R M Shoemaker & Associates

What R M Shoemaker & Associates does

R M Shoemaker & Associates (RMS) is an independent, vendor-neutral telecommunications consulting and project management firm headquartered in The Villages, Florida, with operational presence in Ohio. The firm traces its consulting roots to 1971 and was formally established as an LLC under Richard Shoemaker in 1991 following a split from Progressive Communications Technologies. RMS delivers four integrated service lines — Inventory/Assessment & Strategic Technology Plan, Expense Audit/Analysis & Design, Voice Systems Selection & Implementation, and On-Going Support Services — to enterprise clients across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, government, education, non-profit, retail, distribution, and utilities.

The firm's underlying expertise covers VoIP/IPT, SIP trunking, MPLS, SD-WAN, LAN/WAN analysis, contact center, unified messaging, unified communications, and mobility solutions, anchored by traffic-engineering principles and a discovery-based assessment methodology. Proprietary capabilities include a strategic planning framework with gap/risk/impact analysis, telecom expense management practices (billing error review, plan optimization, slamming/cramming identification), vendor-independent product benchmarking against Magic Quadrant and similar research, and end-to-end RFP/RFQ preparation, bid analysis, and contract negotiation. The senior team holds certifications in traffic engineering, voice systems design and engineering, project management, TABI, and PATH credentials.

RMS generates revenue through project-based professional services fees and recurring managed-services support contracts on multi-year cadences. The go-to-market is entirely relationship-driven — referral, industry reputation, and SCTC membership visibility — with direct phone and email contact to enterprise buyers. The firm explicitly maintains total independence from voice and data vendors and providers, a positioning enforced by SCTC membership. Named enterprise clients span Caterpillar, Eaton, Diebold, Rockwell Automation, JoAnn Stores, OfficeMax, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, multiple regional hospitals, national insurance companies, banks, and government entities including Ohio counties and cities.

Name

R M Shoemaker & Associates

Legal name

R M Shoemaker & Associates, LLC

Website

https://rmstelecom.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

R M Shoemaker & Associates is an independent, vendor-neutral telecommunications consulting firm providing voice and data strategy, expense management, voice system implementation, and ongoing support services to enterprise clients across healthcare, financial, manufacturing, government, education, and other verticals in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Aurora

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Professional Consulting Services: RMS generates revenue through consulting and project management fees for telecommunications services. Engagements include inventory and assessment projects, expense audit and analysis, voice systems selection and implementation, and ongoing support services. The firm provides objective, vendor-independent consulting advice, helping clients reduce monthly communications expenses and realize cost-avoidance savings through proper systems and network configuration. Fees are quoted on a project basis rather than publicly disclosed pricing.
2. Ongoing Support Services: Recurring support services including help desk (off-site telecommunications team for problem resolution, hardware/software recommendations, and provisioning), product analysis, presentations and high-level training, and telecom expense management. These services provide ongoing client engagement and recurring revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

R M Shoemaker & Associates is an independent voice and data telecommunications consulting and project management firm that helps organizations assess, design, select, implement, and support enterprise voice and data networks. The firm delivers four core services: inventory and strategic technology planning, expense audit and network analysis, voice systems selection and implementation, and ongoing managed support services including help desk, product benchmarking, and training.

Product overview

R M Shoemaker & Associates is an independent voice and data consulting firm that has operated for over 50 years, offering a comprehensive suite of telecommunications consulting services. The company's service portfolio includes four core offerings: Inventory, Assessment & Strategic Technology Plan (technology assessment and strategic planning); Expense Audit, Analysis & Design (network optimization and expense management); Voice Systems Selection & Implementation (voice system consulting and project management); and On-Going Support Services (continuous support, help desk, and expense management). These services work together as an integrated consulting approach, where the firm assesses client needs, designs solutions, manages implementations, and provides ongoing support to protect client telecommunications investments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Inventory, Assessment & Strategic Technology Plan Comprehensive voice and data technology assessment service that inventories systems, conducts needs analysis and discovery, identifies technology risks, and develops short-term and long-term strategic technology plans with Gap, Risk, and Impact Analysis including budgetary costs, business benefits, priorities, and savings or cost-avoidance breakdowns. Targeted at organizations beginning major telecommunications modernization projects.
• Expense Audit, Analysis & Design Voice and data network analysis, optimization, and design service including expense auditing, carrier bill analysis, tariff research, network facility optimization, RFP/RFQ preparation and distribution, bid analysis, contract negotiations, and wireless/cellular expense management. Targeted at organizations seeking to reduce telecommunications expenses and optimize network configurations.
• Voice Systems Selection & Implementation Consulting service for voice system needs analysis, assessment, specification development, RFP/RFQ preparation and distribution, bid analysis, contract negotiations, and project management for IPT voice systems including premise-based and cloud-based solutions, unified messaging, unified communications, mobility, and contact center implementations. Targeted at organizations deploying or upgrading enterprise voice platforms.
• On-Going Support Services Continuous telecommunications support offering an off-site help desk as a single-call resource for problem resolution, hardware and software recommendations, and provisioning, plus product analysis and benchmarking against industry leaders, formal presentations and high-level training to executive and planning committees, and proactive telecom expense management to minimize communication costs. Targeted at organizations that have completed major voice and data projects and require ongoing advisory support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Organizations save significant dollars, typically far more than consulting fees, through industry knowledge, experience and negotiation skills
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers39 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Society of Communications Technology Consultants (SCTC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRMS is a member of the Society of Communications Technology Consultants (SCTC), an organization of the top 100+ independent consulting firms in the US with some international membership. SCTC members must maintain rigid qualifications including total independence from voice and data vendors and providers. The organization provides members training, seminars, tradeshows, and a forum for mutual support and technology assistance among consultants. SCTC evolved from a 'voice' only consultant organization founded in 1976 to now encompassing all aspects of technology and related services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Tangoe: Telecom and mobile lifecycle management and TEM provider. Comparable to RMS as both target enterprises seeking to control communications expenses and rationalize carrier relationships through expert advisory and managed services.
• Calero: Provider of telecom expense management (TEM) and managed mobility services. Comparable to RMS because both help mid-market and enterprise clients audit telecom spend, optimize carrier contracts, and manage ongoing communications costs.
• Nemertes Research: Independent technology advisory firm focused on unified communications, cloud, and networking. Comparable to RMS because both sell vendor-neutral, expert-led advisory and research to enterprise buyers evaluating telecom and UC investments.

Broad incumbents

• IDC: Global market intelligence firm covering telecom, UC, and enterprise infrastructure. Comparable to RMS because enterprises use IDC research alongside independent consultants like RMS to inform telecom strategy and vendor selection.
• SHI International: Large IT solutions and services provider offering infrastructure, UC, and managed services. Comparable to RMS because both serve enterprise customers navigating voice/data infrastructure decisions, though SHI operates at materially greater scale and breadth.
• Forrester Research: Research and advisory firm covering technology, including telecom and unified communications. Comparable as a broader incumbent serving enterprise buyers evaluating communications technology investments, overlapping with RMS's advisory footprint.
• CDW: Major IT solutions provider selling hardware, software, and services including UC and networking. Comparable as a broad incumbent whose services-led business overlaps with RMS's voice/data advisory and implementation work for enterprise buyers.
• Presidio: Large IT solutions integrator delivering network, UC, cloud, and managed services to mid-market and enterprise clients. Comparable as a broader incumbent that often bundles telecom advisory and implementation — overlapping with RMS's project management and voice system selection work.
• Gartner: Global IT research and advisory powerhouse covering telecom, UC, networking, and IT services. Comparable as a broader incumbent that enterprises use for telecom strategy and vendor selection — RMS competes in a narrower, more execution-focused niche within this same buyer journey.
• Insight Enterprises: Global IT solutions integrator offering hardware, software, and services including UC, networking, and cloud. Comparable as a broader incumbent whose services portfolio intersects with RMS's telecom consulting and implementation offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about R M Shoemaker & Associates