Charge Ahead: Transforming Power Distribution with Consumers Energy

Lauren Snyder, Customer Experience Leader at Consumers Energy, discusses the power behind Michigan's energy landscape. Learn how they're keeping the lights on and boosting sustainable operations. 🔌

Featured on Tomorrow's World Today:
Season 8, Episode 6

Transcript

(0:00) Welcome to the Tomorrow's World Today podcast. (0:04) We sit down with experts, world-changing innovators, creators, and makers to explore how they're (0:11) taking action to make tomorrow's world a better place for technology, science, innovation, (0:18) sustainability, the arts, and more. (0:21) In this episode, George Davison, host of Tomorrow's World Today on the Science Channel, sits down (0:27) with Lauren Snyder, the customer experience leader at Consumers Energy, a Michigan-based (0:32) energy company celebrating nearly 140 years of service.
(0:36) Lauren shares insights on how Consumers Energy is not only keeping the lights on for customers (0:41) across the Lower Peninsula, but also leading the charge towards a net-zero future by 2040. (0:48) They discuss the transformation from traditional energy sources to renewables like solar and (0:53) wind, the integration of smart grid technologies, and the innovative approach to customer interaction (0:59) through journey mapping. (1:01) Now here's George.
(1:03) Hello, everybody, and welcome to another edition of Tomorrow's World Today. (1:07) And today we have a special guest. (1:08) It is Lauren Snyder.
(1:10) Thank you for coming. (1:11) Hello. (1:11) Nice to be here with you.
(1:13) Well, we're hoping to hear a little more about your professional experience. (1:17) Yes. (1:17) And you are with Consumers Energy out in Michigan.
(1:21) In Michigan, yes. (1:22) So welcome. (1:24) Yeah, thank you.
(1:24) And I was hoping today you could talk to our audience a little bit about your position (1:30) and what you do there. (1:32) Sure, sure. (1:33) So Consumers Energy, we are an energy company.
(1:36) So think about when you turn your light switch on, the lights come on, that's us. (1:40) When you turn on the heat in your home, that is us. (1:44) So we've been in business for almost 140 years.
(1:47) And I get the opportunity to lead our customer experience organization. (1:52) So within that, I have responsibility for all of the product offerings that help customers (1:58) in their energy usage. (2:00) So think about energy efficiency, demand response, renewable energy.
(2:05) More people are driving EVs, and we can help with that, getting them set up to charge (2:10) at home and at work. (2:11) I also have a sales and marketing team, an experience design team, and an economic development (2:17) team. (2:18) So how do we make sure that customers, you know, we're engaging with them in ways that (2:22) are meaningful and that we are creating really good experiences for them? (2:26) That's my role.
(2:27) What a great role. (2:28) That sounds fun. (2:29) It's so fun.
(2:30) Yeah. (2:30) Did you have some experiences in your younger life that kind of set you up for this role? (2:36) Well, I am a third generation Consumers Energy employee. (2:40) Wow.
(2:40) Yeah. (2:41) My great grandfather worked for the company. (2:43) My grandfather worked for the company.
(2:45) It skipped a generation and then me. (2:47) And so I knew about Consumers Energy. (2:49) I had heard about it.
(2:50) I kind of had a general sense, but I had no intentions, right? (2:53) I grew up in Jackson, Michigan, which is where our headquarters is located. (2:57) And it wasn't even on my purview to work for the local utility company. (3:01) But I finished my degree, and I had a job interview at the company, and I got the job.
(3:07) And I can remember distinctly, my grandfather called me, and he said to me, okay, like, (3:13) this is going to be good. (3:14) It aligns with the degree that you went to school with. (3:16) You're going to get a lot of really good experience.
(3:18) And then in a couple of years, decide if you want to go do something different, but give (3:21) it a shot. (3:22) And here I am. (3:22) I just celebrated 20 years this summer with the company.
(3:24) Oh my goodness. (3:25) Yes. (3:26) Yeah.
(3:26) Thank you. (3:27) Way to go. (3:27) Yeah.
(3:28) Thanks for sharing your, you know, that part of your story with us. (3:33) Yeah. (3:33) It sounds like it's an exciting job, and you like it.
(3:36) I love it. (3:37) All right. (3:37) So can you give us a summary on the background of Consumer Energy's history? (3:43) Like, how did all this come to be? (3:45) How did it all come to be? (3:46) So we were founded almost 140 years ago in Jackson, Michigan, and with the intent to (3:52) bring lighting to downtown Jackson.
(3:55) Fast forward, we now are supplying electricity and gas through all of the lower peninsula. (4:02) So I like to use the hand to show the map of Michigan. (4:06) And so this is, this lower peninsula here is our service territory.
(4:10) And so we serve 6.8 million customers. (4:13) And we have around 8,000 co-workers that work for Consumers Energy across the whole (4:19) lower peninsula. (4:20) We have service centers across the state, and we are there to serve our customers.
(4:24) Did you say 8,000 employees? (4:26) Just in the state there? (4:27) Yeah. (4:28) Yeah. (4:28) That's a lot.
(4:29) And that's a lot of customers to serve us too. (4:31) It is a lot of customers. (4:31) So you being in your position of that customer's experience, that sounds like a pretty tough (4:38) job actually.
(4:39) That's a lot of people to keep happy on the outside of your company, right? (4:43) With your customers, but then the inside, all your workers. (4:46) So are you navigating between those two worlds? (4:49) Is that part of what your role is? (4:51) It is. (4:51) Yes, of course.
(4:52) You know, I think when you think about the utility company to date, it's been very much (4:58) you don't think of us experience, right? (5:01) Or when you do, it's because there's an issue. (5:03) You had an outage. (5:04) You had a high bill.
(5:05) You know, something like that. (5:06) It's not something that is top of mind for you. (5:09) Well, as we have embarked on this clean energy transformation, where we will be net zero (5:13) by 2040, it's going to require a level of connection with customers that we've not necessarily (5:20) needed to have in the past.
(5:22) And this is a really cool, exciting thing because we know customers want a more sustainable, (5:27) cleaner future. (5:28) That's what we want to. (5:29) And so we have program offerings, which are my responsibility to engage with customers (5:33) in ways to reduce their energy use, in ways to shift their energy use, in ways to sign (5:38) up for solar and wind, things like that.
(5:41) And it really has changed the way that we think about our customers. (5:44) We used to call them rate payers. (5:46) Rate payers? (5:46) When I first started.
(5:47) Yes, we used to call them rate payers, right? (5:49) Because you were paying a rate and we were providing you a service. (5:53) And now, in order for us to be successful, we get the opportunity to interact and engage (5:58) with customers in new and different ways. (6:00) And so when you come to, you know, interact on our website, we want it to be a really (6:04) good experience.
(6:05) In fact, we know every single day if customers, it met their needs, if it was an enjoyable (6:11) experience. (6:12) We measure if it was enjoyable. (6:13) I mean, think of that.
(6:14) Do you think of when you're going to go do something with your utility company that it's (6:17) going to be enjoyable? (6:18) We want to do that because we want customers to see us as a partner so that we together (6:22) can create a clean energy future. (6:25) What a great way of looking at it. (6:26) You know, when I call it the power company, it's usually a long wait on hold and not a (6:31) really good experience.
(6:32) You should move to Michigan. (6:33) You know what? (6:33) I think that's a really good idea. (6:37) But it's great to know that you and a team of people are working behind the scenes to (6:42) make that a good experience.
(6:44) And everybody has different ones across the country, I'm sure. (6:46) But it's just good to know. (6:48) I mean, I would look at that as innovation because innovation comes in all sorts of forms, (6:53) right? (6:53) You've got communication, you've got electrical, telecommunications, satellites, etc.
and innovation. (7:01) But customer service innovations, I don't hear about that very often. (7:06) Well, you know, I mentioned earlier we have an experienced design team, which I do feel (7:10) is pretty unique for a utility company.
(7:12) And the reason that we did that was we wanted to make sure that as we were designing and (7:17) enhancing experiences that the customer was at the forefront of this. (7:20) You know, it's human-centered design. (7:22) And so as we go to create the right move and experience, we want customers to tell us what (7:28) would be best.
(7:29) They're the ones we're in service of, so to help us build this. (7:32) So you probe the customer and then you listen and do observational analysis, probably, of (7:40) what can we do better? (7:41) Yes. (7:41) That sounds like inventing and innovation 101.
(7:44) Yeah. (7:44) All right. (7:45) So then what do you do? (7:46) So then we take that feedback.
(7:48) We create journey maps. (7:49) Okay. (7:50) And we try and identify, you know, what are the pinch points? (7:54) Where, based on the customer feedback, should things be better? (7:57) Where can we iterate? (7:58) And then we'll go to market with some type of prototype, right? (8:01) Like, are we going to pilot something to say, like, is this, how does this experience feel? (8:05) How does it, how do you like it? (8:06) Like, does this get what you need? (8:08) Yes.
(8:09) And then we take that feedback before we go live with the ultimate product. (8:14) That's fabulous, first of all. (8:16) Thank you.
(8:16) And do I think of this as, like, a storytelling experience as well? (8:24) So when you do a journey map and you're thinking about that customer, then you have to communicate (8:29) that journey to your audience. (8:31) Oh, I love that part. (8:32) So it's internally and externally, right? (8:35) So how vital is storytelling to your field of work? (8:39) More important than ever.
(8:41) Okay. (8:41) So let me talk to you about reliability. (8:44) So we know that the most important thing that we hear from customers is they want reliable (8:50) service.
(8:51) They want it to be affordable and they want it to be clean. (8:53) And we have an opportunity at Consumers Energy to do better. (8:57) And we have a really ambitious goal that internally we were working towards.
(9:01) No more than 24 hours without power. (9:03) Like no, that doesn't happen. (9:05) No utilities making that claim.
(9:07) And that no more than 100,000 customers without service at one time. (9:11) And that is a rare thing, especially with all the extreme weather we're experiencing. (9:15) Like that is hard.
(9:16) That's a very ambitious goal. (9:17) And we made that public a year ago. (9:20) And we said, we know we've got to get better.
(9:22) So there's a level of like, we understand that we've got to get better here. (9:26) And we have a really ambitious goal. (9:28) We want you to know that we are going to shoot to be the best in this.
(9:31) And we're going to show you what we do every day on how we're improving that work. (9:36) And so we're telling that story through our coworkers. (9:41) Linemen during storms, right? (9:43) We'll catch them to say, like, tell us what you just did.
(9:45) Like, tell us what this is. (9:46) Because I think that, you know, restoring power, it's dangerous. (9:51) There's a ton of hazards that our coworkers deal with.
(9:54) And to show how, you know, all that's required to deliver energy and restore energy. (10:00) I don't know if people have an appreciation for that. (10:02) It's hard.
(10:03) And so how do we, through our coworkers, (10:05) because I also want to put a face to Consumers Energy. (10:07) So when they think of Consumers Energy, they think of Joe the lineman, (10:12) not this nameless, faceless entity. (10:14) And so to let Joe help tell that story and show the work that he's doing to deliver (10:18) for his friends and his family and his neighbors, that's what we're after.
(10:22) So there's a huge storytelling component to the work we do. (10:25) So I love the whole way you just described all that. (10:29) Because getting people to chase goals, like, (10:32) it's a lot easier when you have a noble cause that you're chasing.
(10:37) So, you know, trying to get everybody power back as fast as possible, (10:40) that's a rallying cry for all your internal people, right? (10:43) And then you've got people probably in medical conditions, they need that power. (10:48) And so, yeah, that's a hurry up offense. (10:50) And the fact that you're rallying your troops to meet the cause.
(10:56) I love hearing that. (10:57) And so a lot of innovation that drives your people forward, right? (11:01) It does. Absolutely.
(11:02) Good work. (11:03) All right, let's hit another question. (11:05) Okay.
(11:05) So could you reiterate again, how big is Consumers Energy? (11:10) How many employees and how many customers are you actually serving? (11:14) We have service centers and serve the lower part of Michigan, (11:18) like the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. (11:19) Yes. (11:20) That's 6.8 million customers.
(11:23) And we have around 8,000 employees that deliver for our customers. (11:28) So what's been the biggest technological advancement during your time at the company? (11:33) Oh, okay. (11:34) There's a couple of things I want to highlight.
(11:36) So we were just talking about reliability. (11:38) Yes. (11:39) And we, over the last, since my time there, have been working on creating a smarter grid.
(11:44) So we have been investing in technology on our power grid (11:49) so that we know when a power outage occurs, even sometimes before it's about to occur. (11:56) And we have line sensors that can help us identify where that's happening (12:00) so that we can stop it from continuing to spread on the grid. (12:05) So it helps mitigate the impact of that outage.
(12:08) It could have been much bigger had that technology sensing device been in place. (12:13) So that's one example. (12:14) That's one technology advancement when we think about a smart grid.
(12:17) The other thing is renewables. (12:19) You know, when I started at the company, (12:21) we did not talk about solar and wind and renewable natural gas. (12:27) Like that was not in our purview.
(12:29) And as we watched the economics of that actually start to make sense (12:34) and began to build that into our overall portfolio, (12:39) like we are doing wind and solar and we're going to be doing more wind and solar (12:43) and we're doing batteries and we're going to be doing more batteries. (12:47) So as I think about the advancements of where we were with coal, (12:49) and we were one of the first utilities in the country to come out of coal. (12:52) So we've been thinking about this for a while now (12:55) and we're going to retire our last coal plant next year.
(12:58) And so we are already down a path of renewable energy. (13:01) And that when I started 20 years ago, we were coal and gas. (13:05) Wow.
And what do we do with those like the old sites that used to have the coal? (13:11) I remember seeing all the big coal piles and everything back in the day in our area. (13:15) Well, we're working with the local communities (13:17) to figure out what would be best for them. (13:20) Again, in pursuit of customer first mentality.
(13:22) Like what would they like to see there? (13:25) And we're also thinking about ways to convert those sites into solar panels. (13:30) So lots of things are underway. (13:31) So reuse, because those locations tend to be in pretty important spots.
(13:36) They do. (13:37) So yeah, our local one is that's on a rail line. (13:40) It's on the river.
(13:41) It's prime real estate. (13:43) And so yeah, it's great to have a reuse. (13:46) Total reuse and total like what is best for that community.
(13:50) That's top of mind for us. (13:51) Good customer service. (13:53) And what ways does your company conduct research for future products or services? (13:59) Yeah.
(14:00) So we within my team, we have an innovation team that is looking at what is the next product (14:05) that we need to make sure we have in customer's hands so that they can use their energy (14:10) to the best of their ability. (14:12) And so what that looks like is monitoring the industry, (14:16) monitoring what's happening across different industries, quite frankly. (14:20) What is the pulse of what's happening out there? (14:24) Working with a lot of industry groups to find out, has anyone tested and tried? (14:29) Is there something that we should be all thinking about? (14:33) And then what we do is we will pick certain things to pilot.
(14:37) We have a great pilot, a whole system for piloting products (14:40) and testing things with subsets of customers to get their feedback. (14:44) And then if we find that it offers the right ROI (14:47) and that there's a demand from it from customers, (14:50) we will broaden that and go live. (14:52) Nice.
(14:52) So it's a limited exposure to risk. (14:55) Yes. (14:55) You try it and then if it's good to go, you roll it out all through Michigan? (15:00) That's right.
(15:00) Yeah, that's wonderful. (15:01) That's a smart way to do it. (15:03) We do a lot of prototyping here and we do a lot of testing and then limited rollout.
(15:08) And then if the technology looks good, we do the same thing. (15:11) And now we go to, we scale up. (15:13) We scale up and we often will start with employees (15:15) because they can be your toughest critics.
(15:17) Of course. (15:18) We get really good feedback. (15:20) As well as ourselves.
(15:21) You have that little inner, that little thing back here that goes, (15:24) that's not going to work. (15:25) That's not going to work, yes. (15:27) Well, and I too like to participate in all the things we have.
(15:29) I want to know what it feels like. (15:31) Right. (15:31) And go through it.
(15:32) Go through it. (15:33) Yes. (15:34) Yeah.
(15:34) That's the best way to do it. (15:36) All right. (15:38) So what does the future of technology and sustainability look like for the company? (15:43) So we're really focused on reliability, affordability, and clean.
(15:48) And so as we think about the path we're on right now to be net zero by 2040, (15:53) we're going to be doing more wind, more solar, more batteries. (15:57) We're going to continue to leverage our hydro facility, (16:00) which is one of the biggest in the world, quite frankly. (16:04) We're going to continue to be thinking about what is the right next application (16:09) that benefits our customers from an affordability standpoint (16:12) and a clean standpoint and a reliability standpoint.
(16:14) So it's continually working in the plan that we have (16:18) and being open to what's next in pursuit of our ambition. (16:22) All right. (16:23) Well done.
(16:23) So if I was to take another peek at this and I could look into like a crystal ball (16:28) and I said to myself, (16:30) well, I wonder what the future of the energy production and distribution business is. (16:36) What am I going to see out there as probably a pretty positive thing (16:42) that you can comfortably say? (16:44) I think you're going to see that in the next 20 years. (16:46) You're going to see a lot more renewables.
(16:48) You're going to see a stronger, more resilient grid. (16:51) And you're going to see, we're going to see more electric demand (16:55) than we've ever seen, definitely in my tenure, (16:58) with AI and data centers, electric vehicles, more electrification. (17:03) So you're going to just see more demand for electricity (17:07) and you're going to see it produced in a cleaner, affordable and more reliable way.
(17:12) Well, that's nice. (17:12) You know, that transition of moving from brand new technology, (17:16) which is usually outrageously expensive in the beginning (17:19) because you have to try everything and fail and fix and fail and fix (17:23) and finally get it right. (17:25) And it's very expensive.
(17:26) Right. (17:27) And then once you scale up, (17:29) now that price comes really into an acceptable level. (17:32) And that's where we like to be.
(17:34) I think everybody does. (17:37) The challenge is not everybody's ready for that. (17:40) Like some people just don't grasp the concept of how much we have to fail (17:44) in order to come up with those ideas.
(17:47) I mean, it's very expensive, time consuming and everything else. (17:50) And then when we get to roll out and scale up, (17:53) everyone's like, oh, this is great. (17:54) Meanwhile, you're like, oh, if you only knew what that took.
(17:57) You know? (17:59) All right. (17:59) Well, I can't thank you enough for coming in here today. (18:03) Well, thank you.
(18:04) Well, everybody, that's another edition of Tomorrow's World Today. (18:08) Lauren, thank you for joining us. (18:10) Thank you for having me.
(18:11) Bye, everybody. (18:12) Thanks for listening to this episode of the Tomorrow's World Today podcast. (18:18) Join us next time as we continue to explore the worlds of inspiration, (18:23) creation, innovation and production.
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