Companies in the utilities sectors have responded well to the increasing demands of de-regulation; the competitive cross-selling of utilities services; cost/price containment and managing operational performance against tightening, guaranteed standards for customer services (as dictated by the regulatory body for each sector).

Guaranteed performance standards, metrics and penalty payments vary for each sector, but in general they aim to maintain high standards of service availability and customer service, including:

• Making and keeping appointments within agreed times
• Answering account queries and written complaints within agreed times
• Warning about planned supply interruptions over a certain duration
• The time it takes to get the utility service back on after an interruption
• Penalty payments for failures in services or customer service

Creating a service support infrastructure that enables the utility companies to manage and continuously improve the delivery of their services and customer service has been a prime focus of investment for the utilities. However, many companies are obliged to use increasing numbers of personnel and expensive ‘work arounds’ to compensate for weaknesses and gaps in their operational support infrastructure.