Services
Our Services
Finance & Accounting
With deep industry knowledge paired with a strong understanding of the utility business, UCG delivers solutions in helping finance bring value as a strategic business partner. Our consultants have extensive experience in helping finance organizations align processes, develop leaner finance functions, perform financial analytics and reporting, and internal controls. We assist our clients with balancing strategic goals and on-going business and regulatory challenges. We can help you in key areas within finance and accounting, such as:
- Budgeting, planning, long term forecasting
- Performance management and goals
- Earnings reporting, monthly financial close
- Financial and tax modeling and analysis
- Enterprise risk management
- Chart of account analysis, work order closing
- Ratebase and depreciation
- Accounts payable, receivable, and payroll
- Joint ownership billings, claims billings
- SOX/controls documentation and testing
Regulatory Support
Utilities must comply with existing regulations, respond to new requirements and deploy resources for a host of regulatory filings such as rate cases. UCG helps clients with regulatory strategy development, rate case preparation, testimony and witness support, other regulatory filings support, revenue requirement forecasting, financial results modeling, and regulatory reporting.
Our consultants have strong utility regulatory experience coupled with deep industry knowledge to manage the challenges and opportunities of changing markets and regulatory climate. We can help in key areas such as:
- Workpaper system design and development
- Results of operations model development
- Rate design modeling
- Rate case strategy development
- FERC formula design and implementation
- Testimonies and workpapers preparation
- Witnesses preparation
- Data request management
- Litigation support
- Embedded cost analysis
Customer Service
Transforming the customer experience can have a direct impact on the bottom line for utilities. Positive experiences translate into improved customer engagement and loyalty, and present opportunities for personalized services and targeting. UCG offers insight into the strategies, processes and technologies for our clients to successfully create and deliver an exceptional customer experience. We focus on helping our clients develop customer programs, shape call centers, implement technology changes, and evaluate customer programs while maintaining positive customer interaction. We partner with our clients to align the customer service function with corporate strategy. We can assist in key areas such as:
- Customer service strategy
- Customer experience strategy
- Segmentation, channel, product and service strategy
- Call center, billing, credit and collections strategy
- Operational improvement
- Capacity planning and modeling
- Rate reform and implementation
- CIS system planning, implementation, and stabilization
Strategy & Business Process Redesign
As the industry embraces new trends such as customer self-service, smart grid technology, and renewable energy, there is a constant continued need for process redesign and implementation of change to meet new business requirements. UCG has a proven track record in business process design and re-engineering. We excel in collaboratively working with our clients to design and implement key business processes to improve operations and meet client goals.
In order to adapt to new industry challenges, it is critical to review, assess and constantly change the internal organizations and processes. Our experienced consultants bring many years of experience in developing and implementing process improvements and organizational change to drive operational excellence. We can help in the following key areas:
- Organizational change management
- Process redesign
- Program and project management
- Communications Management
- Risk Management
- Internal controls review and testing
Information Technology
Information technology (IT) is the backbone of any organization and plays a critical role in the operation of today’s businesses. A sound IT strategy plays a vital role in an organization’s ability to execute its business strategy, support decision making and manage risks.
UCG helps organizations develop their IT strategy and link it to their strategic and operational objectives. We support our clients with business case development, software selection, systems design, testing, implementation and post-implementation stabilization. We work to ensure business readiness assessments are designed and completed for each stakeholder group so the impact of new systems on their operation are well understood. With our experience and functional knowledge, we have the ability to help mitigate common risks of technology implementations. We have extensive experience with SAP, PowerPlan, Ariba and customer billing systems. We can help in key areas such as:
- Planning and business case development
- Technology evaluation & selection
- Business requirements analysis
- Analytics, dashboarding and reporting
- System and user acceptance testing
- Training, deployment and stabilization
- Program and project management
- Organizational change management
Transmission & Distribution
Transmission and Distribution (T&D) is essential to providing the link between generating stations and customers. Recently the utility industry has been faced with aging infrastructure challenges and trends to modernize the grid, all while managing cost pressures and maintaining reliability. We help our clients manage the planning, process and accounting related needs that are a part of T&D operations. We partner with our clients to provide the following services:
- Work management process and system
- Asset management process and system
- Geographical information process and system
- Design processes and compatible units
- Inspection processes
- Asset data accuracy
- Field accounting processes
- Operational process reviews
- Engineering quality assurance