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Applause, Applause! Announcing CS Week 2022 Expanding Excellence Awards Winners and Finalists
Published Date
Thursday, April 7, 2022
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CS Week
2612 W Lamberth Rd, Ste 300
Sherman, TX 75092-5183
903-893-3214
Contact: Brynna Harris
Media, Marketing & Communications Manager bharris@csweek.org
903-893-3214
Sherman, TX, Monday, April 4, 2022 – Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona during the week of May 2 – 6, CS Week 2022 will welcome over 2,000 utility and vendor attendees to the Phoenix Convention Center for five days of educational and networking opportunities. Nine venues offer structured learning and easy social connections. CS Week launches with these niche venues: Executive Summit, where C-suite level utility customer service and supporting IT executives convene for strategic sessions focused on today’s challenges and tomorrow’s solutions;
Key Account Forum, where electric, gas and water managers who support sensitive and high-profile customers share lessons learned and mutual service concerns; and ENGAGE311, where customer service center professionals hear and share 311 operational issues and solutions. All three plus Conference 46, which runs Tuesday afternoon through Thursday evening, provide intersection points for the utility audience whose service and business models have changed dramatically due to shifts to work-from-home and technological advances. During Conference, seventy plus workshops cover end-to-end business processes that start with account inquiry and span billing, payments, credit, collections, field activities and everything in between. Utility professionals bring their best stories of high-tech implementations, low tech process improvements, omni-channel customer experience enhancements, the use of advanced data analytics to inform every process and ways utilities are becoming trusted partners with business and residential customers.
On both Wednesday and Thursday mornings, attendees begin with General Sessions, where respected leaders will offer situational comradery and motivation towards tomorrow’s challenges. Under the banner of this year’s theme, “Rise to the Occasion,” CS Week 2022 salutes company and individual achievements with its annual Expanding Excellence Awards. To build excitement for the presentation presentations, CS Week is pleased to release early its 17 company award winners and finalists and six individual awardees. CS Week CEO Rod Litke, along with its Board of Directors, proudly announces the 2022 winners and finalists: Level I for utilities with $750 million and greater and Level II for utilities with less than $750 million in annual revenues.
Best Analytics Project - Recognizes pilot projects, programs or implementations that optimize data and sophisticated analytics from devices, platforms and related technologies to address, remediate or enhance customer service.
Winner
Level I: Consolidated Edison of New York
Best CIS Implementation – Salutes major implementations of customer information systems evaluated on budget and schedule adherence, operational efficiency and effectiveness after go-live, innovative solutions and improved customer service levels.
Winners
Level I: |
San Diego Gas & Electric | Finalists
Southern California Edison |
Level II: | Madison Gas & Electric | Eastern Municipal Water District Lansing Board of Water & Light Truckee Meadows Water Authority |
Innovation in Digital Customer Engagement – Showcases technologically complex projects that improve services in the meter-to-cash customer experience lifecycle through digital engagement.
Winners |
| Finalists |
Level I: | Puget Sound Energy | San Diego Gas & Electric Consolidated Edison of New York |
Level II: | London Hydro | Halifax Water |
Innovation in People & Process - Awards projects that emphasize soft skills, low-tech solutions and non- automated approaches to engage customers and improve services in the meter-to-cash customer experience lifecycle.
Winners |
| Finalists |
Level I: | PSE&G | Consolidated Edison of New York Southwest Gas |
Level II: | Hydro Ottawa | Jones-Onslow EMC |
“Expanding Excellence Awards,” explains CS Week CEO Rod Litke, “recognize outstanding contributions, innovations and excellence in utility customer service. The complexity of these projects and implementations cannot be overstated,” he said, “and when you weigh the risks to revenue, reputation and customer sentiment against these platform and program changes, you will join me in congratulating these companies’ determination, guts and innovation. Many untangle and reassemble a spaghetti diagram of integrations with their implemented platforms, testing, retesting and ensuring everything works, every time. They are truly role models for our industry and deserve all the applause we can muster at Wednesday and Thursday’s presentations.” He adds, “Customers being in advanced digital marketplaces every day expect their utility companies to be there too, offering a comparable customer experience, convenience and cost savings. That’s why our Exhibit Hall is such a busy
place during Conference. Attendees seek out industry partners who work closely with our Expanding Excellence Award winners to replace systems, upgrade processes and enhance their operations.” He continues, “CS Week’s company-wide Expanding Excellence Awards represent the best in utility customer service. They embody achievement, attention to detail, innovation and resourcefulness. They raise up trailblazers and risk takers who have launched bold initiatives and implemented major technological systems. CS Week’s Board of Directors and I are thrilled to salute them and to showcase their successes.”
The Wednesday presentation ceremony will feature short videos highlighting the company winners, who later present Conference workshops on Wednesday and Thursday to explain their project or program and answer questions. 2022 winner videos will be posted online at www.csweek.org after the awards presentations in Phoenix.
Besides company awards, CS Week will also recognize six individual awards – one 2022 Distinguished Leader and five Rising Stars. Each, performing above and beyond for their team and company, represents commitment and determination. Litke explained, “Individual awards recognize exemplary employees who have distinguished themselves repeatedly in key projects and programs. Individual awards showcase mature, effective individuals whose performance serves as an example and a nudge to others.”
2022 Distinguished Leader:
Kellee Christensen, Enterprise Business Program Manager, Lansing Board of Water & Light
2022 Rising Stars:
Laura Jacobs, Interim Senior Manager, Customer Advocacy, CPS Energy
Sherri McAvoy, Business Lead, Natural Gas CIS Replacement Program, ATCO, Natural Gas Division
Tim McGrath, Contact Center Director, Eversource
Carolyn Schenk, Senior Revenue Analyst, Duke Energy
CS Week’s Expanding Excellence Awards applications and nominations process opens each September and closes in January. For more information about the Expanding Excellence Awards, visit www.csweek.org/web/Awards.
About CS Week
CS Week is the premier annual educational and customer service conference serving electric, gas and water/ wastewater utility professionals across North America and around the world. CS Week provides learning and networking opportunities in support of the utility customer experience lifecycle: Analytics, Billing & Payments, Contact Center, Credit & Collections, Digital Customer Engagement, Field Services, and Strategies & Management.
Nine venues will meet face-to-face during CS Week 2022 in Phoenix:
- Executive Summit
- Key Account Forum
- ENGAGE311 and its EXPO311
- Synergy Groups including three vendor-sponsored and Electric Vehicle Customer Experience Forum
- CS Week Research, a members-only group that meets to discuss its annual benchmarking survey
- Conference, with the largest Exhibit Hall in the industry
- Expanding Excellence Awards
- LeadNext, CS Week’s leadership development program, and
Deep Dives – In its inaugural year, Deep Dives are three-hour presentation/discussion groups on Friday morning focused on four key topics: Customer Assistance, FBI: Cyber Security, Revenue Protection and Talent Management.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CS Week attracts attendees from utilities of all sizes. Besides the robust education venues and diverse networking opportunities during its week-long conference, CS Week enjoys a supportive partnership with scores of industry partners, sponsors and conference exhibitors. CS Week offers
year-round webinars and content to showcase utility success stories, update attendees on marketplace trends and keep utility professionals connected. For more information, visit www.csweek.org. Multiple advisory panels and steering committees shape and focus CS Week, ensuring content is aligned with its mission. CS Week adapts to and reflects industry times while holding fast to its core foundation - providing utility professionals at every level valuable education and networking opportunities - with an emphasis on ‘expanding excellence in customer service.’ ###