Delivering world-class service to customers is vitally important to utilities like DC Water. Providing a top-notch customer service experience demands that a utility's CIS meets the demands of its increasingly mobile patrons.

DC Water provides service to 680,000 residents in the District of Columbia, as well as to all of the federal buildings. Along with monitoring well over 135,000 water meters, DC Water also provides wastewater services to the District and the surrounding counties.

Today, DC Water’s unprecedented 12-month implementation of the VertexOne cloud CIS allows the utility to deliver on its mission— while saving an estimated $22 million over seven years.

 

A vision for today... and the future

According to Charles Kiely, DC Water assistant general manager, the goal was simple. DC Water wanted to provide their Customer Care Associates near real-time information on demand. This would allow them to answer customer inquiries quickly and resolve their problems in as few steps as possible.

Additionally, since their customer base is increasingly mobile-focused, they needed a CIS solution that provided customers with secure mobile access to better interact with the utility.

DC Water realized this would require a tier-one solution that was scalable and adaptable to keep up with an increasingly complex market landscape. Looking toward the future, DC Water searched for a solution that:

  • Was scalable to keep up with growth over a 20-year lifespan;
  • Could integrate with the utility’s other business systems; and
  • Included robust security controls to keep their customers' data secure with appropriate authorization, review and approval processes to ensure the data’s integrity.

Meeting the demanding requirements for a world-class CIS

To fill this tall order, DC Water evaluated proposals from 18 different solution providers over a one-year period. This included both on-premise and Cloud solutions. When the field was narrowed to two finalists, the six key considerations for choosing Vertex's CIS solution — VertexOne — were:

  • VertexOne's Tier 1 Technology, which includes significant continuous R&D investment to keep the technology evolving ahead of demands
  • The flexibility to install additional capabilities as needed and on time
  • The agility to respond quickly to a growing customer base and increasing transaction volume, necessary to keep up with rising customer expectations and market changes
  • Predictable costs and support to guarantee quality service performance
  • Insight provided by useful operational analytics
  • A delivery schedule that was quick, efficient and affordable

Vertex employed a unique implementation process that delivered the CIS solution in an unprecedented 12 months—on time, on budget and right on target with DC Water's expectations. With quality control testing throughout the implementation process, the VertexOne strategy ensures no issues fall through the cracks and cause last minute scrambling for resolution.

A money saving solution that could work for you

From a financial standpoint, the VertexOne CIS saves DC Water $329,000 annually in the back office alone. Across the entire operation, it will save the utility an estimated $22 million over the seven-year contract. More importantly to the utility’s mission, it will keep DC Water ahead of the curve in providing the best customer experience possible.

To discover more details on DC Water's experience, download the full case study and find out if VertexOne is the CIS solution to meet your demands.