Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 2ND - 8TH AUGUST 2019 | 21 Operations & Assets Five steps for putting humans at the heart of your front offi ce In order to survive and grow in this market, we are seeing signi cation transformation in the role of the front o ce. Successfully navigating this transformation has a num- ber of challenges and complexities but there are several key themes emerging that all centre around the customer and employee experience. Step 1: Get the basics right Energy companies need to establish and maintain a foundational level of trust with their customers if they are to earn the right to engage across additional products and services. This means all the basics need to be in place, from being able to issue bills accurately through to a core digital customer experience. This is also critical in creating a positive environment for employ- ees to have more positive conversations that enhance the customer experience. Step 2: Shi from a linear to a multidimensional mindset Engaging the customer is no longer about single channels, linear journeys and one-dimensional interactions. Customers increasingly exist in an "always on" state, reacting to information in real-time. They also interact with organisations across multiple channels at the same time, forcing energy companies to ensure they have the technology platforms to orchestrate a more dynamic and exible experience. A key part of this orchestration is giving employees the right information at the right time to integrate into that experience. This will not only drive improved e ciency and customer experience, but also increase employee satisfaction and retention. Step 3: Nurture a culture of innovation In this new operating environment, energy companies will need to embrace innovation and embed a culture of "test, learn, fail fast, learn and scale". Many utilities have set up standalone divisions to address innovation, but they are unsuccessful in exporting this innovation across the whole organisation to create value. Fostering and successfully integrat- ing innovation at the grass roots of the organisation will begin to generate a wave of cultural transformation across the whole rm. In order to do this utilities need to create trust that allows employees to fail, encourages diƒ erent ways of working and show full commitment in delivery. Step 4: Embrace change across the operating model Energy companies must have the courage to make a step change in their operating model. This could mean having to walk away from legacy investments not delivering the capabilities required or hampering other areas of the business. For example, some utilities may be sad- dled with technology portfolios that are no longer " t for purpose". Having sunk the investment they will be loath to abandon the platform even if they are struggling to compete with more nimble players with a lower cost to serve. However, companies will need to evalu- ate clearly the bene t of walking away from those investments rather than making incre- mental improvements over time. Having the right tools that truly empower front o ce employees will be essential for creating the customer and employee experi- ence needed to transform the business model. Step 5: Partner to scale and grow Building the breadth and depth of capabili- ties required to maximise the potential from the energy transition will be challenging for a utility to do in-house. Many energy com- panies will need to partner eƒ ectively across an ecosystem of technology platforms, vendors and integrators to develop a model with the ability to gain scale and grow. Front o• ce transformation is all about blending business, user experience and technology Those with the ability to tackle each or a combination of these critical enablers will be the ones that position themselves to capitalise on the full market opportunity in front of us. Energy companies need to have a clear strategic vision that is translated into a comprehensive view of what their front o ce can and needs to do in order to deliver. All sales, marketing and service capa- bilities are increasingly underpinned by a complex operating model that needs to be integrated across all dimensions to deliver a seamless customer and employee experi- ence. Successfully transforming your front o ce is not an easy task and is not all about technology. Companies should view this transformation through multiple lenses – the business, the experience and the tech- nology – to really deliver on the business case and strategic objectives. At PwC we are seeing our "Front O ce Transformation" capabilities and "Business, eXperience and Technology" (BxT) delivery methodology making a step change in the value we create for our clients, their employees and their customers. Case Study: Shell In recent years Shell has made a number of strategic inves tments across the new energy value chain. Given the ongoing trend of electri cation, Shell continues to move further downstream and seize the opportu- nity around the customer. Acquisitions and investments to date include: ● An energy retail business, First Utility (rebranded as Shell Energy), which sup- plies electricity to residential customers; ● A home energy storage company, Sonnen, in Germany; ● An electric vehicle charge point operator, New Motion. Case Study: Lucid Originally developed and supported by Toshiba, Lucid o‡ ers a unique set of data and analytics capabilities as they aim to empower change through energy optimisation. 1 The current product o‡ ering is focused on disaggregation of smart meter data to provide real-time (10 second) customer usage insight across a range of 11 product features including activity breakdowns, consumption advice and "everything o‡ " checks. The value for both utilities and customers is providing the insight and transparency to promote energy eŽ ciency, cost management and ultimately drive customer engagement. Lucid have been building their capabilities over the past three years, and launched to the market this month, following the completion of a number of user trials. Their strategy is for signi cant expansion across other areas of the value chain. 1 Lucid is owned and managed by Intelligent Data Technologies Ltd (IDTL). IDTL are working with PwC to help energy suppliers to reduce costs and improve consumer engagement. This involves understanding and identifying potential routes to market for IDTL and the use of such insight to re ne the approach to marketing the product. For further information, visit: https://www.pwc.co.uk

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