npower was a British supplier of gas and electricity to households and businesses. It was considered one of the Big Six energy suppliers, which dominated the gas and electricity market in the United Kingdom. npower had over 5 million customers and an industry leading digital platform.
THE CHALLENGE
The widespread adoption of Smart Meters fundamentally reshaped the energy landscape, significantly altering customer interactions with their providers and fostering greater engagement with energy consumption. Recognizing this transformative shift, npower sought to establish industry leadership in Smart Meter deployment. This strategic focus encompassed two key objectives:
-
Accelerated Customer Migration: Prioritizing rapid Smart Meter installation for all customers, exceeding the pace of competitors.
-
Technological Innovation: Investing in cutting-edge technologies to enhance customer service channels and create more engaging and interactive experiences.
HOW I DID IT
To understand the transformative potential of smart data on customer and business engagement, I led an in-depth research phase. This included customer insights days, home visits with both customers and engineers, and comprehensive customer segmentation. This research uncovered key customer pain points, ranging from billing complexities to a lack of understanding of their energy consumption.
Based on these insights, I developed digital journey maps to visualize the entire customer lifecycle, from onboarding and engagement to retention. Within these maps, I identified key opportunities to leverage smart data to enhance both the customer experience and business outcomes.
Working within an agile sprint framework, I facilitated design sprints across key project epics, collaborating closely with cross-functional teams to define and prioritize tasks. I then created and tested various design concepts, from prototypes to storyboards, with real customers.
Following the design phase, I led a design team across three agile development squads, ensuring close collaboration with development teams throughout the entire development lifecycle, from refinement to sprint demos.
Finally, I established a dedicated optimization team to continuously evaluate the performance of these solutions through data analysis and ongoing customer feedback.