Utility Week

32 | JULY 2022 | UTILITY WEEK Technology Download report The quality of data defines your digital journey A new report by Utility Week, in association with Dynatrace, looks at how utilities are approaching their digital journey, and what the challenges are to adopting a fresh approach to data. W hether creating new processes or modifying existing ones, the path to digitalisation can be fraught with complexities. The stakes are particularly high for utilities because the use of digital technology to optimise or automate services can revolutionise customer experiences. That is why Utility Week, in association with Dynatrace, has just published an insight report titled How a Data-Driven Approach Can Turbo-Charge Customer Service. Engaging with consumers proactively and offering tailored services has never been more important, especially as customers face mounting economic pressures and many are experiencing financial vulnerability for the first time. "Engagement is difficult because many utilities – especially networks – have lit- tle regular interaction with customers and may not even hold basic contact details," says Marc Tritschler, utilities expert at PA Consulting. But Tritschler adds that there are a num- ber of ways utilities can use data to identify and support vulnerable customers. These include using financial data from credit ref- erence agencies. In addition, some utilities – typically water companies and energy dis- tribution companies in the same geographi- cal areas – are also sharing customer data to jointly identify and maintain their Priority Services Registers. The ability to better understand and meet customer needs through the digitalisa- tion and automation of business processes is high on the agenda for utilities. However, it is clear that individual companies are at very different stages of this journey – and knowing where to start can feel like an insur- mountable hurdle. Identifying customer needs A fundamental challenge for many water and energy companies is ensuring they have valuable and consistent data. Without the right data, it is increasingly difficult to fully understand and respond to consumer behav- iour, particularly in relation to vulnerable customers. For UK Power Networks (UKPN), tackling the issue of customers falling into fuel pov- erty is a key strategic focus area of its social sustainability programme – and accurate data processing and analysis is at the fore- front of this mission. "Around one in eight customers across our network is in or at risk of entering fuel poverty, an issue that is growing in volume daily, meaning identifying those who need extra support becomes critical to providing support – customers rarely advise their net- work about their situation upfront unless we ask," explains Ian Cameron, UKPN's head of customer services and innovation. "The current method relies on using fuel poverty statistics and retrieving data through partners of UKPN who are local trusted organisations that understand what is happening on the ground. These organi- sations help us identify customers who are struggling." However, Cameron admits that this identi- fication process is "expensive and difficult to scale to the large number of customers that are in, or expected to be in, fuel poverty". As part of its Social Connect initiative – a collaborative project with the Energy Sys- tems Catapult and UrbanTide – the company is developing a consumer-led method to detect people at risk or already experiencing fuel poverty. The project involves analysis of smart meter metadata and qualitative research with households, which aims to improve understanding of fuel poverty and the extent to which smart prepayment meter data can help to identify those in, or at risk, of fuel poverty. According to Cameron, the key lessons from the project so far highlight the delicate balance of requesting and collecting data from customers, with workshops revealing that many already feel "powerless" in the face of the cost of living crisis. "When it comes to advice and support, they wanted advice from impartial experts who they felt would have their best interests at heart while also feeling frustrated at hav- ing to provide the same information multiple times with different agencies. "This tells us that while it is important to ensure services are made available to cus- tomers, and they are services they can trust, it is equally important we are not creating an undue burden on them when it comes to requesting information from them." Harnessing digital tools As utilities explore how technology can facilitate improved customer service, there is increased focus on digital tools such as smartphone apps. Cadent launched a new app in March 2021 for its emergency engineers that allows them to tailor welfare products and services for customers who suddenly find themselves in a vulnerable situation. Developed in conjunction with engineer- ing and technology consultancy Frazer– Nash and the Energy Innovation Centre, the welfare decision tool puts all the data held within the Priority Services Register at an engineer's fingertips.

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