Outage Management & Customer Communication
Many customers call only when there is a service interruption. Generally they want two things: your acknowledgment that their report has been received and if anybody else has reported an outage in their area. dataVoice not only provides powerful outage management solutions, we also incorporate a unique “customer communication” design in all systems that provides customer service representatives (CSRs) the information they need to answer the customer’s questions. They can also view the history of the customer’s prior calls and service interruption details. A message bar across the top of the CSR’s screen displays important information from dispatch. The integrated system equips agents to provide better, faster answers that the customers need.

Give engineering, operations, and dispatch the tools they need. When power is off, so is revenue. The dataVoice system gives employees the tools they need to better locate problems, manage outages and get power (and revenue) flowing again. Account history and message interchange between dispatch and CSRs lift customer service to a level that meets most callers’ expectations and minimizes customer complaints and losses. And, best of all, revenue recovery from one major outage can easily pay for the whole system.

The number of customers and the availability (or lack) of a connectivity model influence choices of outage systems. It is not necessary to have a connectivity model to have an effective outage management system that meets your needs and your customers’ expectations. For convenience and comparison, outage management modules have been grouped as Level I, II, and III. The beauty of dataVoice’s three-tier approach to automated outage management is that a utility can start at a very basic level and increase capabilities as new systems are added or as better information becomes available. From a simple outage ticketing system that logs all outage reports. . . to high power systems that use connectivity maps to pinpoint outages and dispatch crews, the goals are universal — all are designed to improve customer service and to get revenues flowing again as quickly as possible.

• Scalability - There is nothing worse than buying something only to learn that you must scrap it to move up. Not so with dataVoice. As your needs grow, your software investment is protected. Simply add modules for enhanced outage management, call backs, automated call processing, account inquiry, delinquent account out-calling, payment by credit card, meter reading entry and more. Grow your outage management system at your own pace. As you get comfortable with what you have and decide to expand your customer service, you won’t be throwing away software and hardware; all you have to do is call dataVoice for additional, affordable cost modules.

• Multiple Viewing options allow dispatchers to pick the way they feel most comfortable in analyzing outages. A listing of trouble calls allows the operator to sort and group records.
  
  An interactive map provides a geographic view of the system with line sections color coded depending on their status: green for operational, yellow to indicate trouble calls have been received and red for confirmed outages. Reporting locations are displayed as colored dots. An increasingly popular option is the network schematic – a table view that graphically displays the relationship of the line sections in a tree format.
  

• Status summaries at the bottom of the dispatcher’s screen show current conditions – how many outages have been reported, how many confirmed, the number of customers affected by each confirmed outage, the length of each outage, locations of crews, presence of priority accounts and more. One utility reports that turnover at shift changes is swift and that one dispatcher now can handle what it used to take three to do.

• Branch/District Office Support - If your system is spread out and you have Branch or District offices, you know how complicated managing outages can be. With dataVoice, user’s log on to the system with the authority to view only outage reports for their specific offices, or to view all outage reports. In the evening the home office can manage the entire system, and when employees arrive at the branch offices, they simply log on and can pick up right with the outage without having to be briefed. No data transfers or confusion about which reports have been taken care of - all the information is right there on the screen.

• Reporting is based on fact, not assumption. For each outage, records of what line sections were out, starting and ending times, number of customers affected, number of priority accounts involved and even identification of the failed device are generated. When PUC and management reporting times come around, comprehensive, easy to read reports are a click away.
  

• Voice confirmation lets callers in a confirmed outage area know that their outage has been reported and crews dispatched. Upon confirming the caller’s identity (caller ID or caller input), the system checks the known outages, looks up the caller’s name in the billing system and informs the caller, “If your name is Smith, we are aware that your power is out. Crews are in the process of repair. If you would like a callback after power has been restored, please press 1 now.” This unique capability effectively shortens calls, limits voice messages and increases call processing capacity. Customer receptivity is extremely high for this method handling calls.

  >> Hear a known outage

  
  
• The Check Disconnect module confirms that the consumer reporting the outage has not been disconnected for non-payment before allowing the ticket to be entered.
  
• Employee Call Out eliminates the need for dispatchers to call and assemble crews. This module makes automated calls to crew members based upon a selected list. Calls can be made to home phones, cell phones, pagers, etc. Crew members may be instructed to call in or can listen to recorded instructions. Detailed records are kept of each call made to crew members and the result.

• Call backs to customers where service has been restored begin with the click of a mouse. The system automatically calls customers who requested a callback, verifies that their power has been restored and gives them the current time so they can set their clocks. If service has not been restored, they may immediately re-report the outage.

  >> Hear a outage call back

  
  
• Mail merge lets you create follow-up letters or cards to customers affected by the outage. You choose which outages, which class of customers, etc. A click of a mouse and letters are prepared for mailing.
  
• SCADA, AMR & Power Monitors make pinpointing outages faster when they contribute to the outage reporting process. SCADA messages can immediately confirm outage areas, notify dispatch, and begin proactively answering calls. AMR & remote monitors can generate outage records. The dataVoice system can go on “blink alert” when reports come in from AMR’s or monitors; it can also poll to determine if power has been restored.
  
• Blink Analysis module combines system connectivity from distribution analysis or GIS systems and the blink analysis data from certain AMR systems. The dataVoice system rolls up the outage history and blink information into the connectivity grid to set up the potential of discovering a problem before it reaches the point of becoming an outage. It predicts areas of concern to help with preventative maintenance and save possible revenue loss during down time.
  

It’s your call
Call us at 888-328-2864 and tell us about your customer service systems, available data and procedures. We’ll analyze your situation and make suggestions on how you can improve customer service and outage management through automation.