As a Salesforce cofounder, I’ve been involved in engineering SaaS solutions for many years. I believe that traditional, comprehensive platform-oriented cloud and hybrid approaches, including those from SaaS giants, are often not the best option for utility and agency program management. From my experience in the energy space, PowerClerk® offers key benefits over those software solutions and is a compelling solution for utilities and energy agencies of all sizes.
PowerClerk has profoundly transformed energy program management, initially helping customers transition from paper-based approaches and other suboptimal systems to a highly efficient workflow automation solution. Today, PowerClerk is the industry’s leading program management software for distributed energy resources (DERs) and beyond. It has earned the trust of over 65 utilities and agencies in the U.S., Canada and Central America. PowerClerk has become the de facto standard solution for interconnection automation for distributed generation (DG) and large data center loads, all the way to utility-scale transmission programs.
PowerClerk handles a broad range of program types including DERs, service requests, pole attachments and other utility workflows ranging from simple to complex. It has processed more than two million interconnection projects, and 14 of the top 15 largest utilities in the U.S. rely on one or more Clean Power Research® cloud solutions.
Key elements of high-performance utility program management solutions
In my time at Clean Power Research, I’ve seen customers who, frustrated with the limitations of solutions—and support—from the SaaS giants, switch to PowerClerk. They quickly appreciate that PowerClerk is not just a better fit for their needs, but a solution that significantly enhances their operations. Here are some key aspects that utilities should consider when evaluating a workflow automation solution.
- Baked-in best practices based on real utility customer needs and experiences
Clean Power Research views PowerClerk customers as partners. Our partners’ real-world experiences and processes enable us to continually enhance and innovate PowerClerk, which has transformed it into a trusted, best-in-class workflow SaaS solution. By incorporating valuable insights and feedback from our existing customers, new customers benefit from the ability to access advanced features and industry best practices tailored to their needs.
Industry-specific features include detailed equipment lists (i.e., CEC and EPRI equipment lists for PV, inverters, storage, EVs and EV chargers) and specialized form elements designed specifically for the industry, among others. These purpose-built components reduce or eliminate duplicative data entry and help ensure data accuracy. This provides immediate aid to programs and helps utilities leverage PowerClerk as a reliable system-of-record for subsequent data-intensive tasks, such as distribution planning.
Additionally, our customer success team has developed exemplary workflows and integrations for federal programs such as HER/HEAR; PNNL’s home rebate API; Solar for All programs; and transmission interconnection workflows that align to the latest FERC interconnection rules. All of these enable accelerated deployments, as called out in three and four below.
- Industry expertise from an outstanding team
The Clean Power Research team’s domain expertise enables us to offer exceptional service to our customers. Our team is well-versed in utility, energy and rebate terminology and vernacular, with members who have gained valuable experience working within the sector. This deep understanding and support differentiates PowerClerk, enabling organizations using it to realize gains in efficiency and scale much more quickly than with competing solutions. The customer success team is accessible, responsive and engaged with our customers regardless of their size.
- Ability to meet aggressive energy program launch timelines
Typically, the period from contract signing to PowerClerk program launch spans from a few weeks to a few months. PowerClerk recently replaced a prominent CRM provider at a major U.S. utility, due in part to PowerClerk’s track record of speedy deployments. Over the course of six years, the utility had grown increasingly frustrated and disappointed with the CRM provider’s inflexibility, pace and poor user experience.
With PowerClerk, that customer’s program will go live in five months—a significant, yet unremarkable feat for PowerClerk, even considering the complexity and integrations involved. Another recent example is a Canadian utility customer that was able to launch its program in three months to meet an aggressive timeline.
- Blazing-fast turnaround on updates to existing programs
For utilities and agencies, updating programs to meet regulatory changes can be critical. With PowerClerk’s no-code platform, utilities can quickly update and revise live programs, typically without IT involvement. A new customer noted that a simple field alteration in their conventional CRM solution could take up to a year(!). In PowerClerk, a program manager at a utility or agency can execute that same modification in minutes.
Changes to larger CRM solutions often require IT or a third-party, which can incur additional costs and delays in implementation. However, PowerClerk’s agility streamlines operations, reduces costs associated with changes, and establishes PowerClerk as an efficient and more cost-effective option while empowering program teams to deliver.
- Ability to leverage existing utility investments
An increasing number of customers are replacing large SaaS providers with PowerClerk to manage and operate their workflows and processes. However, it’s important to note that due to PowerClerk’s advanced integration capabilities, customers can still leverage and capitalize on their existing technological investments. Often, PowerClerk becomes a system-of-record for the program data it handles.
PowerClerk seamlessly integrates and complements well-known platforms used by utilities such as ArcGIS, Salesforce, SAP, IBM® Maximo and Oracle, to name a few. Smaller utilities, especially co-ops and munis, sometimes deploy PowerClerk to automate programs with no immediate integration to other systems. However, they do this with the confidence that when the organization is ready from a labor or budget resource perspective, they can quickly adapt and integrate any PowerClerk programs with existing systems.
PowerClerk is a well-established solution in the energy program space, distinguished by a proven track record of driving the success of utility and agency programs. PowerClerk initially started by displacing paper-based systems, and it is a validation of our vision and efforts to see that it is now the preferred choice over SaaS giants for energy programs. Over time, more utilities and energy agencies have come to realize they can put their programs online more quickly, cost effectively and adaptably with PowerClerk, and rely on it to effectively address a wide range of current and future program challenges.
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Author biography
As the Software Architect on the PowerClerk team at Clean Power Research, Frank Dominguez works on problem solving and strategic decision making that guides and shapes PowerClerk’s future. Prior to joining Clean Power Research, Frank was a Salesforce cofounder where he developed skills and best practices unique to creating a highly successful Software as a Service (SaaS) company.
Frank’s interest in clean energy was galvanized when his hometown of Napa, California, and surrounding areas began enduring summers of devasting wildfires. He is motivated by working with like-minded individuals who are driven to achieve a more sustainable future.
Frank holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University and remembers when computer science was part of the Math department.