As CIO of a progressive U.S. water utility, how do you approach strategic planning to ensure both short- and long-term success?

Strategic plans set an organisation’s long-term direction, but they are useless without successful execution. Defining the utility’s “North Star” is an important first step. Still, organisations must also factor in daily operational needs to ensure plans are appropriately aligned, and resources are balanced between short-term and long-term requirements. Understanding current needs and priorities and long-term drivers of change forms the foundation for developing an effective strategic plan.

Diversity of thought is crucial in crafting a good strategic plan. Encouraging broad participation in defining the plan’s objectives helps avoid groupthink. Open and honest dialogue about organisational challenges and opportunities is also essential. Including customer perspectives ensures the plan is based on more than just the company’s internal viewpoint.

Once the plan is created, it is important to enlist champions to support the initiatives and ambassadors to promote it across the organisation. Tracking results and celebrating successes are also vital to ensure the plan doesn’t become “shelfware.”

Digital transformation is often associated with optimising a utility’s physical assets. Can you share how WSSC Water is leveraging digital transformation to enhance customer satisfaction?

Digital transformation impacts customers in two primary ways: first, through the experience we create for a customer and then the content available to the customer in electronic transaction processing or information access. Equally important is how different channels are provisioned and whether there is consistency of the features and functions provided on each and that they are seamlessly integrated so you can start a transaction on one, say the IVR, and complete the transaction on another, like the web, without having to re-enter data. Customer self-service tools allow the utility to provide 24/7 services and open data allows for greater levels of transparency.

On the utility side, digital tools like sentiment analysis can help quickly identify potential systemic challenges to providing service and prioritise improvement opportunities, resulting in shorter resolution cycles.

There’s a lot of buzz around “generative AI.” Can you share what you see as the main opportunities and risks?

Since the advent of business computing in the mid-1960s, various technological milestones such as the PC, Internet, WiFi, automated meter reading, and cloud computing have fundamentally transformed how utilities operate. A new inflection point for the industry has been observed. AI and predictive analytics represent perhaps the greatest opportunity for business transformation, given their potential to simultaneously impact all aspects of the operating model.

Those who successfully leverage this new paradigm will achieve unprecedented success and be recognised as industry leaders, while those who do not adapt will risk becoming obsolete.

The application of Generative AI (GenAI) holds significant potential for the water and wastewater sectors, though it comes with certain risks. These risks include inaccuracies in results (hallucinations), model bias, lack of user trust, socioeconomic inequality due to access disparities, and over/under-dependency by users. Despite these challenges, the industry must adopt GenAI to realise benefits for utilities, the industry and customers.

GenAI solutions range from simple, such as content creation for job descriptions, interactive training, customer correspondence and code generation, to more complex, such as anomaly detection for pipelines, predictive analytics for main breaks and flooding events, energy management and asset and resource optimisation.

What do you think water utilities can do to appeal to the next generation of water professionals?

Water and wastewater utilities can no longer passively wait for applicants to come to them. Competition for talent, particularly in IT and engineering, spans across industries. Utilities must actively reach out to potential candidates and build a future talent pipeline, similar to the farm systems in professional baseball.

Understanding what motivates candidates and appealing to those factors is essential. Whether it’s highlighting the opportunity to work for a $1.8 billion company, the 8th largest water/wastewater utility in the country or emphasising the commitment to providing a vital resource like water, these aspects should be central to the recruitment message. It is also crucial to change the outdated perception that water utilities are old and boring places to work.

Building partnerships with higher education institutions is key. Engaging with students and faculty allows utilities to offer real-world experiences, professional guidance in curriculum development, mentorships, guest lectures, and internships. In return, universities provide access to new technologies and opportunities for collaboration on capstone projects that yield practical solutions for the utility. 

This symbiotic relationship helps potential candidates better understand the industry and identify how they can apply their education. Additionally, it allows the utility to evaluate potential candidates throughout their education and internships, effectively auditioning them for future roles.

The universities become the utility’s farm system for talent.