Future of Utilities: Smart Energy conference logo

8-9 November | etc.venues St Paul’s | London

The epicentre of energy digitalisation

For cutting-edge innovators transforming the way we distribute, manage and consume energy

ATTENDEES

SPEAKERS

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C-LEVEL, DIRECTOR, HEAD OR ABOVE

Future of Utilities: Smart Energy is the energy conference for anyone serious about accelerating the UK’s journey towards a modern, digital energy ecosystem.

 

It brings together energy’s most forward-thinking innovators who are paving the way to a more efficient and effective energy sector.

“Smart Energy is the must-attend event for utilities.”

Chief Product Officer, Octopus Energy

Conference Speakers

Check out the leaders and innovators taking to the Smart Energy conference stages

To be the first to see the latest speaker announcements, follow us on LinkedIn.

 

Keith Anderson

Chief Executive Officer, Scottish Power

Sarah Merrick, Ripple Energy

Sarah Merrick

Chief Executive Officer, Ripple Energy

Mat Moakes, OVO Energy

Mat Moakes

Chief Commercial Officer, OVO Energy

Andrew Middleton, British Gas

Andrew Middleton

Managing Director - Zero, British Gas

Bwalya Kasase, Rebel Energy

Bwalya Kasase

Chief Opertaions Officer, Rebel Energy UK

Ben Wilson, National Grid - Speaker Headshot

Ben Wilson

Chief Strategy & External Affairs Officer, National Grid

Future of Utilities: Mike Hewitt, DCC

Mike Hewitt

Chief Technology Officer, DCC

Chris Norbury

Chief People Officer, E.ON UK

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Tackle the most critical issues facing the industry today

Embracing Energy-as-a-Service

Our speakers are rewriting the energy supply rulebook. Two birds, one stone: can Energy-as-a-Service solve wider challenges? Learn about timeframes from British Gas Zero, SSE & Good Energy.

Towards an accessible, efficient, flexible grid

Ensuring network access and expanding smart grid communication. Don’t miss the Future Networks fireside chat with National Grid‘s Head of Networks & Chief Engineer.

Unpacking the affordability toolkit

How can suppliers adjust to growing affordability issues? Hear from E.ON UK, Citizens Advice, National Energy Action & Vattenfall on taking a multi-pronged approach.

Getting smarter on smart meters

New for this year: keynotes on the next steps for the rollout – domestic & non-domestic. Learn how to overcome critical challenges & derive insights from data with SSE, Ecotricity & Octopus Energy.

Revolutionising EV charging infrastructure

National Grid, Electric Miles, Octopus Electric Vehicles & Drax are coming together on EVs this November. How can networks react to increased demand?

Deepening the customer-supplier relationship

This year we have dedicated sessions on building loyalty and trust. Don’t miss Utilita‘s keynote on what makes a great energy app.

Who attends?

All major players from across energy’s vibrant ecosystem attend our Smart Energy conference

What to expect

A taste of what to expect from 2023’s Smart Energy conference

Plenty of networking

  • Every major UK energy company
  • Dedicated networking breaks
  • An electric after party
  • AI-powered app

Expect to connect and reconnect with key business contacts.

Impactful, problem-solving sessions

With keynotes, panels, case studies and roundtables, key takeaways at Future of Utilities: Smart Energy will be frequent, engaging and digestible.

Inspirational speaker line-up

Hear first-hand from C-Suite speakers with  the likes of OVOUK Power Networks, and National Grid taking prominent keynotes throughout a packed agenda. 

Board-level hot topics

  • Choose from 3 stages
  • Sessions designed following comprehensive research with senior energy executives

Find out what’s troubling board-level executives.

2023’s Agenda

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Day 1

Day 2

Session One: A view from the top - steering energy towards a smarter future

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Keynote address

Smarter, fairer, cleaner: the drive for green energy adoption


Keith Anderson

Chief Executive Officer
Scottish Power

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Keynote address

The network of tomorrow: laying the foundations for a smart energy future


Ben Wilson, National Grid - Speaker Headshot
Ben Wilson

Chief Strategy & External Affairs Officer
National Grid

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Leaders’ forum

Coming together on the smart road to net zero

  • Taking stock: what are the key takeaways from the industry’s net zero journey so far?
  • From energy security to cost volatility: what impact has the energy crisis had on the renewables market?
  • From wind and solar to heat pumps and hydrogen: where should investment lie over the next five years?
  • A net-zero power system by 2035: can it be achieved and how important a role will smart technology play?
  • The cost conundrum: how can the industry make green technologies more affordable for customers?
  • Building an energy-efficient consumer base: assessing approaches to smart customer engagement
  • What regulatory change is needed to accelerate green energy an smart technology investment?
  • Avoiding greenwashing; how can renewable traceability and sustainability governance be made more rigorous?

Ben Wilson, National Grid - Speaker Headshot
Ben Wilson

Chief Strategy & External Affairs Officer
National Grid

Chris Lovatt

Chief Operating Officer – Energy Infrastructure Services
E.ON UK

Future of Utilities: Nicki Flanders, SSE - Speaker Headshot
Nikki Flanders

Managing Director, UK&I
SSE Energy Solutions

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Refreshments

Session two | Affordability | Future Networks | EVs

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Meeting the affordability challenge 1
Future networks 2
EVs 3

Meeting the affordability challenge


Chair

Kelly-Marie Lovesy, Drax
Kelly-Marie Lovesy

Head of SME Sales
Drax

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Keynote address

Smarter solutions to fuel poverty: supporting customer to navigate the affordability crisis


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Fireside chat

Identifying and supporting vulnerable customers

  • Managing evolving needs: what support is needed and where?
  • The smarter way to support: how can suppliers ensure vulnerable customers are identifies in time?
  • Encouraging self-identification: what changes need to be made to make the process easier?
  • Unlocking the power of data sharing: what are the barriers to building a single view of the vulnerable demographic?
  • Supporting staff to support the vulnerable: facilitating a compassionate service

Future of Utilities: Matthew Copeland, National Energy Action, speaker headshot
Matthew Copeland

Head of Policy and Public Affairs
National Energy Action

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Panel discussion

Unpacking the affordability toolkit

  • Taking a multi-pronged approach: how can supplier best adjust to rowing affordability issues?
  • Towards smarter prepayment: how can the customer experience be improve?
  • The Priority Services Register: improving support after disclosure
  • Minimising self-disconnection: utilising smart meter data to detect financial vulnerability
  • A more personalised and empathetic approach to debt collection is this the secret to reducing delinquency?
  • Social tariffs: what does the future look like and what can be learnt from other sectors?

Ben Golding

Director of Energy Affordability
Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy

Sarah Oldman, E.ON
Sarah Oldman

Interim Credit & Debt Operations Manager
E.ON UK

Gillian Cooper, Citizens Advice
Gillian Cooper

Head of Retail Energy Markets
Citizens Advice

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Future networks

Fireside chat

Accessible, efficient, flexible: reimagining the grid of the future

  • Ensuring network access: how can DNOs reduce the timescales and costs for microgenerators to gain access to the grid?
  • Supporting emerging energy sources: how must the grid adapt to renewables?
  • Adapting to intermittent generation: embedding flexibility into the grid
  • Expanding smart grid communication: creating open industry standards for better connectivity
  • Towards smart energy management: how can technology support grid efficiency

Julian Leslie, National Grid ESO
Julian Leslie

Head of Network Capability Electricity
National Grid ESO

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Panel discussion

Towards a smarter network: taking a whole-systems approach

  • Whole system thinking: how can companies embed this mindset across the business?
  • From generation to distribution: how can we implement smarter solutions across the board?
  • Towards a broader system: how can microgenerators be given easier access to the grid?
  • Ensuring continuity of supply: how can better data connectivity across the whole system help and how do we get there?
  • Taking a coordinated approach to investment: how can the industry better collaborate?

Suleman Alli

Director of Customer Service, Strategy, Regulation and Information Systems
UK Power Networks

Scott Mathieson, SP Energy Networks
Scott Mathieson

Director of Network Planning
SP Energy Networks

Steward Whyte, National Grid
Stewart Whyte

Head of Network Control and Transformation
National Grid

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EVs

Keynote address

Preparing the grid for EVs


Arun Anand, Electric Miles
Arun Anand

Founder and Chief Executive
Electric Miles

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Fireside chat

Revolutionising charging infrastructure

  • Ensuring widespread charging point access: what steps must be taken to make this happen?
  • From residential to workplace charging: what are the main hurdles slowing down charging infrastructure development?
  • How can better coordination be facilitated between manufacturers, the grid and local planning authorities?

Liam O'Sullivan, SP Energy Networks
Liam O'Sullivan

Licence Director
SP Energy Networks

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Panel discussion

Preparing for the future of EVs

  • What further government support is needed to accelerate the EV revolution?
  • How can the development of the EV charging infrastructure be accelerated?
  • From wireless boosters to swappable batteries: exploring alternative EV charging solutions
  • Adapting the network: what must be done to deal with the increased demand from EVs?
  • Smart, practical, cost-effective: what new EV propositions would best meet customer needs?

Dr Russell Fowler

Senior Project Manager, Decarbonisation of Transport
National Grid

Future of Utilities: Claire Miller, Octopus Electric Vehicles - Speaker Headshot
Claire Miller

Director of Technology & Innovation
Octopus Electric Vehicles

Adam Hall, Drax Group | Future of Utilities
Adam Hall

Director of Energy Services
Drax Group

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Lunch

Session three | EaaS | A resilient network | Green heat

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Embracing Energy-as-a-Service 1
Securing a resilient network 2
The green heat opportunity 3

Embracing Energy-as-a-Service


Chair

Kelly-Marie Lovesy, Drax
Kelly-Marie Lovesy

Head of SME Sales
Drax

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Case Study

Delivering energy efficiency as a service


Andrew Middleton, British Gas
Andrew Middleton

Managing Director - Zero
British Gas

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Fireside chat

Partnering with domestic customers on energy efficiency

  • What lessons can be learnt from the I&C market in developing Energy as a Service propositions?
  • How can energy suppliers best help customers to access the benefits of smart home automation?
  • Creating propositions around home generation: what are the considerations?
  • Increasing domestic flexibility: to what extent is battery leasing the answer?
  • From leasing to pay-as-you-go: exploring innovative finance models
  • Delivering significant efficiency and sustainability gains: where are the main opportunities?
  • From demand shifting, to open data, to domestic generation: defining the key pillars of the optimum supplier-customer relationship

George Walters, Utilita Energy
George Walters

Chief Home Services Officer
Utilita Energy

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Panel discussion

Rewriting the rulebook: towards the era of Energy-as-a-Service

  • From EV chargers, to microgeneration, to carbon offsetting, to energy storage, to energy management: what are the new services that energy customers need and want?
  • A profitability opportunity? What could the growth of Energy-as-a-Service mean for margins?
  • Towards fdata0driven energy products and services: how do we get there?
  • From more tariff innovation to subscriptions: what does Energy-as-a-Service mean for the future of pricing?
  • What are the operational implications of moving to a more interactive and deeper customer relationship?
  • Striking the right partnerships: what are the key criteria?
  • Two birds, one stone: how can suppliers use Energy-as-a-Service to solve wider energy challenges?
  • To what extent is Energy-as-a-Service the future of energy retail and what are the likely timeframes?

Tunde Olaoye, SSE
Tunde Olaoye

Director - Smart Energy Systems
SSE

James Rees, Good Energy
James Rees

Director of Product and Propositions
Good Energy

Neal Coady, SNRG
Neal Coady

Director of Product
SNRG

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Securing a resilient network

Keynote address

From predictive maintenance to real-time management: what does a smart, resilient network look like?


David Wright

Chief Engineer and Director, Electricity Transmission
National Grid

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Fireside chat

Digital Twins: the future of smart energy management

  • The Virtual Energy System and beyond: reflecting on the industry’s digital twin journey
  • From reducing risk and improving resilience: where are digital twins making a real difference?
  • Improving operational efficiency: how can using digital twins help?
  • Generating live insights: how will real-time data transformation the way we manage the network

Shubhi Rajnish, Chief Information Officer, National Grid ESO
Shubhi Rajnish

Chief Information Officer
National Grid ESO

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Panel discussion

Utilising smart tools for a resilient network: supercharging approaches to asset management

  • Boosting visibility by optimising network data: what are the next steps in infrastructure digitalisation?
  • Transforming data into insights: what can we expect from AI in asset management?
  • Evaluating progress with predictive maintenance to date: lessons for future projects
  • Utilising robotics for remote inspection: where does it work and where is human intervention required?
  • Minimising downtime: how might smart tools play a part in incident response?
  • Integrating smart tools into the existing workforce: what are the main challenges, and how can they be overcome?

Daniel Wilson

Asset Data Manager
Electricity North West

David Moon, Cadent
David Moon

Director of Asset Investment
Cadent Gas

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The green heat opportunity

Keynote address

Planning for the future of heat


Angela Needle, Cadent Gas
Dr. Angela Needle

Director of Strategy
Cadent Gas

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Fireside chat

Maximising the potential of hydrogen

  • Repurposing existing gas infrastructures: how can hydrogen play a part?
  • Working with the Government: what kind of strategy is needed to drive national progress?
  • How can business model development push progress?
  • Managing available resources: where and how are companies going to access the water needed for hydrogen production?

William Mezzullo, Centrica
William Mezzullo

Head of Hydrogen
Centrica

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Panel discussion

Next steps in green heat: unlocking a low-carbon future for all

  • Balancing short and long-term solutions: understanding the roadmap for the future of heat
  • From heat pumps to home energy storage: unpacking the solutions for a low-carbon future
  • Engaging the domestic market: how do we make heat pumps attractive to consumers?
  • Aligning the heat roadmap with other decarbonisation priorities: how can technology help?
  • The future of gas: how is the role of gas networks set to evolve?
  • How can the the field force be skilled-up and encouraged to offer low-carbon solutions?

Rob McGaughy, ScottishPower
Rob McGaughey

Head of Smart Heat
Scottish Power

Jan Rosenow, RAP
Jan Rosenow

Principal and European Programmes Director
Regulatory Assistance Project

Alex Hobley, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Alex Hobley

Head Pump Innovation Lead
Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy

Chioma Ukah, SSE
Chioma Ukah

Asset Manager - District Heating
SSE

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Refreshments

Session four | Smart meters | Unlocking flexibility

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Getting smarter on smart meters 1
Unlocking flexibility 2

Getting smarter on smart meters

Keynote address

Domestic smart meters: next steps for the rollout

  • Tackling domestic targets: what extra help is needed to hit these goals?
  • Reflecting on customer incentivisation: what isn’t working, and why?
  • New messaging to better engage customers: is cost control smart meter data enables the answer?
  • Ensuring accessibility: how do suppliers better support the digitally excluded?

Olga Goc, Ecotricity
Olga Goc

Head of Smart Metering
Ecotricity

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Keynote address

Non-domestic smart meters: next steps for the rollout

  • Overcoming challenges: what is different about the non-domestic market?
  • Addressing low engagement: is mandating the answer?
  • Engaging SMEs with demand-side response: to what extent is there an appetite?

Kerry Maisey

Head of Smart Integration
Drax Group

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Panel discussion

Building loyalty and long-term value with smart meter data

  • Communicating the benefits of smart meters: what really resonates and to what extent is personalisation the key?
  • How can smart meter data be leveraged for actionable, personalised insights that engage customers?
  • Courting the conscientious consumer: how can smart meter data help customer reach their sustainability objectives?
  • From to automated devices: how can technology best be leveraged to give customers control their useage?
  • Gamification: is this the key to winning engagement, and what kinds of games are likely to be most effective?
  • How can the smart meter rollout be used as an opportunity to deepen customer relationships?

Olga Goc, Ecotricity
Olga Goc

Head of Smart Metering
Ecotricity

Kerry Maisey

Head of Smart Integration
Drax Group

David Sykes, Octopus Energy Group
David Sykes

Head of Data Science
Octopus Energy Group

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Unlocking flexibility

Keynote address

A National Grid fit for the future: lessons from Crowdflex

  • Progress on development: reflecting on the achievements of Crowdflex so far
  • Towards a more engaged community: how have participants responded to the programme?
  • Balancing supply and demand: what are the main flexibility challenges has this project raised?
  • Achieving scalability: how feasible is the utilisation of local energy systems in providing flexibility to the grid?

Head of Flexibility Market Development, National Grid


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Case study

Demand management – lessons from the Saving Sessions: Octopus Energy

  • Achieving scalability: what are the challenges?
  • Towards peak-shaving automation: how do we ensure the avoidance of peak-shifting?
  • Embracing new technologies: what can be used to enrich this service?
  • To what extent is improving access to batteries key and how can this be achieved?

Alex Schoch, Octopus Energy
Alex Schoch

Head of Flexibility
Octopus Energy Group

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Case study

Energy Network Association: Open Network Initiative


Lawrence Slade, Energy Networks Association
Lawrence Slade

Chief Executive Officer
Energy Networks Association

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The After Party

Session five: Building the future energy ecosystem

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Fireside chat

Connected, decentralised, prosumer-centric: building a smart energy future


Future of Utilities: Mike Hewitt, DCC
Mike Hewitt

Chief Technology Officer
DCC

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Keynote address

The changing role of an energy supplier


Mat Moakes, OVO Energy
Mat Moakes

Chief Commercial Officer
OVO Energy

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Keynote address

Ripple Energy


Sarah Merrick, Ripple Energy
Sarah Merrick

Chief Executive Officer
Ripple Energy

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Panel discussion

Defining energy’s digital transformation roadmap

  • Understanding the technological pillars of the future energy ecosystem and how to prepare
  • Leveraging the power of data and AI: key applications and lessons learnt to date
  • Moving to the cloud: why is it important and what are the considerations?
  • Enabling real-time data: the challenges and the solutions
  • Ensuring agility and flexibility: what are the key technologies and structures required?
  • The cybersecurity challenge: how can resilient security be ensured across the value chain?

Robert Labinski, Head of Electrification, Octopus Energy Group
Rob Labinski

Head of Electrification
Octopus Energy Group

Marzia Zafar, Ofgem
Marzia Zafar

Deputy Director, Strategy & Innovation
Ofgem

Anthony Devlin, WNS

,

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Refreshments

Session six | Optimising customer operations | Workforce

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Optimising customer operations


Chair

Kelly-Marie Lovesy, Drax
Kelly-Marie Lovesy

Head of SME Sales
Drax

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Fireside chat

Transforming billing for households and suppliers

  • Streamlining billing operations: how can companies unlock efficiencies?
  • Robotics process automation: the business case and the time to ROI
  • From making bills engaging to flexible billing frequency: exploring advanced personalisation
  • Reconciling good communication with the constraints of compliance: what are the solutions?
  • From QR codes to tailored messaging: how can bills be improved to facilitate and encourage payments?

Matt Pearson

Head of Operations and Subject Matter Expert
Octopus Energy Group

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Panel discussion

Making the most of the automation opportunity

  • Which processes are most suited to automation and where can it make the biggest difference?
  • From frontend chatbots to backend RPA: where do the biggest opportunities lie?
  • Augmenting rather than replacing humans: understanding the role of next best action and agent-facing chatbots
  • Identifying automation’s limits: how to know when human intervention is required
  • Tackling end-to-end automation between front and back office: what are the hurdles to achieving this?

Bwalya Kasase, Rebel Energy
Bwalya Kasase

Chief Opertaions Officer
Rebel Energy UK

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Workforce

Keynote address

The energy workforce of the future

  • Is attracting and retaining talent giving sufficient focus in the energy industry at the moment?
  • A workforce for a digitalised energy industry: what are the practical steps to retraining and reskilling the existing workforce?
  • Creating a plan to grow the workforce: identifying a fertile ground for recruitment
  • Attracting young and digital talent: is sustainability messaging the key?
  • Creating a more diverse and inclusive energy industry: what needs to be done?

Future of Utilities: Charlottee Eaton, OVO - Speaker Headshot
Charlotte Eaton

Chief People Officer
OVO Energy

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Fireside chat

Creating a digitally empowered and augmented workforce

  • From the fieldforce to customer support agents: how can digital help boost workforce flexibility, utilisation and efficiency?
  • Doing more with data: how to empower staff with insights for quick and informed decisions
  • AI-based assistance: what technology is available and how is it best implemented?
  • From rugged devices to augmented reality: which technologies can most help fieldforce effectiveness?
  • Making the most of robotics: how can humans and robots best work together to optimise both productivity and safety?

Chris Norbury

Chief People Officer
E.ON UK

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Lunch

Session seven | Customer-supplier relationships | The Innovation Lab

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Deepening the customer-supplier relationship

Fireside chat

What makes a great energy app?

 


Future of Utilities: Louise Walsh, Utilita - Speaker Headshot
Louise Walsh

Chief Customer Contact Officer
Utilita Energy

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Panel discussion

Building loyalty and trust: towards long-term partnerships with customer

  • Building back trust: how should energy supplier approach and mend negative consumer perceptions?
  • How have customer needs and expectations evolved and what does this mean for the drivers of loyalty?
  • The power of a purpose-driven brand: to what extent do ESG factors drive customer loyalty?
  • Avoiding CX pitfalls: what is it that really annoys customers and how can these issues be avoided?
  • Building trust through transparency: what are the principal causes of customer confusion and how can they be eliminated?
  • From the eco-conscious, to the cost-conscious to prosumers and EV owners: offering propositions to suit different customer segments
  • From equipment supply to value-added services based on data insights: where do the main opportunities to create stickiness lie?
  • Working in partnership with the customer: how can this concept be given real meaning?

Jamie Brown, Energy Saving Trust
Jamie Browne

Senior Business Development
Energy Saving Trust

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The Innovation Lab

Keynote address

What makes successful innovation: The Strategic Innovation Fund Perspective


David Richardson, Innovate UK
David Richardson

Head of Innovation for the Strategic Innovation Fund
Innovate UK

Manu Ravishankar, Innovate UK
Manu Ravishankar

Innovation Lead - Strategic Innovation Fund
Innovate UK

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Presentation

Sustainable and resilient charging infrastructure using methanol storage


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Fireside chat

Creating the agility to innovate: culture, technology, process

  • Becoming and innovative energy industry: how can companies put agility at their core?
  • Encouraging risk taking, promoting experimentation, sharing ideas: how can a culture of innovation be fostered?
  • Collaborating to innovate: how can innovation be made easier across departmental and organisational boundaries?
  • Providing the tools to innovate: understanding the importance of low code, no code and a flexible, cloud-based systems infrastructure
  • Agile vs waterfall vs kanban vs scrum: which project management techniques are suited to which types of innovation projects?
  • To what extent do current regulations and funding frameworks support agility and innovation?

Ian Cameron

Director of Customer Service
UK Power Networks

Tom Williamson, Scottish Power
Tom Williamson

Head of Innovation
Scottish Power

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End of day

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