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Case study

The challenge

Customer service representatives at a regional electricity provider in New Mexico worked with a slow and unwieldy user interface when inputting address changes or signing up customers on the phone. Customers sometimes faced their own challenges, often failing to locate needed information on the company’s online channels, leading to increased call center volumes. The provider turned to Cognizant to improve the customer service experience through web and mobile channels while also reducing pressure on the customer service team and lowering costs. It wanted to fully exploit digital platforms for the benefit of its 500,000 customers.

Our approach

Our utilities teams built an advanced technology platform to provide customers with a consistent experience across web and mobile channels. We improved the provider’s existing online platforms to make it easier for customers to complete simple tasks, such as creating a user profile and signing up for automatic bill payments. For customer service representatives, we created a simple, web-based interface to handle enquiries, making it easier to process calls quickly. We also strengthened the security of the provider’s online systems by reducing access to personally identifiable information.

Digital tools to enhance the service for New Mexico electricity customers

Thanks to faster response times and more immediate availability of information, customers are able to complete 90% of service tasks online. With many of its customers migrating online, the company has achieved considerable savings and greater customer satisfaction. Cognizant also helped reduce the provider’s call center costs and delays by moving customer enquiries online, increasing the number of online users by 84 percent.

Losing power is a distressing situation, but for thousands of customers in New Mexico blackouts are easier to manage due to mobile alerts and regular updates about when the power supply will be restored.

25%

reduction in average customer call handling time

34,000

customers encouraged to sign up for automatic payments

95,000

customers signed up for outage alerts

200,000

customers created online profiles and signed up for paperless billing