North American Utilities Looking to Software, Services to Address New Demands

Emerging grid and asset management software, third-party services being adopted as energy sources and customer expectations change, ISG Research says

North American Utilities Looking to Software, Services to Address New Demands

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Will Thoretz, ISG
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Julianna Sheridan, Matter Communications for ISG
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Electric utility companies in North America are adopting new infrastructure, software and services to meet the growing need for sustainability while maintaining reliable energy delivery over aging power grids, according to new research published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm.

The proliferation of distributed, renewable energy resources, the growing demand for power from AI data centers, and the impacts of climate change pose challenges to grid stability and reliability, ISG says. North American utilities are modernizing grids and adopting advanced asset and grid management software to increase resilience and efficiency. To maximize the value of software solutions, they are investing in consulting, implementation, integration and management services.

“North America’s existing power grids cannot support the ongoing energy transition,” said Korey Barnard, ISG partner and industry lead for utilities in North America. “A majority of utilities are investing in major grid renovations, embracing rapid software innovation and an expanding array of enabling services.”

To guide utilities through the selection of software and services, ISG has published the 2024 ISG Provider Lens™ Power & Utilities Industry — Services and Solutions report for North America and two ISG Buyers Guides™: Power and Utilities Grid Management and Power and Utilities Enterprise Asset Management. Together, the three reports assist companies in choosing both software solutions and providers of consulting, implementation, integration and management services.

Managing North American energy grids, which are among the world’s most complex infrastructures, requires advanced, interoperable software that can control multiple generations of technology, ISG says. This includes platforms for orchestration and connectivity to the edges of the network. AI insights and automation are at the core of many software solutions that utilities are using to integrate new energy sources and make decisions for grid optimization and cost savings.

Asset management software is also critical to the operation and stability of evolving energy grids. Utilities seek platforms that use new technology, including AI, to increase the performance and extend the useful life of assets while reducing operating costs. Through 2027, a majority of utilities will update asset management systems to ensure uninterrupted power delivery, ISG says. They will look closely at how well these support legacy infrastructure and proprietary systems that can make it harder to isolate and address problems.

North American utilities rely on qualified service providers to integrate new grid and asset management software and implement new technologies, including automation and AI-enabled customer experience platforms, the ISG Provider Lens report says. Providers also help clients plan and operate systems as they face a talent shortage exacerbated by an aging workforce.

“Service providers are essential to modernizing utilities for the new energy age,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Qualified providers offer talent, roadmaps and niche solutions that meet specific utilities’ needs, multiplying the value of new technology investments.”

For more insights into the challenges faced by North American electric utility companies and ISG’s advice for overcoming them, see the ISG Provider Lens™ Focal Points briefing here.

The ISG Buyers Guide™ for Power and Utilities Grid Management evaluates 12 software providers and names GE Vernova, Schneider Electric and Siemens as Overall Leaders. The ISG Buyers Guide™ for Power and Utilities Enterprise Asset Management evaluates 12 software providers and names SAP, IBM and Hitachi Energy as Overall Leaders.

The 2024 ISG Provider Lens™ Power & Utilities Industry — Services and Solutions report for North America evaluates the capabilities of 34 providers across five quadrants: Intelligent Business Process Management Services (iBPMS), Next-gen IT Services, Grid Modernization, Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) and Customer Information Systems (CIS) and Customer Experience (CX).

The report names Accenture, Cognizant, IBM Consulting, Infosys and TCS as Leaders in all five quadrants. It names Capgemini, Deloitte, HCLTech and Wipro as Leaders in four quadrants each. Alorica, Genpact, Hitachi Digital Services and Tech Mahindra are named as Leaders in two quadrants each. Concentrix, LTIMindtree, PwC and Teleperformance are named as Leaders in one quadrant each.

In addition, Cyient is named as a Rising Star — a company with a “promising portfolio” and “high future potential” by ISG’s definition — in three quadrants. EY, Kyndryl, Tech Mahindra and Wipro are named as Rising Stars in one quadrant each.

Visit this webpage to learn more about the ISG Power and Utilities Buyers Guides and to read the executive summaries of the two reports. The complete reports, including provider rankings across seven product and customer experience dimensions and detailed research findings on each provider, are available by contacting ISG Software Research.

The 2024 ISG Provider Lens™ Power & Utilities Industry — Services and Solutions report for North America is available to subscribers or for one-time purchase on this webpage.

About ISG Software Research

ISG Software Research, previously Ventana Research, provides authoritative market research and coverage of the business and IT software industry. It distributes research and insights daily through its user community, and provides a portfolio of consulting, advisory, research and education services for enterprises, software and service providers, and investment firms. Its on-demand service provides structured education and advisory support through subject-matter experts. ISG Buyers Guides™ support the RFI/RFP process and help enterprises evaluate and select software providers through tailored assessment services and the ISG Software Research Value Index methodology. Visit research.isg-one.com for more information and to sign up for free community membership.

About ISG Provider Lens™ Research

The ISG Provider Lens™ Quadrant research series is the only service provider evaluation of its kind to combine empirical, data-driven research and market analysis with the real-world experience and observations of ISG's global advisory team. Enterprises will find a wealth of detailed data and market analysis to help guide their selection of appropriate sourcing partners, while ISG advisors use the reports to validate their own market knowledge and make recommendations to ISG's enterprise clients. The research currently covers providers offering their services globally, across Europe, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the U.K., France, Benelux, Germany, Switzerland, the Nordics, Australia and Singapore/Malaysia, with additional markets to be added in the future. For more information about ISG Provider Lens research, please visit this webpage.

About ISG

ISG (Nasdaq: III) is a global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm. A trusted partner to more than 900 clients, including 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is a long-time leader in technology and business services that is now at the forefront of leveraging AI to help organizations achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm, founded in 2006, is known for its proprietary market data, in-depth knowledge of provider ecosystems, and the expertise of its 1,600 professionals worldwide working together to help clients maximize the value of their technology investments.

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