With all the churn and chaos in the carrier market these days - not to mention the plethora of new technologies and services - telecom managers might wonder how to select service providers. Here are a few tried and tested recommendations:

Don't be shy about issuing a request for information (RFI). It might seem as though issuing an RFI creates extra work for your team, but it can be a critical first step. The process helps to uncover your organization's business and technical requirements, and the document provides helpful context to service providers.

Finally, responses to the RFI can spark ideas. A good RFI is as the name implies: a concise statement of your business requirements together with a request for information on how service providers would position their offerings to meet your needs.

Create a matrix RFP . Once you've received the RFI responses, you'll have a better idea which services you're looking for (IP Centrex? MPLS?). The next step is to issue an RFP for those services.

The most succinct and effective way to do that is via the "matrix RFP": List your service requirements down the side, and the geographies in which you need those services across the top. For example, you might need wireless voice and data services just in North America but broadband WAN services globally. Ask carriers to bid on any services and any geographies they feel they can serve effectively.

Don't overlook third-party or specialized carriers. These days, with Google operating a Wi-Fi network and eBay buying VoIP provider Skype , the very definition of a "service provider" is getting blurry. Although as an enterprise telecom manager, you're not likely to turn to Google or eBay for your communications requirements any time soon. It's definitely worth the effort to look at carriers that specialize in addressing your business requirements.

For example, extranet providers such as Savvis Communications specialize in providing optimized transport for financial and other applications. Providers such as Internap Network Services focus on application acceleration. And players such as Megapath provide managed access for remote offices and telecommuters. Cast the widest net possible.

Expect to educate providers . One of the ironies of the rapid pace of technical change is that companies often know more about how new technologies can meet their needs than the service providers offering them. A case in point is VoIP. Many service providers still are taking their time with rollouts, despite growing enterprise demand. If you think a particular technology might be a fit, demand it.