{"id":1926,"date":"2018-12-14T15:43:00","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T15:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digiterrebestg.wpengine.com\/?p=1926"},"modified":"2024-05-30T12:49:12","modified_gmt":"2024-05-30T12:49:12","slug":"digital-transformation-for-energy-companies-starts-with-the-customer-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.digiterre.com\/us\/2018\/12\/14\/digital-transformation-for-energy-companies-starts-with-the-customer-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Digital transformation for energy companies starts with the customer journey"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Digital transformation for energy companies starts with the customer journey<\/h1>\n\n

A survey by the International Energy Agency, the IEA, amongst European energy companies\u2019 last year, revealed that investment in digital transformation to date had been largely hardware-based, focusing on smart meters and electric vehicle charging.<\/p>\n \n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

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Investment in software for wider transformation however, seemed to be lagging behind hardware with no planned increase in budgets. Similarly, with respect to new software solutions like artificial intelligence (or AI), the energy sector came in last compared to most other industrial sectors. Nevertheless, there are many solutions based on AI, machine learning or other digital approaches now available to the energy sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent KPMG report showed that to address the rapidly emerging trend of digital disruption, 28 percent of CIOs in the UK energy sector are starting to respond by contracting out assistance and 27 percent are partnering, whilst  23 percent are retraining their people and 15 percent are hiring. At Digiterre too, we\u2019ve noticed a massive change in the adoption of transformative software solutions at energy companies over the last 12 months or so. Things are definitely changing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To be really successful, digital transformation should be designed around an energy company\u2019s existing strengths, including their product portfolios, their people and technical competencies and especially, their customers\u2019 journeys. Projects and partnerships must also be designed with the connected goals of digitizing core processes as well as upgrading IT platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital transformations also bring about a shift in culture and attitudes. The business horizons for utilities have typically been relatively long in duration. The energy industry is traditionally based on the use of very expensive assets requiring extensive investment and incorporating regulatory requirements.  With the rise of distributed generation, alternative energy sources such as green energy and the data-driven customer interface, energy companies are now entering an information-based digital economy. Success for them depends on having new capabilities, especially the rapid scaling of innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So key success factors for these companies immersing themselves in digitization include the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n