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Category: Mattingly

Domo Arigato, Mr. Robotic Process Automation

Posted on by m.usman@jjtestsite.us

By: Matthew Mattingly

Styx Mr Roboto GIF from Styx GIFs

The term Robotic Process Automation may have a different definition depending on the person or reference.  To my wife, the term Robotic Process may conjure the image of a dance move that her husband does WAY TOO early and often at parties. However, we will not be talking about dance moves in this blog entry. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is a new coming, game-changer in the utility bill management world. RPA is an automation tool that uses software bots to handle high-volume, repeatable, rule-based tasks (Insert Wikepedia definition). Our bill management software, Choice Data Connect, has been using RPA to help clients streamline the bill management process to extract invoices, organize data, and automate Accounts Payables. Clients are now getting their data faster and more accurate than ever before.  As we will further explain, the old bill management process is making way for the new. Domo arigato Mr. Robotic Process Automation!

Invoice Extraction – The Old Way

Utility bill management (UBM) programs have been around for years, but typically requires a manual process. The process involves changing billing addresses to a centralized location, paper invoices to be opened/scanned, and human interaction to physically monitor/input data. Although this UBM process does provide value in a centralized process, it still requires a time consuming and costly human touch. Human touch leads to human error, which leads to payment delays and billing errors.  Basically, people ruin everything, they are the worst.

Old Technology – OCR and EDI

Another complaint of UBM providers is aging technology. Many providers still rely on OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology to view and extract data from scanned invoices. OCR can be helpful, but the process depends upon high resolution images of invoices and may have difficulty with poorly imaged scans.  Just think how many times you looked at a scanned invoice and wondered, is that an eight or a nine?  Heck maybe it’s a niner?  OCR technology will have the same issues. Additionally, OCR technology is could never accurately report the hand-written invoice sent by the rural county water department.

EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is also a technology used by several UBM providers to receive utility invoices. EDI allows utility vendors to directly transmit data, providing a prompt and paperless delivery. BUUUUUT, there is a major flaw with EDI invoices and that is they are not the true invoice copies.  In fact, EDI invoices look more like binary code, making it impossible for someone to review and interpret cost and usage data from the file. See the example below.

New Way – Robotic Process Automation

Choice Energy Management takes invoice extraction to the next level.  By using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) our bill management team can DIGITALLY download over 80% of our client’s accounts. Software Bots take the place of human interaction and manual invoices, by pulling digital invoices directly from a supplier or utility portal.  The diagram below illustrates the process flow chart of the software bots within the utility/supplier portal.

Invoice Validation

As shown by the above diagram, our Robotic Process Automation doesn’t stop with invoice extraction. Invoice templates are created to extract ALL invoice data and import directly to Choice Data Connect. However, the data is not imported into Choice Data Connect unless it passes a 225+ audit checklist. Failure of the audit requires a Choice Data Analyst to review the invoice and data before submitting to Choice Data Connect.  This ensures all data within Choice Data Connect is 99.5% accurate. Basically, Lloyd Christmas has the same chance with Mary (Samsonite) Swanson as an invoice error of hitting Choice Data Connect.

Summary

Through leading technology (such as Robotic Process Automation), Choice Data Connect is taking utility bill management to the next level.  Our clients are now getting faster, more accurate data, all while having access to the true invoice copy. This is just the beginning for Choice Data Connect. In the next year, Choice plans to incorporate Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to reach our goal of having 100% digital invoices within Choice Data Connect. This will lead to even less human touch. In the meantime, we will celebrate the advances Robotic Process Automation has provided Choice Data Connect.  In fact, the lyrics of Styx’s 1983 #1 hit, Mr. Roboto may say it best.

Thank you very much, Mr. Robotic Process Automation
For doing the jobs that nobody wants to
And thank you very much, Mr. Robotic Process Automation
For helping me escape just when I needed to
Thank you, thank you, thank you
I want to thank you, please, thank you

Confidential: Choice Energy Services Retail, LP.

Strategery

Posted on by m.usman@jjtestsite.us

By: Matthew Mattingly

I often get asked what separates Choice! Energy Management from our competition. Usually I respond with the word “Strategery” to describe our services. Not only does it typically get a smirk from those that remember the classic Bush v Gore SNL skit, but it gets people to quickly associate Choice with a key service offering: STRATEGIC PROCUREMENT. While electricity and natural gas procurement have been the backbone of energy consulting since deregulation began in the 1990s, not every consultant is strategic with their energy procurement recommendations. Countless times I have walked into a prospective client’s office, and been told that their previous consultant only provided them with the minimal effort process of procuring 30-60 days prior to contract expiration. What is strategic about that?

The Choice Way

At its core, the procurement process looks similar for many energy consulting companies. The analyzing of a client’s usage is followed by obtaining and verifying bids, and then reviewing and executing the procurement contract. However, many miss the first, most important step of the TIMING of the RFP. This is where we at Choice! Energy Management differentiate ourselves from the competition. We truly take the time to understand our client’s risk tolerance, financial goals, and objectives, and then develop a procurement plan around this profile. Once that Energy Action Plan is established with our clients, we then evaluate each energy market area, determining opportunities that may exist. The right timing window in certain market areas can be as razor thin as vote counts in Florida, but our market experience ensures that no recounts are needed after execution. This allows us to guide our clients through each purchase decision, and the client becomes a price setter and not a price taker.

Detailed Market Analysis

The analysts at Choice pride themselves on the insight and value provided to clients. An example of this analysis has been our ongoing work with clients in Texas. The Texas electricity market has changed a lot over the last couple of years, sort of like the GOP. Coal retirements, West Texas demand growth, delayed natural gas generation projects, and renewable generation growth have resulted in much tighter reserve margins causing dramatic price movements in the ERCOT market. However, that doesn’t mean that opportunities do not exist in this market area. Through constant monitoring of forward curves provided by our sister company, EOX Live, our procurement team has utilized the backwardation that currently exists in the ERCOT markets to our clients’ advantage. With most of the reserve margin fears focused on 2019 and 2020, wholesale electricity curves are trading at a discount in the extended curve when compared to the prompt 2020 calendar strip (see chart below); thus, giving clients attractive contracts in 2021 and beyond. Many of our clients are taking advantage, and are thankful of our team presenting options, even if their current contract is not expiring anytime soon. Many times our clients are beating their current contract, and are also gaining budget certainty and price protection.

Data: EOX LIVE
Graph: Choice! Energy Management via ProphetX Platform

If your energy consultant’s procurement decisions have a consistent pattern of waiting until 30 days prior to contract expiration to execute, then it might be time to look at other consulting options. Our team would love the opportunity to present to you our full energy management program, centered on STRATEGIC PROCUREMENT. Don’t get fooled by the same lack of procurement service. As our great, 43rd President once said…… “Fool me once, shame on…shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

Confidential: Choice Energy Services Retail, LP.

Did You See Those Prices?

Posted on by m.usman@jjtestsite.us

By: Matthew Mattingly & Chris Amstutz

The Arcticgeddon, Snowmageddon, Bomb Cyclone Blizzard, or whatever you want to call it, just brought harsh winter weather to the Eastern Seaboard. This storm boasted 60+ mph blizzard winds and serves as the exclamation point for a wild two weeks of record low temperatures for the region and the eastern 2/3rds of the country. So how did it get to the point that the temperature in parts of the U.S. was colder than the surface of Mars? (Yes, it’s true). A number of factors (previously discussed in the Winter Forecasts (Not So) Set In Stone blog) including snow pack and blocking pressure systems have compounded to bring us this arctic chill.

Winter Storm Grayson is not just causing havoc to the people of the Northeast, but also to natural gas pricing. Gas daily pricing has been strong to start the year, but pricing for January 5th gas flow brought record numbers. Incremental daily pricing for last Friday’s gas flow even exceeding daily pricing during the Polar Vortex of 2014. Gas Daily Daily settlements for January 5, 2018 show the Algonquin pricing point at $79/MMBtu, Transco Zone 6 NNY at 125/MMBtu, and Transco Zone 6 NNY breaking $175/MMBtu. To put that in perspective, Transco Zone NNY averaged $3.22/MMBtu for the first 26 days of December 2017, a mere 3 weeks ago.

The recent high prices in the daily market once again highlights the lack of natural gas pipeline capacity entering the New York and New England market areas. Pipeline capacity in the United States has been discussed numerous times by Choice Energy Services via the Bulls & Bears reports, as it is such a crucial fundamental for local pricing. Although new greenfield and expansion pipeline projects have come online in 2017, and is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, they have not hit the New York and New England region. Pipeline projects have been met with fierce opposition from eco-minded politicians. While at the same time, the region’s demand for natural gas has grown significantly due to a large growth in the power sector.

This region is adjacent to one of the largest natural gas basins in the world but until new or expanded pipeline capacity is constructed, the pricing premiums are likely to occur again. As a result, end-users in the NY/NE area need to ensure they purchase their energy contracts strategically, while making sure they are mindful of incremental language in their natural gas and electricity contracts. Thankfully the clients of Choice Energy Services have peace of mind during this winter season, as their energy contracts were purchased prior to the winter season and incremental language was carefully evaluated to meet the risk tolerance of the clients.

Confidential: Choice Energy Services Retail, LP.