Intelligent use and automated processing of data has a huge implication of working towards a zero-carbon future.
Data-driven intelligent management of both the retail and DSO business requires, first of all, a move from systems of record (basically, logging what happened or is happening) to systems of insight (being able to predict what will happen in future). To be truly data-driven, such a setup will need Artificial Intelligence and capable analytics to crunch the data collected and extract patterns from it that form the basis of forecasts.
Investment in new Information Technology and Operational Technology (IT & OT) is the primary way energy companies are currently adapting to market changes, as the results of Tietoevry’s Nordic Energy Industry Study 2022 highlight.
The availability of real-time data is important for both retail and distribution companies. Retailers will benefit from constantly up-to-date customer and consumption data, which also allows creating new products, pricing models, services and thus, revenue streams.
Available data will also enhance the customer experience from the consumer point of view, empowering consumers to follow and optimize their consumption. They can participate in the energy market by themselves or as a part of an energy community if they have their own micro-production, such as solar panels, and intelligently manage the operation and maintenance of their equipment. Retailers can of course offer this as a service.
Moreover, the development of energy datahubs, currently in operation in Norway, Denmark, and Finland, enables building service and product-related ecosystems around customer and consumption data collected into one centralized place.
Next-generation Customer Information Systems (CIS) sit in the middle of this new way of working. They are streamlined, modularized and cloud native capabilities managing the customer journey and, importantly, invoicing, smoothly and in real time. CIS enables customer empowerment, better self-services, improved service desk operations, and thereby an enhanced customer experience.
Increasing amounts of real-time data and simultaneously demand to lower TCO require new capabilities from the technology. Old legacy on-premise and private cloud CIS solutions don’t fulfil these new requirements any more. In order to increase scalability and performance while lowering costs, new cloud native and multitenant technologies are needed.
Cyber security aspects are of the utmost importance in today’s situation. With new technologies and regular updates in multitenant environments, security in new CIS solutions will be brought to a new level meeting the highest industry standards.
Moving away from customer-specific project implementations to products offered from public cloud, the time and cost of the implementation is decreased significantly. Integrations between other cloud native offerings start to be more plug-and-play type of work instead of old error hunting activities that take months.
Support and maintenance of multitenant CIS solution in a cloud environment will decrease costs. Version upgrades are more regular and will be available to all customers simultaneously.
For further information, please contact me, visit at our website and download your free copy of the Nordic Energy Industry Study 2022.