22 Acquisition International - Global Excellence Awards 2016 Smart Utility Systems (SUS) is committed to addressing the global challenges of energy efficiency and water conservation to achieve a sustainable future. In an in-depth interview, a spokesperson from the firm reveals the CEO’s remarkable energy and drive, and their thoughts on winning the prestigious Most Outstanding Customer Engagement SaaS Provider award. irst of all, can you introduce the work of your firm? At Smart Utility Systems (SUS), we are committed to addressing the global challenges of energy efficiency and water conservation to achieve a sustainable future. Keeping this in mind, we focus on providing the utility industry with the most comprehensive and best-in-class cloud based (Software-as-a-Service) platforms for the complete utility value chain, their workforce and their end-customers. By leveraging various technologies such as cloud, mobility, big data and analytics, machine learning and Internet of Things, we facilitate digital transformation of utilities while helping them mitigate industry challenges such as increasing energy & water demand, ageing infrastructure and assets, lack of skilled workforce, increased competition, stricter government mandates for energy efficiency and water conservation and rapidly evolving customer expectations. Our platforms are fully configurable and customisable according to the utilities’ requirements and can be seamlessly integrated with their existing back-end system. Our platforms facilitate a real-time, two-way communication between utilities and their customers, helps them inform customers about their real-time & historic consumption, peer usage comparison, outage notifications, value added services for smart homes & electric vehicles, and much more. We help utilities improve their operational efficiencies and maximise return on infrastructure investments. Through our solutions, we aim to collaborate with utilities and their end consumers to help improve energy and water use efficiency, and, optimise the consumption of these valuable and scarce resources. Achieving an Energy &Water Sustainable Future F How long has the firm been going for and where are you based? Our Founder and CEO, Mr. Deepak Garg, founded Smart Utility Systems in 2009 with a vision to become a partner of choice for global energy and utility companies in their journey of digital transformation. We are headquartered in California, United States and are looking forward to expanding our geographic footprints internationally. How does it feel to have won the award, Most Outstanding Customer Engagement SaaS Provider? We are extremely pleased and honoured to have been recognised as the Most Outstanding Customer Engagement SaaS Provider of the Year. Due to the unique value proposition and value added services that we deliver, our platform has won several accolades in North America including Smart Grid of the Year Award 2016, ‘Big Innovation Award 2016, SAP Pinnacle Award 2016, Innovation & Excellence Awards 2016. However, this award bears special significance as this is our first award in Europe as a new geography for us and we are really thankful to the Acquisition International team for recognising our innovation and efforts. With this recognition, comes additional responsibility to cater to the specific requirements of global utilities and bring the best practices into implementation and deliver excellence via our innovative platforms. What sets your company apart from others who offer the same services? At SUS, we take cognizance of the global challenges of the utility industry and spend our time and efforts on trying to come up with innovations that can help the utilities address their operational Name: Deepak Garg Title: Founder & CEO Company: SUS Email:
[email protected] Web: www.smartusys.com Address: Corporate Headquarters 19900 MacArthur Blvd, Suite 370, Irvine, CA 92612 Phone: +91 (909) 217 3344 1701AI96 as well as sustainability challenges and stay ahead from their peers. Delivering value through effective customer service is the core value of our brand and we are investing time and efforts in developing customer- centric business solutions that help utilities align their own business models such that they are able to meet the expectation dynamics of their consumers. Our team continuously strives to redefine the digital experience of utility customers through our solutions. The platforms are very unique and have been recognised globally for the value-added services and business proposition that makes us stand out. How do you approach your clients? The utility industry in different geographies grapple with unique set of challenges, however, some of these challenges remain unchanged globally, such as depleting resources, ageing infrastructure, demand-supply deficit, high operational costs, workforce specific issues, changing dynamics of customers’ behaviour and expectations and increased focus on energy and water sustainability. Thus, before we approach our clients or prospects we conduct due diligence and research on what challenges are they facing and then focus on how best we can help them address those challenges through technology, successful deployments and bringing global best practices into implementation. We assure them of not being just service providers but being partners in their digitalisation efforts and transformational journey. We understand that the needs and challenges of all our clients/ prospects are unique and there can’t be one solution that fits all.