Quarterly Round Up from the Datamere Team
As usual there’s been lots going on in the Datamere office over the last few months, both work wise and on a personal level for the team. Over the last few months we’ve seen lots of changes for the team including an office move, some internal role changes and we’ve begun working with two brand new clients as well as keeping up to date with the necessary industry change and of course constantly working to develop and improve GENUS© further.
As you will hopefully all be aware the Datamere Managed Services team moved office to allow us extra space for our growing team. We’ve literally moved just over the landing to a new, larger office within the same building and now have the space to run training sessions as well as bringing new staff into the team. We are now located in Suite 3 (rather than Suite 4), still at Holy Oak Farm.
We’ve also been very busy working on lots of new functionality in GENUS©, some of which will be detailed later, but some of the most useful areas according to the DMS team has been the advanced billing option and the new read reminder service. This allows read reminder emails to be sent out direct to customers from triggers set within the system ensuring you are keeping those rolling AQs as accurate as possible. The power and DTN project within GENUS© are in the final stages and with 2 clients due to migrate imminently they will be really pushing the system to make sure it delivers. Just as an aside, we want to make all clients aware that all future versions of GENUS© will be delivered with a 6-month expiry date in place in an effort to ensure that all clients keep up to date with their UAT versions.
Client support calls are now scheduled to happen bi-monthly and September/October calls are now due! If we haven’t been in touch to arrange an update meeting this month, you’ll be hearing from us shortly. We’ve found that as well as covering off support, these calls are an excellent way of keeping in touch about the type of changes which can affect all businesses. On the personal side for the team, Elliot Robertson in our development office popped the question to his girlfriend, Steph over the summer and happily, she said ‘yes’! The big date hasn’t yet been set but we’ll be sure to keep you posted.
On a more subdued note, we will be sorry to say ‘Goodbye’ to Tina Waterman this month. Tina has been with us for the past 4 years but with other family commitments has decided that now is the time to move on. We’ll miss you and your little Brummie accent Tina, make sure you keep in touch and keep bringing those treats in!
Faster Switching
As you all may know, this project will be ongoing for the next couple of years but has really gathered pace over the last few months. We are expecting the programme plan to be baselined in the delivery group meeting on the 3rd October. That means we will have a definitive view of the requirements so after that we will be able to fully analyse what the changes mean for GENUS© and the flow protocols within.
To read more about the programme visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/gas/retail-market/market-review-and-reform/smarter-markets-programme/switching-programme
You can also sign up the various workshops by registering at: SwitchingPMO@ofgem.gov.uk Following the baseline requirements, we will be in touch with further details about Datamere’s approach to this industry change.
Advanced Billing and Read Reminder Triggers
Advanced billing is now available within GENUS© and has been designed to allow clients to forward bill a site to prevent a lag in cashflow whilst waiting for the opening reads following the transfer of a supply. The functionality works by looking at the AQ and calculating a consumption without the requirement of meter reads. A site is then reconciled following the acceptance of the industry readings and the associated bills are adjusted accordingly. The read reminder service sits behind a switch as chargeable functionality in GENUS© and allows a series of configurable triggers to automatically send out meter reading requests direct from GENUS©. For example, on receipt of a TRF file, the system can be set to automatically send out an email requesting an opening read. There are many other scenarios also covered so please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you require more information.
If you would like to know more about any of this functionality please contact us on support@datamere.co.uk or call us on 01625 525033.
GDPR Processor Agreements
For those clients who use DMS for a managed service and in order to comply with GDPR, we would recommend (if you haven’t already done so) that you set up your controller/processor agreements. The following points are taken from the ICO website:
whenever a controller uses a processor, there must be a written contract in place.
The contract is important so that both parties understand their responsibilities and liabilities.
The GDPR sets out what needs to be included in the contract.
For further information please visit the ICO website: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/accountability-and-governance/contracts/
DCC Integration
We are currently evaluating whether there is any client demand for a DCC integration layer within GENUS© and your chosen provider (in most cases TMA). We have been working with TMA to understand what integration would be needed within GENUS© at the same time as trying to ascertain client interest in this functionality. Some of you have been back in touch expressing an interest in learning more but please do let us know if you haven’t already done so.
With the recent news that the smart meter rollout deadline has been pushed back to 2024, the pressure seems to be off a little, but the licence obligations still remain.
GENUS© App
We are currently considering the development of a GENUS© meter reading app which any supplier would be able to brand as their own. Customers could then be invited to download the app and import their reads which would link into GENUS©. If you think you may be interested in a service like this please contact julie@datamere.co.uk so we can register your interest.
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