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By Jesse Berst
One interesting presentation came from Omar Abbosh, Chief Strategy Officer, Resources. He talked about the necessary balancing act between scale (getting big for efficiency), trust (preserving the utilities "license to operate"), and specialization (staying very good at key skills). As an example of the latter, he shared the six skills Accenture has found to be essential for success in smart metering.
2. Financing techniques. Understanding where to source the money (and whose balance sheet you can borrow to do so).
3. Incremental deployment. Avoiding "big bang" rollouts in favor of careful, staged deployments. Think small pilots that graduate to medium-sized trials that grow into deployments that are phased geographically and phased in terms of capability. Don't try to everything at once or everywhere at once.
4. Packaging work complexity. Getting maximum efficiency from your work crews by ensuring they go out with all of the inventory they need and the skills they need to complete the job the first time.
5. Supply chain. These days you have to source globally, yet retain great control and detail at the local end point.
6. Systems integration. The smart grid is, after all, a system of complex systems.
It's no easy task to assemble all of those specialists and then to get them collaborating effectively. Especially since most utilities don't have all six in- house and will have to bring in consultants to fill the gaps. If you are contemplating smart meters – or if you are underway already – you will want to be sure you have all six skills around the table.
Are there other skills vital to a successful smart metering rollout? Use the comment form to share your thoughts.
You might also be interested in…
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Jesse Berst is the founder and chief analyst of Smart Grid News.com. He consults to smart grid companies seeking market entry advice and M&A advisory. A frequent keynoter at industry events in the US and abroad, he also serves on the Advisory Council of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Energy & Environment directorate.
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