DIVE INTO THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AT THE UK’S LARGEST WATER COMPANY
John Brocking, Chief Information Officer of Thames Water describes placing customers and the environment at the core of the company’s digital transformation and technology strategies.
TRANSFORMATION
THAMES WATER IS THE
UK’S LARGEST WATER AND WASTEWATER COMPANY, SERVING AROUND 16 MILLION CUSTOMERS ACROSS LONDON, THE THAMES VALLEY & THE HOME COUNTIES.
very day the company supplies 2.6bn litres of fresh drinking water through 20,000 miles of pipes and removes 4.6bn litres of wastewater through over 70,000 miles of sewers.
Today we are speaking to John Brocking, Chief Information Officer of Thames Water to discuss the innovation and technology underpinning the company’s services.
“In my role as Chief Information Officer, I oversee our digital transformation, ensuring our people have the right digital tools to better serve our customers, communities and the environment,” begins John.
“Customers are at the heart of our digital transformation as we focus on the turnaround of the
“ONE
HUGE SUCCESS WAS
IMPROVING OUR HOME MOVERS' JOURNEY. WE STREAMLINED THIS PROCESS BY WORKING CLOSELY WITH SAP – ONE OF OUR CORE CRM SYSTEMS –
IMPROVING IT FOR COLLEAGUES AND CUSTOMERS”
business to deliver better customer journeys. We must get the basics right from the get-go, whether that’s customers accessing their bills online or providing excellent service on the phone.
“Technology underpins almost every interaction that we have with our customers, so our colleagues need the best systems to deliver a better experience. That’s why we’re investing in the technology used by colleagues and customers and streamlining digital journeys.
“If we can provide a better service from the word go, we will increase
customer satisfaction and reduce complaints – many of our digital tools underpin customers’ experience with us.”
So how does Thames Water approach improving customer journeys and experiences?
“Improving customers’ digital journeys with us has been a key focus for the business,” says John. “One huge success was improving our home movers' journey. We streamlined this process by working closely with SAP – one of our core CRM systems – improving it for colleagues and customers. We worked together
“OUR DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IS INTEGRAL TO OUR PLANS TO TURNAROUND THAMES WATER AND WE’RE REALLY EXCITED FOR WHAT’S AHEAD”
to re-design screens and created built-in automated workflows. Overall, we’ve been able to leverage SAP’s technical advances to support our customers as we work to deliver a better service.
“We’ve also increased capability and functionality online, introducing reporting tools where people can easily log a leak or sewer fault. We’ve paid special attention to ensuring the tools are mobilefriendly, as we’ve seen a rise in the number of customers accessing the internet or digital services in this way.”
Looking beyond the customerfacing side of the business, John explains another key focus for Thames Water has been the deployment of digital transformation behind the scenes, in the operations and maintenance side of the company. Here, John highlights
“WE’VE WORKED WITH VODAFONE TO FIT INTERNET BOOSTERS IN OUR VANS AND AT SOME OF OUR SITES. THE VAN BOOSTERS HAVE BEEN INVALUABLE TO FIELD ENGINEERS WHO CAN HOTSPOT THEIR DEVICES WHEN VISITING CUSTOMERS”
how Thames Water has improved its connectivity capacity with technological innovation.
“Internet and network connectivity have been key to many of our technical advances, whether it’s collecting data to locate leaks or making sure our engineers have internet access when out on the road or on-site,” explains John.
“Many of our digital services, rely on an internet connection. This isn’t a
problem in densely populated areas such as greater London, which is well connected. The challenge comes further afield in the more rural parts of our supply area.
“Our people need to be able to access the internet on the go. Whether they are accessing our systems to log a repair job or reporting back on maintenance checks. Some of our field engineers reported that they were having to travel to connect to wifi to log updates. This is where
our partnership with Vodafone has played a critical role.
“We’ve worked with Vodafone to fit internet boosters in our vans and at some of our sites. The van boosters have been invaluable to field engineers who can hotspot their devices when visiting customers.
“Our smart meter rollout is another great example of investing in connectivity, with the devices giving our customers greater control over their water bills.”
According to John, working with high-calibre specialist partners where needed to develop in-house capabilities has been fundamental
to the digital transformation at Thames Water.
“We work collaboratively with our digital partners, with many of our relationships helping us to think differently and act differently,” says John. “With both SAP and Vodafone, we've run innovation days with them which really helps our digital teams to understand what is taking place outside of our sector.”
Reflecting on the success of the digital transformation at Thames Water so far, John looks ahead to the coming years with excitement and enthusiasm for what’s in store at the company.
“Our digital transformation is integral to our plans to turnaround Thames Water and we’re really excited for what’s ahead,” says John. “In January 2023, we launched our EDM map and were the first water company to provide a live view for all untreated discharges. This ‘near real-time’ data is available to customers and the general public as a map on our website and is also available through an open data platform for third parties, such as swimming and environmental groups, to use.
“We’re committed to delivering improvements that protect the environment. We’ve recently upgraded our digital tools to create a metrics-focused dashboard, which has helped us to prioritise and focus on environmentally critical work across our waste assets. This has enabled colleagues to take a proactive approach to prevent pollution incidents.
“In the last year, we have also introduced WhatsApp as a new platform for customers to communicate with us, directly from their mobile, and we’re continuing to improve this communications channel based on customer feedback.”
To learn more, visit thameswater.co.uk.
ADDED VALUE
RECOMMENDED VIEWING
“I think our recent OnTap episode, which shows how our Retail Customer Team are hard at work, is well worth a watch,” says John.
COOPERATION
“I am really pleased with the collaborations that we have at Thames Water with the technology teams across the water industry,” shares John. “We have regular conversations where we discuss innovation, lessons learned and industry trends.”
thameswater.co.uk