Business Impact Summary
"We are very pleased with our ability to more effectively and efficiently serve our members and customers with streamlined field service processes."
GREG HART
LINE SUPERINTENDENT
KOOTENAI ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
Established in 1938, this private, nonprofit electric utility is owned by the members it serves. Because a cooperative cannot exist without its members, Kootenai Electric Cooperative (KEC) wanted to provide more effective, economical service to its members and customers. By standardizing on a single solution with Ventyx Service Suite, KEC was able to drive cost and productivity efficiencies across its field service operations.
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The Company
KEC serves approximately 17,000 members over 1,216 miles of electric line in northern Idaho and eastern Washington. Established in 1938, this private, nonprofit electric utility is owned by its members.
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The Challenge
Established in 1938, this private, non-profit electric utility is owned by its members. However, industry deregulation forced KEC to consider means to improve overall customer satisfaction and reduce the cost of delivery. The cooperative recognized that it needed to consolidate its field operations into one information system to provide common visibility that would optimize field force management and scheduling.
The department was using an antiquated software tool and outdated manual processes, hindering the staff's ability to keep up with the city's massive growth and increasing water needs. Collections were falling behind and applications for new meters took longer to process, which made it increasingly difficult to track customer account history and interface with other departments.
KEC's largely rural customer base wanted more timely response to service requests and better order status information. The cooperative wanted to track service orders throughout their life cycles, and accurately forecast service completion for its customers. KEC also wanted to improve the efficiency of dispatching line crews and service technicians, reducing excessive travel time and travel-related costs.
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The Solution
KEC chose the Ventyx Service Suite because of Ventyx's proven workforce optimization technology, impressive client base, and demonstrated ability to generate a rapid return on investment. Ventyx's Service Suite enabled KEC to track service orders from the call center to engineering, operations, and back again, confidently predicting when a customer can expect service.
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The Result
Service Suite provides a scheduling process that enables real-time, intelligent routing of work by location, and more efficient dispatch of field service technicians. In addition, technicians have immediate access to current customer and schedule information, allowing them to update, close or reschedule service orders from the field. And, customers can now monitor service order status from any web browser, improving their satisfaction.
“Our main goal going into this project was to improve customer service and to give the customer a date when they would have power at their home or business. We are very pleased with our ability to more effectively and efficiently serve our members and customers with streamlined field service processes.” - Greg Hart, Line Superintendent, Kootenai Electric Cooperative
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