Utility Week Live: transformation is on the agenda

Drawing on lessons learnt by others who survived periods of traumatic change may help utilities survive and prosper over the next 12 months. Utility Week Live will showcase those lessons.

As utilities enter 2015, only one thing is for certain: change. For the people running water, gas and electricity businesses, the 12 months ahead will see transformation on an unprecedented scale. New regulatory regimes in energy networks and water; the CMA inquiry into energy retail; a general election that is too close to call; and the introduction of competition to the non-domestic water market are all game-changers.

These events will place immense demands on businesses and business leaders. With many outcomes beyond companies’ control, they must become accustomed to managing uncertainty, planning for multiple future scenarios, and transforming traditional utilities into flexible, smart and customer-focused businesses of the future.

This is the first of three special reports in which we take an in-depth look at the three areas we believe are key to running utilities in 2015: change, trust, and resilience. In this report, produced in association with PA Consulting, we look back to the financial meltdown of 2007/08 to see which businesses managed to thrive in adversity, and discover how they did it. We ask what skills it takes to lead a business through change, and map the top challenges facing utility leaders. We look at the extent of the skills gap facing utilities as they prepare for the future, and ask what changing skills are needed in each area of the industry.

All these questions will be addressed at the keynote conference at Utility Week Live, a new exhibition and conference being held on 21-23 April 2015 at the NEC in Birmingham. The keynote conference is themed “Inside Out” and draws on the experience of other sectors, asking what utilities can learn. Speakers from other industries will be joined by panels of industry leaders to debate the big issues facing utilities in 2015. The first day will be themed “Change”: see www.utilityweek-keynote.com to find out more.

To download the full pdf on the change adenda at Utility Week Live, click here