Telecommunications is simply everywhere. We use some facet of it every day. When you pick up the phone to call home for more money, that's telecommunications. When you are watching your favorite music video on cable TV, you're rocking via telecommunications. When you research that term paper this fall on the Internet, the most explosive communication vehicle in the industry, you are experiencing the electronic superhighway that connects computers around the world.

Telecommunications includes any medium used to transmit or receive voice, data, or video signals and information. Telephones, computers, mobile phones, pagers, televisions, and radios are the most recognizable instruments used to receive these signals that more complicated technology creates, interprets, and delivers. Behind the instruments most visible to the public are telecommunications companies switching centers to which most homes in America connect via phone lines. Local Exchange Carriers (LEC) equipment provides dial tone and dialed digit interpretation, as well as call processing features and the paths over which voice, data, and even video travel.

Beyond certain Federal Communications Commission (FCC)-drawn boundaries, Interexchange Carriers (IXC) pick up the calls and provide the switching functionality and talking paths to connect the local caller to the desired party miles away. It should be noted that the lines between the local and long distance carriers are quickly blurring as the Telecommunications Act of 1996 implementation moves toward the day when full competition in the industry allows each to get into the other's business. The desired result is lower consumer prices and more communications choices.

The Internet, which is a worldwide network of communication paths linking computers from the home to the business world to the schools, was expected to generate sales from $12 to $18 billion during 1999. Not only is information plentiful and easily accessed on the Internet, but electronic commerce is expected to dominate the 21^st century. Internet Service Providers (ISP) own and maintain the massive servers that house all of this information.

Wireless communications companies are also telecommunications service providers. According to the FCC, over 60 million people use the various types of mobile phones daily. Transmission towers and cell sites enable signals traveling over airwaves, called spectrum, to be received, interpreted, and transmitted. Personal Communications Service (PCS) is the latest spectrum-based technology, utilizing digital transmission.

Let's not forget the broadcast media - TV and radio. This form of telecommunications utilizes broadcast towers and satellites, which transmit programming from station studios and production centers over the airwaves and into our homes.

Who are the major players in this field that grows exponentially? After MCI challenged the AT&T monopoly in court in 1984, the U.S. Justice Department mandated a settlement that made local telephone service the province of the Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs), including Bell Atlantic, Southwestern Bell, Ameritech, Pacific Telesis, Bell South, US West, and Southern New England Telephone. GTE and other non-RBOC LECs are called Independent Local Exchange Companies (ILEC). Long distance service was relegated to AT&T, but that market was opened to competitors like MCI. Today, the long distance market has hundreds of carriers, including Sprint, Williams, and more. Likewise, Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLEC) like COVAD, Teligent, Qwest Communications, and others have challenged the RBOCs stronghold.

Most important to understand is that many of the above named companies are involved in mergers that have or will probably be consummated soon. They are preparing for full competition by incorporating into their corporate profile other entities whose expertise and footprint in the marketplace enable them to reach a customer base quicker and more effectively than they could if they attempted to create such an entity from scratch. SBC absorbed Pacific Telesis and is awaiting FCC approval to merge yet again with Ameritech. Bell Atlantic is close to completing its deal to merge with GTE. One of the largest recent mergers was spearheaded by MCI when it merged with WorldComm, Metropolitan Fiber Systems (MFS), and Brooks Telecom. The conglomerate is now called MCI WorldComm. What each seeks is to become the one-stop provider of choice for business and residential customers, serving all their telecommunications needs.

As telecommunications service providers race to be the first and the best, they rely on the industry manufacturers to deliver state-of-the-art call processing equipment. The major manufacturers include Lucent, Nortel, Siemens, Ericsson, and Fujitsu to name a few of the switching manufacturers. Transport manufacturers, who make the equipment that connects local, long distance, and other telecommunications service providers' equipment together, include Fujitsu, NEC, Lucent, Alcatel, and others. Still more manufacturers of wireless phones and other equipment include PairGain, Motorola, and Nokia. There are even more satellite and cable television equipment manufacturers and service providers, including Iriduim LLC and Globalstar.

Computer technology will always be the anchor for the telecommunications industry. Hardware and software manufacturers like Cisco and Microsoft continue to dominate the computer industry. Innovations from these and other such providers drive the products and services offered by the service carriers referenced above. A table shown in this article illustrates the variety of telecommunications companies, their sizes, and growth.

Even though African Americans comprise less than one percent of the telecommunications industry's business owners, there are some who have broken the code to succeed, in spite of the traditional barriers that plague so many of our entrepreneurs. Mike Roberts, president and CEO of Roberts Wireless, Inc., saw and seized the opportunities of this lucrative industry. After successfully bidding for spectrum to become a PCS provider, Roberts quickly learned there was a cheaper and less risky route to entry into the wireless world. Roberts Wireless, Inc. has an affiliate agreement with Sprint PCS and provides the service in most areas of Missouri, excluding the Kansas City and St. Louis areas. "We are using an African-American owned firm to do our cell site engineering," says Roberts, taking pride in the ability of his and his brother, Steven's, company to circulate huge dollars among other African Americans. Mike and Steven Roberts received the 1999 Granville T. Woods Award for Outstanding CEO from the National Association of Black Telecommunications Professionals, Inc. (NABTP) during its April convention in Washington, D.C.

Another success story is former U.S. West Network Operations Vice President Bob Knowling. He left this high-ranking position to lead a CLEC in its fight to compete with incumbent LECs. Knowling is now president and CEO of COVAD, which is collocating its equipment in incumbent LEC switch rooms all across America. "I like the challenge," he said, as he fired up the audience at a recent NABTP convention. He advised those in attendance to learn all they can from the company positions they now hold, taking advantage of relationships with mentors to position oneself to accept bigger challenges down the road.

What are the trends in the industry? How can you get into this fast-growing industry that has generated over 200,000 jobs since 1993 and has exported in excess of $25 billion (Commerce Department statistics)? High-speed data will dominate communications in a few years. The ability to transmit voice over the same switching equipment and transport or talking paths used for high-speed data is considered a key innovation in telecommunications. The service providers and equipment manufacturers need talented professionals who are not only technically savvy, but whose interpersonal skills are also exceptional. Employees must be able to communicate effectively with customers to discern what it is they need, and then translate those needs into a revenue-producing product or service. Salaries for entry-level positions in telecommunications vary widely, depending on educational achievement and industry experience. However, it is safe to say that a college graduate, majoring in computer science, engineering, telecommunications management, or other technical field can command from the upper $40s to as much as $70,000 per year, plus signing bonus and benefits. Once you have worked in the industry for a few years, the opportunity for you to strike out on your own as a consultant or business owner is certainly within your reach.

To educate yourself about this industry, the technology, and its potential employers, consult trade publications like Telephony (www.internettelephony.com), and Utility Business (www.utilitybusiness.com). Read the companies' annual reports to learn their mission and the products and services they offer, which will allow you to match your skills and developmental desires to the company's plans. While in college, take courses in computer science and engineering, which will prepare you well for the telecommunications industry. Seek the institutions with these curricula. Above all, network with telecommunications professionals and entrepreneurs, who can share a wealth of experience and insight into the industry culture, technological trends, and opportunities. The National Association of Black Telecommunications Professionals, Inc. (NABTP) is a good starting point. The NABTP Web site address is www.nabtp.org, or you can call NABTP at 1-800-946-6228. Other helpful Web sites are www.fcc.gov, the Federal Communications Commission Web site, and www.ntia.doc.gov, the National Telecommunications Information and Administration agency site.