Water Customer Conference

With the non-domestic water market opening in April, there was much for water companies to discuss at Utility Week’s customer water conference, says Lois Vallely.

Market opening is coming and it is essential that all market participants are ready for it. The opening of the business retail market in April was, therefore, front of mind at Utility Week’s Water Customer Conference in Birmingham on 18 January.

An eager anticipation ahead of market opening gripped the delegates at the conference, but the awareness of the need to get things right first time come April was never far away.

Business Stream chief executive Johanna Dow insisted that the readiness of all participants in the non-domestic water market was “very important”.

“It won’t be enough to say 10 out of 12 are showing a really high state of readiness,” she said. “What about the other two? If we’re switching a multi-site customer who has got sites in every region across the UK, we need to make sure that everybody is ready. That readiness isn’t just about retailers, it’s got to be about wholesalers as well.”

Are wholesalers ready for the change? Do they know what’s coming? It is imperative that they “increase their game”, she said.

Dow also spoke about lessons that could be learnt from Scotland – from both what had gone well and what had gone badly. What went well, was that customer engagement happened early, and there was complete transparency between market participants about their level of readiness. Dow did point out that this was easier in the Scottish market, because it only has one incumbent wholesaler and a handful of retailers.

She said things that had not gone so well, and from which lessons could be learnt, were ensuring market data was of a high quality, and always putting the customer first.

Market Operator Services Limited (MOSL) chief executive Ben Jeffs said the success of the new market relies on more than just technical delivery. All market participants must work together to ensure the it functions efficiently, effectively and reliably, and that customers are satisfied with their experience.

The expectations – of domestic as well as non-domestic customers – will be high in the competitive market, and will only increase as time goes on. Water companies must be ready for this, and make sure they provide the highest possible levels of service.

Ian McGuffog, director of strategy and planning at Ofwat, said the business retail market has been a long time coming, and that awareness of the market should increase as we approach the go-live date. He also flagged the potential to build on the business market, taking forward into the domestic market the lessons learnt – if and when it opens.

Speakers emphasised that the change is not all about lower bills; there will also be benefits in terms of promoting efficiency and innovation, and improved customer service. And these improvements in customer service will transfer to the domestic market too as service becomes front of mind for companies.

The focus of the conference was not entirely on the opening of the business market. Bristol Water’s customer services and IT director, Ben Newby, spoke about the importance of “keeping up with the changing needs of customers”.

He said sometimes, when you consume water services, you can feel “behind the curve” compared with other sectors – such as telecoms. “We live in an age of retail revolution,” he said. “And in the water industry we’re doing everything that we can to keep up with this.”

Views from the top table:

“We live in an age of retail revolution, and in the water industry we’re doing everything that we can to keep up with this. But sometimes, when you consume our services, you can feel behind the curve compared with other sectors.”

Ben Newby, customer services and IT director, Bristol Water

“We need to make sure that everybody is ready. That readiness isn’t just about retailers, it’s got to be about wholesalers as well. Do the wholesalers really know what’s coming? And do they understand the amount of change that is going to be driven into their part of the business?”

Johanna Dow, chief executive, Business Stream

“Churn is both good and bad. It’s good when you’re gaining customers, but it’s bad when you’re losing customers. It’s quite often the case that churn is an under­invested-in customer-facing activity. You need to make it really easy for your customers to come back to you.”

Peter McCarthy Ward, fellow, Institute of Telecommunications Professionals

“The issue of tariff complexity and the risk of certain customers being excluded from a market that has more complex bundles, is a risk. We’ve seen it in other sectors, and it has to be addressed in some way.”

Simon Oates, chief customer officer, Southern Water

“We have to do everything that we possibly can to make this market opening a success for everybody. It is a marathon challenge. It’s not just a marathon challenge for us, it’s been a mountain challenge for everybody. One of our CGI team members actually likened it, this time last year, to running a marathon while doing a Rubik’s Cube.”

Ben Jeffs, chief executive, Market Operator Services Limited

“Neither brand nor service can be fully effective unless they lean on each other. You can’t have customers trusting your service if they don’t feel you’ve got a first-class brand. And you can’t hope that customers will respond to your brand and campaigning communications if they don’t trust your customer service.”

Ciaran Nelson, head of corporate communications, Anglian Water Services

Five key points

1. Market readiness – it is the responsibility of all market participants, not just the retailers, to ensure they are ready for market opening.
2. Customer service – the quality of customer service will increase in the new market, but so will the expectations of customers. It is vital that water companies keep up with this increased expectation.
3. Innovation – in an age of digital revolution, water companies must keep up with the pace of change and innovation, which will likely increase in the new competitive retail market.
4. Brand – when the market opens, water will have to become more of a “brand” to attract customers where it wasn’t in the past. Companies that don’t do this could end up being left behind.
5. Data quality – ensuring the quality of customer data is high, and does not create a barrier to switching, will be vital to the success of the new market.