promotional literature and standardized signage.
Q. What are other costs associated with project participation?
The guiding principle with regard to catalyst project costs is that each member company bears its own costs. Each company’s “Own Costs” may include:
- Equipment costs (shipping, testing, integration and demonstrating)
- Human resources (marketing, development, implementation, testing, demonstrating, project management, logistics)
- Transportation and hotel costs
- Meeting participation costs (TM Forum Action Weeks, as well as other team meetings as agreed to by the team.)
- Marketing costs incurred promoting individual company’s participation in the Showcase.
The team is responsible for any additional marketing outside of what TM Forum provides including team shirts, datasheet printing or giveaways. Rather than divide the amount between companies, many teams decide to ask for participants to accept responsibility for specific items. For example, one company may pay the cost of developing graphics and printing cost for the team poster. Another might choose to bear the cost of team shirts, and so on.
Q. Who is responsible for providing resources to the Catalyst teams?
The teams participating on a Catalyst project provide resources from their own companies to work through the necessary project tasks, preparation of Catalyst demos and production of deliverables. TM Forum staff will provide support in the form of marketing, technical and project management guidance, project mentorship and are available to answer any additional questions raised.
Q. What are the differences between the various type of conference passes?
The different types of Management World registration passes are outlined in the Pass Comparison Chart.
Q. Is there a formal agreement for Catalyst participation?
A formal Catalyst Agreement (known as the Demonstration Program Participant Agreement) is drawn up and must be signed and returned by no later than 30 days from initial receipt of Agreement. A Catalyst participant that wishes to demonstrate a product or solution component and get public acknowledgement in the Management World marketing material must make a legal commitment by contract with the TM Forum.
The Catalyst Champion Contract is sent to Service Providers (including application service provider, traditional wire line or wireless operator, internet service provider, cable MSO, enterprise and/or government service provider) that commit to providing the business requirements, validating the work of the solution providers, and be publicly acknowledged in the Management World marketing material.
Q. What is the Agreement Payment schedule?
Catalyst Participants will receive an invoice for their Catalyst Demonstration participation within 5 business days of receipt of the signed Agreement. Participation fees are due in full no later than 30 days from submission of invoice.
Q. Is there a way to acknowledge non-contracted teams or individual contributors to the project?
Yes, but limitations apply to non-contracted contributors. They may not present or otherwise participate in the actual demonstration on the show floor. The team may verbally recognize any person, team, or organization that contributed to the overall success of the Catalyst project during the live demonstration.
Non-contracted contributors may not have their company names and logos be displayed or included in the key-participant listing on datasheets, TM Forum signage, web page or event marketing material. A special section of the datasheet can be used to publicly express gratitude for their contribution. Two common scenarios are:
- Collaboration with another industry body, without a formal liaison agreement in place: The datasheet and poster displayed in the show floor may state something like, "In collaboration with Broadband Forum".
- Hardware or software donated by non-participating company: "The World Ordering Catalyst team would like to thank Sun for the donation of vital hardware and operating software to the project."
Q. How do Catalyst teams communicate?
A. It is a requirement of the Catalyst program that all team communication, team discussions and any project work be performed in the online TM Forum community collaboration workspace, in order to comply with the TM Forum's Collaboration Operating Guide, IPR Policy and Anti-trust Guidelines. All Catalyst teams are required to sign up for their specific Catalyst online community. Discussions can be initiated using the “Discussions” area. Once a discussion thread has been started, replies can be via email. All team meetings need to be set up through the online community calendar. There is also a cross-community facility to allow posting to multiple communities at once. TM Forum can provide training on the Catalyst community environment as needed.
Q. Where can I get more information about the Selection Process?
A. Checkout the Catalyst Selection Process Guidelines for more guidance on Catalyst proposal submission and project selection.
Q. How can I get involved? - Visit a Catalyst Showcase demonstration at Management World.
- Meet the team and team leader and discuss the possible extension of the project.
- Attend a TM Forum Open Call for Participation session presented by a catalyst team.
- Visit the TM Forum’s web site for more information about Catalyst projects.
- Check for Open Calls for Participation for new project proposals.
- Contact Sunil Vaswani
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