AnOracleWhitePaperDecember2013UtilitiesandBigData:UsingAnalyticsforIncreasedCustomerSatisfactionUtilitiesandBigData:UsingAnalyticsforIncreasedCustomerSatisfactionAccordingtoAccentureresearch,companiesacrossmanydifferentindustries“aregettingmuchbetteratunderstandingcustomersbyusinganalyticsand,moreimportant,byusingdata-driveninsightstodesignandimprovethecustomerexperience.”1Introduction“Analyticscanhelptotransformjustaboutanypartofyourbusinessororganization.Manyorganizationsstartwheretheymaketheirmoney—incustomerrelationships.”2Thehistoricutility-customerrelationshipisrapidlychanging,andcustomersatisfactionhasbecomeanincreasinglyimportantkeyperformancemetricfortoday’sutilities.Asaresult,thenew,enlightenedutilityisonethathasturnedtodata-driven,information-enableddecision-makingtobetterserveitscustomers.Theuseofanalyticsisfundamentaltoimprovingandsustainingautility’sall-importantcustomerconnection,aswellasitsbusinessperformance.Therearenumerouscustomer-focuseddriversatplay,oneofthebiggestbeingtheabilitytoprovidemorecustomized,individualservice—ineffect,amorepersonalandeffectiverelationshipwitheachoneofitscustomers.AnalyticsisFundamentaltoImprovingandSustainingUtilityBusinessPerformance:1“Anewpathtogrowth:Howtostayastepaheadofchangingconsumerbehavior,”PaulF.Nunes,SamuelYardleyandMarkSpelman,Accenture,June2013.“AnalyticsatWork:SmarterDecisions,BetterResults,”ThomasH.Davenport,JeanneG.Harris,RobertMorison,HarvardBusinessSchoolPublishingCorporation,2010.12 UtilitiesandBigData:UsingAnalyticsforIncreasedCustomerSatisfactionWhiledriverswillchangebasedoneachutility’sneeds,eachprovidesacompellingargumentforusinganalytics.Fromcustomersatisfactiondrivers—suchasinsightsintocustomerusage(individualoraggregated)andtheabilitytotargetspecificprogramstospecificcustomergroupings—toincreasedreliability,operationalefficiencyandsafetydrivers,therearenumerousreasonstoimplementanalyticsprocessesacrosstheutilityenterprise.Yet,whiletherearemanywaysinwhichnewdatacanbemoreeffectivelyusedtobetterservecustomers,arecentOraclesurveyofmorethan150NorthAmericansenior-levelelectricalutilityexecutivesfoundthatjusthalfofutilitiestodayarefullyleveragingsmartgriddatatoimprovecustomerservice(throughforecasting,demandmanagementandimprovedreliability.)3Thedatausageareasinwhichthemostactivitywasreportedwere:426%34%40%42%47%47%51%57%AlertcustomerswithusagespikesEstablishnewpricingprogramsTargetcustomersfornewprogramsUsingpredictiveanalyticstominimizeoutages/improvereliabilityExecutingdemandresponseprogramsIdentifyingtrendsandforecastingdemandImplementing/improvingenergyefficiencyprogramsProvidingusagepatternstocustomersClearly,thereisplentyofroominwhichutilities—whetherelectricity,gasorwaterandwastewater,eachwiththeirdifferentdatachallengesandcustomerneeds—cangrowtheiruseofdataanalytics.Infact,acrosstheboardutilitiesaregrapplingwitheachstepofthedatareviewandreportingcycle,particularlywhenitcomestoextractingvalue,oractionableintelligence,fromthedata.Inoursurvey,forexample,only32percentoftheelectricutilitieswetalkedtogavethemselvesan“A”gradeindeliveringusefulinformationtocustomers.5Thechallengesaremany.Abigchallengeiscultural:Whileutilitieshavetraditionallyespousedcustomer-centricgoals,historicallyithasbeenastraightforwardtransactionalrelationship,with3“UtilitiesandBigData:AcceleratingtheDrivetoValue,”OracleUtilities,July23,2013.4“UtilitiesandBigData:AcceleratingtheDrivetoValue,”OracleUtilities,July23,2013.5“UtilitiesandBigData:AcceleratingtheDrivetoValue,”OracleUtilities,July23,2013.2UtilitiesandBigData:UsingAnalyticsforIncreasedCustomerSatisfactionsegmentationbasicallylimitedtothreedifferenttypesofcustomers—residential,commercialandindustrial,andother.Additionally,“customerneed”hastraditionallybeenidentifiedverysimplyasabasicdesireforreliableelectricity,gasorwaterataffordableprices.Buttherealityis,today’scustomersarebenchmarkingtheirutility’sserviceagainstthatprovidedbyotherday-to-dayserviceproviders,andutilitiesarescramblingtocatchup.Bututilitiesareworkingtoevolvetheirrelationshipwithcustomersnotonlytoincreasesatisfactionscores.Therearerealbusinessbenefitstodoingso,aswell,includingreducedoperatingcosts,reducedcustomerchurnincompetitivemarkets,andmoredetailedinformationforratecasesandotherregulatoryrequirements.Thedataisnowavailablewithwhichtodoallofthis.Butturningrawdataintoactionableintelligencerequiresnewtools,newprocesses,andastep-changeshiftinutilities’traditionalapproachtotheircustomers.Therearemanyareasinwhichutilitiescanfocustheiranalyticeffortsinordertodevelopmoreproactive,ratherthanreactive,responsestocustomerneeds.Inthefollowingpageswehavedetailedanumberofspecificusecasesforcustomer-focusedanalyticsthatmorefullydescribetheartofthepossible.FUNCTIONALAREABUSINESSCHALLENGEOPPORTUNITYBillingExceptionsBetterprioritizeandmanageexceptionsBillingexceptionsHighbillprioritizationLowbillprioritizationBillcyclemonitoringTrackingusageinformationConsumptionreportingSettlementsreportingCallCenterSupportProvidingrelev