At the forefront of today’s ongoing power industry's evolution lies a convergence of technological innovation, customer-centric solutions, and sustainability imperatives. The DISTRIBUTECH 2024 conference held during the last week of February 2024 highlighted these themes prominently. Susie Turk, Vice President of Solution Engineering at Salesforce, was one of the thought leaders extolling these virtues, both in her multiple speaking engagements and in a sit-down interview she afforded us at Energy Central.
Through these engagements, Turk provided invaluable insights into the emerging trends shaping the utility landscape. With a keen focus on AI integration, customer experience enhancement, and the relentless pursuit of optimization, her perspectives offer a compelling narrative for utility professionals regarding how to embrace the technological changes happening before our eyes.
As we delved into these key topics with Turk, she helped to shed light on these pivotal themes that are reshaping the modern power industry. From the transformative potential of AI-driven solutions to the imperative of fostering trust and transparency, Turk's discussion unveils actionable strategies for utilities to thrive in an era defined by rapid change and evolving consumer expectations. Moreover, her insights underscore the interconnectedness of sustainability goals, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction, painting a holistic picture of the industry's trajectory.
AI Integration in Utilities
The whole of the DISTRIBUTECH 2024 conference had a persistent buzz on the opportunities that AI is bringing to the power sector. Turk agreed, noting that at Salesforce they were seeing AI being integrated into the fiber of not just utilities, but all industries as people are trying to wrap their heads around what AI really means for their operations. While Turk noted that some in the industry may have anxiety about AI: will it replace jobs, for example? With that in mind, Turk shared a compelling analogy towards the power of properly-utilized AI.
“My pastor shared recently that he’s been having ChatGPT write his sermons for quite a while now,” commented Turk. “And when I first read that I was really taken aback. But he shared how this tool gets him 80% of the way and he fills in the remaining 20% himself to make it impactful and effective, but in doing so he saves about 20 to 30 hours per week. And with that additional time, he can perform actions that automation can never replace: be with somebody who is suffering, pray with somebody, help someone who’s not well. And so through that lens, it becomes clear that AI is there to make life easier and better and free us up to perform the type of tasks that only humans can do. So just like with a utility technician, the AI is not going to fix the major storm outages, but if it can help him with menial tasks like writing up the reports then that is real value gained.” - Susie Turk
Utilities, in particular, are exploring how AI can be harnessed to enhance their operations, improve efficiency, and better serve their customers. And Turk noted that while the conversations seemed to newly dominate the DISTRIBUTECH conversations, these were topics the Salesforce team had been embracing for about a decade.
“We realized AI was something to behold in the utility sector before much of the rest of the world did. And so, we’ve spent years thinking through our solutions and how AI can be used by our customers to take advantage and drive impact within their organizations. An example that I covered in one of my sessions was around the power of generative AI to take the burden off non-value add tasks. When we think about our mobile workforce or our technicians that are responding to disasters and outages, we want to be sure they are well positioned to do so as efficiently as possible, and leveraging AI to handle the low-value, tedious tasks is key to that.” - Susie Turk
Throughout this conversation and during sessions at DISTRIBUTECH, Salesforce spent time emphasizing the importance of combining AI with CRM, data, and trust to deliver impactful solutions. Trust, especially, is a critical factor in AI adoption, ensuring data security, accessibility, and ethical use. The Salesforce team highlighted the evolving landscape of AI, moving from predictive to generative and towards autonomous agents. Future opportunities lie in leveraging AI to perform tasks autonomously, with contextual understanding and tailored to specific business needs.
Susie Turk Sharing Intel on the Einstein AI Platform at a Breakout Session
Enhanced Customer Experience Using Optimization
Overall, the AI-driven technologies Turk discussed aim to enhance not only the utility worker but also the customer experience. AI tools can be leveraged to best understand customer needs, provide relevant information, and improve service efficiency. And while this use of AI may be behind the scenes and appear less visible to customers, its impact is felt through personalized interactions and streamlined processes.
The mobile workforce role starts before even being assigned a job, as availability and delivery to the technician of accurate, timely, and complete information is step 1. And for utilities, if a field service worker arrives at a customer’s home and has incomplete information, that’s a blow to potential success in that engagement.
“The experience of the mobile workforce has to start before they're even assigned to the job. Are they the right person? Do they have the right skill set? Do they have the right equipment to even go out? Is the routing of those workers optimized? I always think about the journey beginning before the journey actually begins, right? So, getting the right person at the right time is critical. And in addition, it's also about the experience that the mobile worker has on site. Does the person have all the information and the tools they need to be successful.” - Susie Turk
Utilities prioritize optimization and efficiency to meet growing demands while reducing costs and enhancing sustainability. This prioritization includes initiatives to optimize field service operations, reduce travel time, and improve overall efficiency. As Turk noted, the mobile worker of a utility really is the face of the organization; he or she is the direct representative of the utility company that the customer will attach, not the executives who sit in the offices. And so, when this worker arrives with wrong information, without the right tools, without a full understanding of the utility customer’s problem, it creates an uncomfortable situation and sours the customer experience right away. That’s why Turk noted how important the Salesforce team finds the “360° view” of the work to be done: who is the customer, what do they need, what has been done thus far, and what is needed moving forward.
Critical Core Principles in Sustainability and Resilience
At DISTRIBUTECH, the key principles of sustainability and resilience came up persistently. Keeping the lights on, even in the wake of severe weather, and moving towards lower emission processes are themes customers crave and the utilities are seeking ways to work towards.
Sustainability remains a key theme, with utilities exploring ways to promote sustainability within their operations and address environmental concerns, which includes efforts to reduce carbon emissions, invest in renewable energy sources, and adopt eco-friendly practices. And then given the escalating frequency and intensity of natural disasters, utilities are focusing on enhancing their resilience and response capabilities. Climate change discussions underscore the importance of proactive measures to mitigate risks and ensure reliable service delivery during crises.
These are both themes that Turk emphasized in her speaking engagements at DISTRIBUTECH and in our interview. And AI must be a critical layer to them with the tools now available. For example, with outage responses, AI tools can be utilized for predicting where utility workers will likely be needed based on weather data and leveraging that can have a major impact. As Turk noted, “They say time is money. But especially when you're responding to an outage or a natural disaster, truly every minute counts.”
Turk further described how the interrelation between AI for sustainability and for timely dispatch of workers goes deeper.
“From a Salesforce field service perspective, a customer of ours, Honeywell, saw a 13% reduction in miles traveled for their mobile workers, which when you think about the scale at which Honeywell is operating, that's gigantic. Think about the reduced gasoline burned, the quicker response time, the lower chance of traffic safety issues. So, all of these themes are actually all interrelated, and I think that that's maybe the big aha moment here during this conference.” - Susie Turk
The Salesforce Booth Remaining Busy on the Conference Floor
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Efforts
Another key theme that Turk was adamant should be woven into all other conversations is the growing emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) within the utility sector. Companies are exploring strategies to foster diversity in their workforce and promote inclusive practices, reflecting a broader societal shift towards greater social responsibility. And indeed, Turk noted, the DISTRIBUTECH conference has been home to numerous sessions on how utilities can drive these principles within their organization.
“It was very impactful to hear that these DEI themes are resonating with our utility customers as well. How they not only drive equality within their organizations, but recognizing how natural disaster response and their impacts may need to be looked at through a DEI lens with certain customers who are not as privileged and can’t respond in the same ways.” – Susie Turk
Planning for the Future
Looking ahead, Turk noted the positive development of AI conversations in the past year, noting that we’re likely in the ‘second wave’ generation, but that the real pivot point will happen next in wave three: autonomous agents.
“Soon enough, AI will create reports and fill needs without even having to ask, and they're going to have that context and they're going to have the right data for it. And so again, when we think today about asking our AI tool, Einstein, to write a project summary, in the future Einstein will know it needs to be done and will have the data available to do so before anyone even asks.” - Susie Turk
As the energy landscape continues to evolve at a breakneck pace, one thing remains abundantly clear: adaptability and innovation are the cornerstones of success for utility companies worldwide. Susie Turk's insights from Salesforce illuminate a path forward, where cutting-edge technologies such as AI are harnessed not just as buzzwords, but as powerful tools for driving meaningful change.
By embracing AI-powered solutions with a focus on trust, transparency, and personalized customer experiences, utilities can transcend traditional boundaries and unlock new levels of operational excellence. Turk's vision of a future where AI becomes an autonomous agent, seamlessly orchestrating tasks and optimizing workflows, inspires confidence in the transformative potential of technology.
As we reflect on Turk's insights and the broader discussions at DISTRIBUTECH 2024, one thing is certain: the future of the power industry is bright, fueled by innovation, collaboration, and a shared commitment to sustainability. By embracing change and leveraging the power of AI-driven solutions, utilities can not only navigate the challenges of today but also thrive in the opportunities of tomorrow.
In the words of Susie Turk and Salesforce, let us embrace the possibilities of tomorrow's energy landscape with optimism and determination, knowing that together, we can create a more resilient, efficient, and sustainable future for generations to come.