NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for link to download the presentation slides.

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The Fall 2020 E Source Account Management Leadership Council is going virtual. While we’re sad we won’t be able to see you in person, we’re excited to still bring together utility account management leaders across the US and Canada. We’ve spread the leadership council across three days and three sessions. We look forward to hearing from our members about how your role has evolved this year and what challenges you anticipate addressing in the future. E Source will be sharing insights related to business-customer-centric strategies and virtual account management procedures to ensure that you consider all options when evaluating how best to serve your customers in a rapidly changing industry.

Members exchange

Monday, September 14, 2020 | 3:00 to 5:30 p.m. ET

A favorite of our regular leadership council attendees, this year’s session will allow us to share our stories with one another and learn about trends and best practices from across the industry. We’d like to invite you to a 2.5 hour session of open discussion among other E Source Account Management Service members. You’ll meet peers from across the industry and discuss your top challenges and successes for the year. Please come prepared to share your individual perspective on the high-priority items related to business customer engagement at your organization. We want to hear about where you’ve seen success and what your priorities are going forward.

Moderators:

Devin Fink, Manager, Customer Engagement Solutions, E Source

Chad Garrett, Managing Director, Consulting and Advisory Services, E Source

Increasing business customer centricity

Tuesday, September 15, 2020 | 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. ET

Increasingly, utilities aspire to be more customer-centric. But what does that really mean for our relationship with business customers? How can we align the organization—from executives to account managers to business customer service reps—with our customers’ needs and priorities? What can we learn from residential customer experience while also acknowledging the unique circumstances of business customers? In this session we’ll explore how to increase connection, commitment, and customer-centricity for your business customers.

Speaker:

Eryc Eyl, Senior Solution Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Virtual key account management

Wednesday, September 16, 2020 | 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. ET

This year has been like no other when it comes to navigating through the details and intricacies of relationship management with your business customers. Join us to discuss various aspects of changes in account management in our new environment. In this session we’ll discuss how utilities are adjusting leadership strategies, providing value to customers, and modifying success metrics and staff responsibilities. At the end of this session, you’ll have some new ideas for how to make internal adjustments that enable your team to quickly adapt to the virtual emphasis on your utility-customer relationships.

Moderators:

Devin Fink, Manager, Customer Engagement Solutions, E Source

Chad Garrett, Managing Director, Consulting and Advisory Services, E Source

Speakers:

Randy Jerome, Manager, Key Accounts, We Energies and WPS

Carla Nelson, Engineering Supervisor, Energy Services Engineering, Nashville Electric Service

Tony Richman, Manager, Energy Services Engineering, Nashville Electric Service

Ron Johnston, Manager, Business Energy Accounts, DTE Energy

Who can attend:

Members of the E Source Account Management Service who occupy a leadership role at their utility.

For more information about attending this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for link to download the presentation slides.

Download web conference slides (PDF)

The third annual E Source Market Research Leadership Council is going virtual. While we’re sad we won’t be able to see you in person, we’re excited to still bring together utility market researcher leaders across the US and Canada. We’ve spread the leadership council across three days and three sessions.

We’ll kick off the event with a discussion of market research hot topics, followed by a presentation on the different approaches to segmentation and microtargeting. In our last session we’ll discuss how COVID-19 has changed the market research landscape at utilities. We’ll also learn about new methodologies, metrics, and data collection strategies that have come about.

We expect participants to have their cameras on during the event and to come ready to participate. See below for the event agenda and registration details.

Market research hot topics: Analysis paralysis and tools and metrics used by market researchers

Monday, September 14, 2020 | 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. ET

Market researchers often find themselves in an analysis paralysis because of the large amount of data they collect and store. But often there’s no centralized location or strategy for storing and analyzing this data, and there are countless tools to use. We’ll lead a discussion on how your utility handles these topics and how to get stakeholder buy-in to improve the process.

New techniques for microtargeting your customers and getting the most use of big data

Tuesday, September 15, 2020 | 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. ET

We’ll share examples of how utilities have used microtargeting techniques to design the right customer solutions, and which channels and messages they use to optimize campaigns. We’ll also touch on how utilities are combining data sources to drive smart decisions.

The market research landscape in the wake of COVID-19

Wednesday, September 16, 2020 | 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. ET

How has the market research landscape changed since the start of the pandemic and what lies ahead for the future? We’ll lead a discussion on what you’ve experienced and how you’re proving the importance of hearing from customers to upper management. We’ll also discuss what market research techniques are leading the way, so you can collect customer insights safely and without coming across as tone-deaf.

Moderators:

Rachel Cooper, Director, Market Research Services, E Source

Heather Hilgenkamp, Manager, Market Research Services, E Source

Dan Doutre, Senior Analyst II, Market Research Services, E Source

Laura Ruff Agard, Senior Analyst I, Market Research Services, E Source

Cory Coggins, Analyst II, Market Research Services, E Source

Sarah Baker, Analyst I, Market Research Services, E Source

Speakers:

David Alan Slemons, Sr. Program Manager, Commercial Energy Solutions, Tennessee Valley Authority

Nathan Hale Mathis, Sr. Program Manager, Commercial Energy Solutions, Tennessee Valley Authority

Who should attend:

Any E Source utility member who works with market research.

For more information about attending this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

Download web conference slides (PDF)

In this web conference we celebrate the winners of the 2020 E Source Achievements in Customer and Employee Experience awards. The winners showcased their great work in improving the customer experience (CX) or employee experience at their utilities. You’ll have the opportunity to learn how each winning utility implemented its projects and ask questions along the way. See firsthand how your peers are delivering exceptional service to their customers and creating a workplace where employees are invested in CX.

We’ll highlight the selected winners in two categories:

Achievements in Customer Experience. This celebrates excellence in utility CX management, highlighting tactics and excellence that enhance the customer experience across key journeys such as billing, payment, web and mobile experience, start and stop service, new construction, community interaction and services, and outage management and communications. Our winners in this category include:

1. Con Edison for its customer outage and analytics dashboard project
2. American Electric Power (AEP) for its two-way payment arrangement text message project

Achievements in Employee Experience. This celebrates innovative methods in employee engagement that result in a favorable CX. This award highlights utilities that are working hard to engage, enable, educate, empower, and reward employees to provide exceptional customer service. Our winners in this category include:

1. Hydro-Québec for its contact center customer experience evolution program
2. NIPSCO for its Your Energy, Your Future employee communications plan

A look at the winning projects

Con Edison’s customer outage and analytics dashboard. To better understand the outage experience and identify at-risk customers, Con Edison used text analytics to analyze and monitor customer responses to its automated outage text messages. This allowed the utility to gather real-time voice-of-the-customer feedback, understand customer sentiment during the outage, and respond proactively to emergencies. Con Edison was also able to use the analytics to improve its internal outage processes.

AEP’s two-way text payment arrangements. COVID-19 has put many customers into financial difficulties. AEP wanted to provide information about payment assistance and payment arrangements in a fast, friendly, and convenient manner. Using two-way text messaging, the utility can contact customers when they miss a payment and offer them the ability to learn more about payment plans. Customers who respond can receive details about payment plans they qualify for and enroll directly in the plan, all via text message. The project started as a pilot and has been successful enough to move to full-scale implementation.

Hydro-Québec’s contact center customer experience evolution program. Hydro-Québec sought to empower and engage its contact center employees by inviting them to design the utility’s new contact structure and agent coaching and training program. Hydro-Québec wanted to “simplify, humanize, and redesign our approach to all types of customer contacts” and relied on the expertise of its agents to evolve its practices.

Focusing on first-contact resolution and soft skills, agents, managers, and quality-assurance agents participated in a series of interactive workshops to design and test ways to improve customer interactions. The utility moved away from focusing on call-handling times and has developed coaching, training, and contact center flows that focus on customer needs and the employee experience. The program has seen positive employee reactions, improved quality assessment performance, and increases in customer satisfaction.

NIPSCO’s Your Energy, Your Future employee communications plan. Your Energy, Your Future is the utility’s transition to more-sustainable generation, which will reduce carbon emissions by more than 90% by 2028. This shift caused employee concerns, especially among those working at generating stations. To form an internal communication plan, NIPSCO relied on the voice of the employee, conducting pulse surveys to identify top concerns. Using this employee feedback, NIPSCO developed a plan that has increased employee knowledge of the transition and NIPSCO has continued to provide information virtually during COVID-19. The communications plan has increased employee knowledge of the transition and NIPSCO has continued to provide information virtually during COVID-19.

Speakers:

Jodi Cannon, Director Customer Insights and Strategy, AEP

Trish Tierney, Customer Channel Product Manager, AEP

Di Soares, Senior Specialist, Outage Communications Journey Mapping, Con Edison

Vinny Lou, Project Specialist, Outage Communications Journey Mapping Lead, Con Edison

David Paquin, Team Manager, Customer Approach Evolution, Hydro- Québec

Jonathan Beaulieu, Manager, Operational Evolution, Hydro-Québec

Tara McElmurry, Communications Lead, NIPSCO

Moderators:

Aleana Reeves, Vice President, Customer Engagement Solutions, E Source

Lisa Schulte, Senior Analyst, Customer Engagement Solutions, E Source

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

Download web conference slides (PDF)

For the 12th year in a row, E Source is recognizing and rewarding creative excellence in utility advertising with the annual E Source Utility Ad Awards Contest. This year, we were looking for successful and creative utility ad campaigns with proven results, such as increased brand awareness, website traffic, and program participation. We opened the contest to any electric, gas, or water utility in the US or Canada.

Moderator:

Jessica Bailis, Senior Analyst, Customer Engagement Solutions, E Source

If you’re a member of the E Source Business Marketing, Residential Marketing, or Corporate Communications Service, you can use the E Source Energy AdVision tool to access utility ad campaigns related to your service topics. To set up a demo of Energy AdVision or to learn more about our marketing and communications services, contact us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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Speakers:

Wayne Greenberg, CEO, E Source

Aleana Reeves, Vice President, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Kate Merson, Senior Solution Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Jeffrey Daigle, Managing Director, Consulting and Advisory Services, E Source

Courtney Welch, Solution Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Eryc Eyl, Senior Solution Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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Due to increased pressure on utilities to cost-effectively deliver energy savings, there has been a recent proliferation of midstream programs. With COVID-19, utilities have been forced to consider a deeper bench of solutions to respond to changing markets, shifting legislation, and evolving customer needs. In this web conference, you’ll hear from Energy Solutions, a midstream and upstream program implementer with 25 years of experience. Energy Solutions will discuss how to adapt cornerstone midstream and upstream programs to an innovative express model and how utilities can capture savings and remain adaptive, agile, and impactful in this quickly changing landscape.

The E Source solution showcase series provides vendors with an opportunity to share innovative solutions to challenges utilities are facing. Through our web conferences, we’ll bring together utilities and their partners to highlight their joint successes and lessons learned. If you’re a vendor interested in participating in a future web conference please email us.

Moderator:

Jordan Tobey, Engagement Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Speakers:

Brysen Daughton, Analyst, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

LeAndra Archuleta, Director, Products & Strategy, Energy Solutions

Corissa Ng, Trade Ally Manager II, Energy Solutions

Rich Boehler, Director, Demand Side Management, Energy Solutions

Questions about this event? Email us.

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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E Source recently created a five-year electric vehicle (EV) marketing and education road map for the Colorado Energy Office. Our research highlights specific customer segments that are more ready than others to adopt EVs. It also illuminates misconceptions consumers have about charging that keeps them from buying EVs.

In this webinar we’ll share our insights that will help the state meet its ambitious goal of 1 million EVs on the road by 2030.

Speakers:

Will Toor, Executive Director, Colorado Energy Office

Bill LeBlanc, Chief Instigation Agent, E Source

Ryan Odell, Lead Analyst, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Rachel Cooper, Director, Market Research, E Source

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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Home energy report (HER) programs have been a consistent source of savings for residential utility portfolios. But can they still provide savings even though they’ve been in the field for 5, 10, or even 15 years? During this exchange, we’ll share insights from our research on behavioral programs across the US and Canada. You’ll hear from program managers with experience running successful long-term HER programs, and you can discuss with your peers your own questions and challenges around keeping HER programs cost-effective. Be ready to share your own questions and experiences.

Moderators:

Beth Fitzjarrald, Senior Research Manager, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Clare Valentine, Senior Analyst, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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This virtual meeting of the DER Executive Council offers a focused, vendor-free space for you to have meaningful conversations with your peers and E Source subject matter experts about electrification strategies before, during, and after COVID-19.

Moderators:

Courtney Welch, Associate Director, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Bill LeBlanc, Chief Instigation Agent, E Source

Kate Merson, Senior Director, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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Utility customers are interested in battery storage. But most utilities are still figuring out how to deliver battery programs that benefit the customer and the grid. No two battery pilots or programs look alike, and there’s a lot of uncertainty about how different strategies will fare in the wake of the societal and economic impacts from COVID-19. During this E Source exchange, you’ll share your ideas and hear from your peers on how to shift strategies to meet changes in the marketplace.

Through E Source exchanges, you can tap into a network of utility professionals who can help you solve challenges and find solutions. We encourage you to have your video on during these calls, ask questions, and share your experiences.

Moderators:

Bryan Jungers, Senior Manager, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Luke Beckett, Product Manager, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

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In this web conference, you’ll hear from energy-efficiency services provider CLEAResult on how it’s helping utilities rapidly launch and promote virtual audits to customers.

This time last year, a changing market spurred CLEAResult to develop new solutions for improving its home energy assessment service. Because of the pandemic, CLEAResult accelerated its timeline to solve the new challenge: how to safely and effectively serve customers from a distance. This webinar will explore CLEAResult’s first 120 days of developing and launching its virtual assessment.

You’ll learn:

• What went right, what went wrong, and the results of CLEAResult’s work with several utilities
• An overview of options utilities are pursuing as alternatives to in-person audits
• About the development and launch of CLEAResult’s new virtual audit solution

The E Source solution showcase series provides vendors with an opportunity to share innovative solutions to challenges utilities are facing. Through our web conferences, we’ll bring together utilities and their partners to highlight their joint successes and lessons learned. If you’re a vendor interested in participating in a future web conference please email us.

Speakers:

Jordan Tobey, Engagement Director, Sales Support and Engagement, E Source

Seth Little, Director, Virtual Delivery, CLEAResult

Harrison Grubbs, Senior Director, Residential Practice Lead, CLEAResult

Who should attend:

This event is open to any utility employee who’s interested in meeting their demand-side management program goals amid COVID-19. Please note, this topic is usually covered by the E Source Demand-Side Management Service, but due to the global health crisis, we’re opening this event to all utilities.

For more information about attending this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).

NOTE: This event has already taken place. See below for recording, event description, and link to download the presentation slides.

Download web conference slides (PDF)

Knowing exactly when and how much to invest in electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure is a common struggle for many utilities. During this exchange, we’ll highlight examples of current utility EV initiatives. You’ll hear from E Source researchers as well as your peers who have invested in charging infrastructure. You’ll also have the opportunity to share your ideas for transportation electrification initiatives.

Through E Source exchanges, you can tap into a network of utility professionals who can help you solve challenges and find solutions. We encourage you to have your video on during these calls, ask questions, and share your experiences.

Moderator:

Ryan Odell, Lead Analyst, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Speakers:

Bryan Jungers, Senior Manager, Customer Energy Solutions, E Source

Wendy Marine, Manager, Electrification, Evergy Inc.

Alec Tsang, Program Manager, EV Infrastructure, BC Hydro

Mike Wenzlaff, Senior Program Manager, Electric Vehicles, BC Hydro

For more information about this event, please email us or call 1-800-ESOURCE (1-800-376-8723).