One effect of the shift to an increasingly decentralized energy system is a growing trend toward collaboration and expanding energy ecosystems. Networks of industry organizations are working together to accelerate the energy transition, whether that’s through the formation of Virtual Power Plants (VPP), sharing energy data, or cross-border cooperation to improve resilience.

A changing energy sector needs a different approach to customer-vendor relationships. And it's this sense of collaboration and partnership that underpins the way we work at Gorilla. In an industry undergoing such a wholesale transformation, a reliable IT partner can help energy retailers navigate change, using it as a springboard for improved business operations and growth.

A completed software implementation and a successful go-live isn’t the end of a project for Gorilla. It just marks the start of another phase of our client partnership.

Like any good relationship, trust is the foundation. IT implementation shouldn’t be a black box; it needs transparency and dialogue. This means including the client’s leadership team to ensure the project solves the retailer’s business challenges. It means working with customers to set realistic objectives, timeframes, and costs. And underpinning it all, ongoing and open feedback and communication.

Why transparency matters in energy retail IT projects

It’s a familiar story…

A retailer brings in an IT vendor to transform their pricing process. Perhaps they’ve opted for a custom-built system or even a non-industry-specific PaaS for portfolio management.

Soon, the project gets bogged down in unforeseen issues and delays. The precise problem isn’t clear, implementation team members come and go, and expensive IT consultancy hours are mounting up.

And at this exact moment, it’s clear the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is on a sharply upward trajectory…

With the surge in energy data and increasing need for more real-time insights, the case for IT modernization is clear for most retailers. But these system transformations are incredibly complex and there’s so much room for missteps. Delays, hidden costs, and IT that doesn’t live up to its promise – all common problems.

Common, but not inevitable.

Retailers don’t have time to wait a year or more for the PaaS to be market-ready or even two for a self-build solution. Implementations must minimize Time to Value (TTV) so retailers can start managing and capitalizing on sector changes as soon as possible and experience the benefits of real-time energy pricing software.

All this rests on a transparent delivery process and ongoing support through planning, implementation, and critically, beyond the go-live too

Building transparency into the implementation process

Communication is much easier when you know the people you’re working with. And it’s why we make sure we put the right implementation team together before we start the project. Whether it’s an IT or business leader from the retailer side, engineers or senior staff from Gorilla, or one of our system integrator partners, everyone understands what their role is in the team.

Once the team is in place, we create clear channels for communication, oversight, and governance. Here are some of the other building blocks for a transparent implementation process:

1. Establishing a clear scope and realistic timelines

We want retailers to see the benefits of our energy pricing software as soon as possible, but spending time upfront to establish the scope is never wasted.

To make an accurate projection of the TCO and timelines, we need to fully understand what you want to achieve, how this fits with your business objectives, and any key milestones, such as regulatory deadlines.

2. Regular updates, feedback and check-ins

We establish how best to communicate as a team, both about project management and tooling.  Regular meetings and updates are built into the delivery framework, so we always keep clients updated on how the project is progressing.

3. We deliver what we say we will

We’re upfront about what can be achieved in the timeframes you’re looking for. We make sure we deliver the outcomes we agreed during the planning phase and won’t sell you impossible dreams.

4. Long-term value. Short-term ins

To reduce Time to Value, we test what works and prioritize quick wins. With an incremental rollout, you’ll start seeing the benefits while we’re still in the implementation stage, for example getting some automations up and running.

With our partnership approach, we make sure those short-term wins snowball long-term as we understand more about your business.

A successful Go-Live is just the start

Many IT projects fail to meet retailers’ expectations because the vendor disappears after the implementation phase. It’s the ongoing partnership beyond the go-live that makes all the difference with Gorilla’s energy retail software solutions.

Because we get to know you and your business, we can spot how our software implementations can help you iterate products or pricing strategies and scale your operations.

Here’s how it works:

1. Dedicated ongoing support

Post implementation, your dedicated support team steps in. From help creating workflows to pricing and forecasting strategies, our partnership model means customers have a direct line to experts at Gorilla once the implementation is up and running.

2. Proactive issue resolution

Your support team will often spot issues before they become a problem for your pricing employees. A Gorilla analyst assists with your workflows and models, helping to fix discrepancies if they appear. Your software is automatically updated when improvements are issued.

3. Building on innovation

We want your team to get the most from our software. Our solutions are used by retailers all over the world, we’re constantly learning and improving our solutions. We’ll share that experience so you can unleash the power of our energy retail software solutions - and your data.  

4. Expect continuous growth

As you use the system, you'll accumulate more historic data from your pricing forecasting, and customer use. This data can then feed back into future workflows and formulae to improve future performance. With reliable energy pricing software and accurate data, you can continuously improve products, fine-tune pricing strategies, and optimize business operations.

How our partnerships are delivering real results for energy retailers

Our clients tell us that our adaptive approach is one of the reasons they partner with us. We want our energy pricing software solutions to deliver the outcomes that will move their business forward. This is why we put so much importance on communication and transparency.

And it’s why we made multiple visits to Atlanta to meet with Gas South, one of the largest retail natural gas providers in the US. The retailer needed a new pricing solution when their existing system couldn’t scale to handle a newly acquired competitor.

As our first US client, adapting to the unique features of US gas markets took some time; Gorilla started by building a model for Florida for Gas South approval that could then be rolled out to other states. The Gas South team quickly grew to around 6 people as progress accelerated and the scope changed-the need for more defined scopes at project start was a key learning for the team.

We’re now further adapting to Gas South’s market and progressing to an official go-live date. We’re also exploring additional use cases for further rollouts, such as automated pricing.

This adaptive, collaborative approach was critical in our work with Australian integrated electricity generator and retailer, Synergy. Supplying over a million residential, business, and industry customers, Synergy wanted to automate their electricity pricing processes. With highly customized offers for its business customers, Synergy needed unique capabilities for its energy pricing software.

The implementation team included Synergy’s pricing specialists, PwC integration specialists, and technical experts from Gorilla. This collaborative approach delivered an integrated platform for Synergy that provides accurate, real-time pricing solutions.

The energy sector is undergoing a once-in-a-generation upheaval. The IT that can help retailers manage this change must be carefully thought through and aligned with the retailer’s unique business objectives and challenges.

To reduce risk, rapid time to market is critical. However, fast, reliable, and stable implementation is built on partnership, effective communication, and transparency. By placing the customer at the center of all projects, IT projects have better outcomes.

We’re always surprised this isn’t standard industry practice. More successful outcomes for clients are more rewarding for vendors too. If you’re looking for a vendor that puts you at the heart of decision-making, let’s talk.