Customer Management System
There are tons of systems out there trying to improve business processes of utility companies in general or electric companies in specific.
The key is still doing the re-engineering process well and the application system will just a tool to follow the processes. I put some of my thoughts about Electric Management System in this blog. Feel free to read and comment.
Many utility companies are still applying monthly charges for customers. Let us say: monthly meter rent, or monthly fixed charged. Why? Mainly because the companies implemented monthly billing and the system is not able to compute daily.
Monthly charges seem to be simple and easily understand by customers, but it is NOT fair to both company and customers. Imagine that the electricity is contracted on the middle of the month, since the billing system produces monthly billing with monthly charges, the customers will be charged the whole month for the affected billing concepts/details. The same case will happen when the customer terminate the contract.
Thus, utility company with these kinds of billing concepts charges should redesigned their monthly changer into daily charges. Even if the bill will be computed monthly, but the computation will take into considerations how many days is used from the last reading date until current reading date. By using number of days, billing becomes more fair!
This daily billing computation charges will benefit as well when the customers want to change the load power or tariff that will affect the cost of electricity. For example: customer A wants to increase the load from 1300VA into 5000VA in the middle of the month. Since mostly the computation of charges are different from 1300VA to 5000VA, the billing system from be able to compute by using number of days:
- billing computation using 1300VA from last reading until middle of the month
- billing computation using 5000VA from middle of the month until current reading
Reading - Billing - Collection is a normal Commercial Cycle for Utility Company. The duration to complete one full cycle is important for the cash flow of the company. The lesser it takes, the faster that the money can be collected over the consumptions used by customers.
Old fashion Utility company often forget the important of short Commercial Cycle Duration. Let us say that the electricity company produces a bill monthly. Most of the old fashion utilities company will spend the whole month reading customer's meters, resolve some anomalies/exceptions and bill all the services at the end of the months. By doing this, the company has an average of 15 days for its commercial cycle.
Why? Because the customers read on 1st day will get their bill on the 1st day of next month, while the customers read on 30th day will also get their bill on the 1st day of next month. Thus, the average will be 15 days more or less. What does 15 days commercial cycle means? It means that in average, that electric company will collect the money 15 days after the customers have consumed the electricity.
For us, it might not mean a lot. But for an electricity company whose revenue is million and million of dollars, this 15 days delay means something. Upper management of utility company should start thinking the best way to reduce the commercial cycle. One ideal set-up is to have daily cycle, where the customer is read and at night, the bill is produced and ready for delivery and collection the next day. This case, the commercial cycle will be reduced into 1 day. This is assuming that there is no anomalies or exception on that bill.
Reducing commercial cycle is not an easy task as it will affect the core business process of utility companies. In depth analysis and study should be paid attention to understand the risk of implementing the changes. Customers can be affected as well if they are not properly informed. Always put a team for change management to do this kind of task.
INTRODUCTION
This process consists of the actions that are carried out to inform the customer the amount that he must pay for the utility supply and services that he receives from the Company.
The amount collectible to the customer is detailed in a bill. The bill contains information related to bill items related to the utility usage and services, payment balances, meter information and adjustments if any. For customers who have multiple services in his account, the collectible amount is summarized in a Statement of Account.
Bills are produced daily by batch process after the readings obtained daily from the field are uploaded into the Customer Management System. Upon production, the will immediately be enveloped, prepared and turned over for delivery to the Post Office or any third party courier. Data are also sent to bank for Direct Debit Arrangements.
RESPONSIBILITY
Print Centre Specialist
- Printing of files and summary report
- Preparation of boxes of documents for delivery
- Turn over of boxes to Post Office Contact Person
System Administrator
- Delivery of DD files to banks
REMARKS
Details and agreement about delivery of documents (bills, statements, customer letters, debt notices, disconnection notices, etc.) by the Post Office should be contained in the Memorandum of Agreement between the two parties.
INPUT
Bill information, Account data, Payment balance
OUTPUT
Bills, Statements, Direct Debit Files
OWNER OF THE PROCESS
Business Cycle and Systems Section
CLIENT
Post Office, Benefits.
PROVIDER
Customer Service Management
