ESB Independent Energy

EM pays a visit to the staff of ESBIE, one of ESB Group's most vital and exciting divisions.

ESB Independent Energy (ESBIE), a part of the ESB Group, was set up six and a half years ago to compete in the newly deregulated electricity markets, with the goal of becoming the first-choice utility services company in competitive markets in Ireland. Since that time, ESBIE has become one of the leading providers of energy to industrial and commercial users in both the Republic and Northern Ireland, simultaneously expanding its range of services to include renewable energy and valueadding services.

ESBIE's success brought both growth and change to the company. Originally housed in offices in Merrion Square, it found it necessary to move to larger premises in 2002. The operation now employs 60 staff in its modern headquarters in Santry, with 6 additional staff based in Belfast and Derry.

The deregulated, all-Ireland market in which ESBIE operates offers a vigorous business environment for its employees - a mix of direct hires and ex-ESB staff - who have excellent opportunities for development and promotion in this vibrant atmosphere while also enjoying the recognition for individual achievement which only a small and dynamic organisation can provide.

To give a flavour of how it all comes together, EM met with some of ESBIE's people: Keith Lambkin works in IT, part of a small team whose principle task is to provide day-today support for all the operations. However, with the full deregulation of the electricity market in Northern Ireland pending, project FEMO (Further Electricity Market Opening) is due to go live on Sept 11th, and Keith's team are now trying to get all the necessary systems tested and online to meet the deadline. It's a very reactive area, as Keith points out, and tasking can change from minute to minute. That has meant a steep learning curve for all involved, but Keith adds that plenty of training and support is available and if help or assistance is needed it is always provided.

Gerardine Doyle is one of ESBIE's Customer Relationship Managers (CRM) for the Republic of Ireland. She manages customer accounts to ensure their satisfaction is delivered. This will help make ESBIE the supplier of first choice when contract renewals come around. It's a very proactive role, keeping customers informed of market developments which enable them to prepare forecasts and budgets. While the majority of her customers are in Dublin/Leinster, liaising with group customers can take her all over the country. She's been with ESBIE virtually since the beginning, and has worked in all areas. ESBIE offers great scope to move around, says Gerardine. She also enjoys working in Woodford Business Park with its good parking facilities and bus services, situated just off the M50 in Santry.

Chris Corballis has a degree in Electrical Engineering and came to ESBIE straight out of college last September. He's currently working in Pricing, which, he states, is quite a seasonal function, with two sales rounds per year. His task is to take the customer information from the CRM and determine appropriate pricing based upon a number of factors. Working in support of sales staff is a big part of the job, generating "what if" scenarios based on customer requirements.

Maureen Lambert has been with ESBIE for almost a year and works as PA and Admin Facilities Manager for Managing Director Liam Molloy. It's a very friendly place to work, she observes, and there's a great social side to the job, very different from the multinational company background she worked in before joining ESBIE.

Caroline O'Brien works in the Income Department for Northern Ireland, collecting payments from NI customers, and improving cash flow through credit control. She's one of six people in this area, supervised by Susan Whyte. She's been with ESBIE for 2 years, and says she really enjoys the friendly atmosphere.

Aidan Bradley, CRM in the NI office, compliments the very strong team work between the Customer Relations Managers in NI and the staff at Santry. The CRM's in NI, shortly to grow from six to eight, say this is critical to their business given that they work in a separate location from the main office in Dublin. "We do business in all sectors ranging from the largest single site down to the corner shop, from a value of millions to a few thousand," he says. ESBIE has a wide range of customers in NI with 2.5k sites in total and claiming 50 per cent of the large customer base there by volume and 12 per cent of the SME base. "We offer competitive prices and premium customer service, adding value to their business with our business development team," adds Aidan. ESBIE offer a one-to-one relationship to all large customers in NI while the smaller sites are handled through the customer support function in Santry.

Robert O'Brien is one of five people working in the Renewable Energy area. ESBIE buys a certain amount of renewable energy from windfarms and hydroelectric facilities and allocates this to requested customers whose preference is for "green" energy. The Renewable Energy Department has doubled in size in the last year, driven by customer demand and, as Robert points out, it's getting bigger and better all the time. David Farrelly is part of a team of four in the Financial section, which oversees the entire financial control of ESBIE and provides accounts for both Northern Ireland and the Republic to ESBI. It's a job that gives you a really good feel for every part of the business, David says, getting under the skin of how the business operates.

Hilco Hakman is Manager for New Business, part of the Business Development Group. His task is looking at value-added services, how we can assist customers not simply as an electricity supplier but also as a service provider. They will carry out energy audits, install energy and environmental monitoring software and provide the associated training. "It's key for us to keep the customer happy," Hilco says, "with the main focus on helping the customer reduce costs and thereby building a relationship and confidence with them." The need to reduce energy consumption is growing and with EU legislation becoming ever more strict, this is a booming area.

Joe Boyne manages the marketing function with a small but excellent team consisting of Lisa Walker and Grace Counihan. It is important that we maintain and enhance our brand in the market place, he says. With the all Island market coming into effect in June 2007 we are developing a campaign that will maintain us as the supplier of first choice. It's very exciting to be in marketing in a time of such change in the market place, says Joe. All told ESBIE is one of the key areas of ESB which is offering a vibrant and progressive environment with lots of opportunities for staff to develop and progress. EM