Treating Data as an Organizational Asset Helps Utilities Drive Value

As technologies evolve, so does the data driving them—and understanding how to how to treat data and recognize its value can help bridge the gap between energy companies meeting decarbonization goals and enabling the electrification of things for consumers.

In the Beyond the Data podcast episode “Building the Foundation for the Energy Evolution” Guidehouse experts David Workman and Stephanie Giardina are joined by Joshua Berry, Sr. Manager of Data Foundations at Tennessee Valley Authority, to discuss a new approach to data that involves treating it as an asset similar to any other in organizational operations—and being purposeful and deliberate with curating data to set up long term strategic objectives.

“There's a much higher expectation for how utilities and energy providers integrate and interact with their consumers than ever before,” said David Workman, director at Guidehouse. “It comes down to the data available and the capabilities of that data to provide better customer service back to the clients.”

The podcast also discusses data governance and retention, and how it relates to organizations’ people, processes, and technology, as well as the role of data in pursuing organizational goals. Key questions that need to be answered are: Who is responsible and accountable for the data? How does it get triaged and escalated through the different editing entities if there is an issue? What is the current state of the data and technology landscape?

“This really is a transformational journey that requires commitment and leadership from IT and the business, as well as dedicated resources that are going to drive the initiatives,” said Stephanie Giardina, managing consultant at Guidehouse.