By Edson Yamagata, director of commercial management and
support of the Utilities Division of Sonda IT
support of the Utilities Division of Sonda IT
All sectors of the economy are affected by Digital Transformation. Companies need to surf this wave in order to have a more efficient management and increase the quality of service, otherwise they will be stagnant. These are some of the fundamental factors in the analysis of regulators and consumers. Digital Transformation goes beyond transforming something physical into digital. The concept optimizes processes and resources, reduces costs, enables real-time monitoring of information and reinvents the customer relationship model, in addition to opening new business opportunities.
Bringing the movement to the reality of the Electricity sector, it reminded me that when I started my career in this segment, there was a notebook in which the meter readings were written down monthly, also known as' Tala or Livro de Leitura`. This term still remains, however, over time, concessionaires started to use data collectors, PDAs, smartphones and, currently, telemetering and smart grid processes. These last two processes will revolutionize, because, in addition to allowing the elimination of the entire manual reading process, they also make it possible to add other services, such as remote shutdown and reconnection, analysis and alarm by means of voltage and current sensors, among others.
However, the greatest benefit of digital transformation for organizations is the improvement in the relationship with the customer through new channels of interaction, in which he can perform self-service via virtual agencies, chats, e-mails, SMS, social media and mobile applications. With this, there will be greater agility in the company / customer relationship, the waiting time at the service stations will be reduced and, with this, the reduction of service costs.
In addition to the active relationship, digital transformation allows proactive communications with consumers, warning them of scheduled shutdowns and sending automatic alerts for task execution and / or power outages at predefined points. Other than that, it assists consumers in the payment of bills, by means of automatic debit, DDA invoices and sending the collection by e-mail / SMS. There is also the possibility to go, physically or via the internet, to the collection agents and identify yourself only with your CPF / CNPJ to make the payment.
Data indicate that the relationship between the consumer and the energy utility is already more digital than physical. In some companies, these numbers are higher than 70% reaching 90%, in certain cases. This level of digital relationship is equal to or higher than some financial institutions, whose sector has large investments in actions that contemplate digital transformation.
Another front of this area is the IoT (Internet of Things), but it can only be disseminated, in a wide and universal way, with the effective connection to the power network and the internet connectivity network. In this way, the concessionaires responsible for the supply of energy and Telecom, together with the Government, are the most vital links to enable the IoT and the digital transformation.
The ultimate goal is to have a more efficient society. For that, the equipment, which we use the concept of IoT, must be able to make decisions in an efficient, automatic and predictive way based on accurate and cohesive information. This will only be possible if companies follow the Digital Transformation combined with the intensification of IoT with big data connected to the various technologies and corporate and / or personal systems.
It is a four-way job, equipped with technological forces focused on taking the customer, the company, whatever stakeholder is, to a journey of consumption experience and experience never done before. It is the era of doing more and better with less resources.
Bringing the movement to the reality of the Electricity sector, it reminded me that when I started my career in this segment, there was a notebook in which the meter readings were written down monthly, also known as' Tala or Livro de Leitura`. This term still remains, however, over time, concessionaires started to use data collectors, PDAs, smartphones and, currently, telemetering and smart grid processes. These last two processes will revolutionize, because, in addition to allowing the elimination of the entire manual reading process, they also make it possible to add other services, such as remote shutdown and reconnection, analysis and alarm by means of voltage and current sensors, among others.
However, the greatest benefit of digital transformation for organizations is the improvement in the relationship with the customer through new channels of interaction, in which he can perform self-service via virtual agencies, chats, e-mails, SMS, social media and mobile applications. With this, there will be greater agility in the company / customer relationship, the waiting time at the service stations will be reduced and, with this, the reduction of service costs.
In addition to the active relationship, digital transformation allows proactive communications with consumers, warning them of scheduled shutdowns and sending automatic alerts for task execution and / or power outages at predefined points. Other than that, it assists consumers in the payment of bills, by means of automatic debit, DDA invoices and sending the collection by e-mail / SMS. There is also the possibility to go, physically or via the internet, to the collection agents and identify yourself only with your CPF / CNPJ to make the payment.
Data indicate that the relationship between the consumer and the energy utility is already more digital than physical. In some companies, these numbers are higher than 70% reaching 90%, in certain cases. This level of digital relationship is equal to or higher than some financial institutions, whose sector has large investments in actions that contemplate digital transformation.
Another front of this area is the IoT (Internet of Things), but it can only be disseminated, in a wide and universal way, with the effective connection to the power network and the internet connectivity network. In this way, the concessionaires responsible for the supply of energy and Telecom, together with the Government, are the most vital links to enable the IoT and the digital transformation.
The ultimate goal is to have a more efficient society. For that, the equipment, which we use the concept of IoT, must be able to make decisions in an efficient, automatic and predictive way based on accurate and cohesive information. This will only be possible if companies follow the Digital Transformation combined with the intensification of IoT with big data connected to the various technologies and corporate and / or personal systems.
It is a four-way job, equipped with technological forces focused on taking the customer, the company, whatever stakeholder is, to a journey of consumption experience and experience never done before. It is the era of doing more and better with less resources.
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