Skip to main content
The Institution of Engineering and Technology iet.tv
Site name
  • Videos
  • Channels
  • Events
  • Series

Access and Account

Access your personal account

Log in to see your favourites, lists and progress.

Access via institution

Not currently connected to any institutions

Connect via

  1. Videos
  2. Video

Understanding your customers

  • WhatsApp
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • Bluesky
CPD This content can contribute towards your Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as part of the IET's CPD Monitoring scheme.
Event
  • Session
  • Tuesday, 22 May 2018
  • 16:22 - 16:22
  • Duration: 3 mins
  • Publication date: 08 Jun 2018
  • Location: Customer Solutions Theatre, NEC, Birmingham, United Kingdom
  • Part of event Utility week Live 2018

About the session

For utilities to succeed in a service and experience-driven market, they must develop their capabilities beyond the mere delivery of products. They must understand how customer life style choices, health, cultural background, hobbies and appetite for new technology impact the way they need to consume these products, and also how they like to be communicated with.

This understanding is all the more important in a fraught political environment, reflecting and exacerbating mistrust in utilities.

How can utilities develop this nuanced understanding of their customers and develop new ways of delivering for them?

Chair: Gary Muncaster, Managing Director, Populus 

Keywords:
  • GDPR
  • climate change
  • cloud migration
  • cyber defence
  • data governance
  • decarbonisation
  • electric vehicle
  • energy
  • energy crisis
  • energy sector
  • fuel bank
  • npower
  • power consumption
  • priority services
  • renewable
  • smart meter
  • smart meter data
  • water sector

Channels

Power

Power

Speakers

  • Gary Muncaster

    Gary Muncaster

    Populus Limited, Managing director

    Gary is Managing Director at Populus, and associate member of the Market Research Society with over 20 years’ research experience and a PhD from Manchester University. He is an expert in customer experience measurement and new product development, having conducted major market research programmes on behalf of a number of blue chip clients. His experience has given him a deep appreciation of the power that research has to help all types of enterprises in building impactful brands, launching successful new products, enhancing their customers’ experiences and generating new business.
  • KV

    Kaustubh Varde

    Espire Infolabs, Senior business development manager

    Kaustubh has over fourteen years of experience in helping clients adopt digital technology (social, mobile, analytics and cloud) solutions across the UK and European markets. His key objective is to actively engage with clients and deliver the right customer communication management solutions. He has seasoned expertise in sales management and go-to-market strategies specifically in the fields of digital transformation and customer experience. His cross industry experience across a number of sectors like utilities, banking financial services and insurance, retail and others have supported implementing best practices for clients.
  • Steve Kaye

    Steve Kaye

    Anglian Water, Head of Innovation

    Steve is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer and has worked in the water industry for around twenty seven years. Steve has an MBA from City University in London and is also a Visiting Professor at Imperial College and Brunel University.Steve’s career in the water started in the manufacturing industry where he was involved in the R&D and design.At Anglian Water Steve has held key roles in Capital Delivery and Operations and more recently as Head of Innovation. He has developed and led the company’s Open Innovation Strategy.Steve is a creative individual who is passionate about making a better world through innovation; he is actively involved in fostering collaborations with other companies, including other industrial sectors. He also chairs the Industrial Advisory Panel for the STREAM programme, a university collaboration funded by EPSRC.
  • PM

    Paul Matthews

    Pitney Bowes, Strategic account director

    Since 1995 Paul has worked in all sectors of Customer Communications Management (CCM) from customer data analytics thought composition and output management to print and mail fulfilment and reporting. Since 2002 he has worked for Pitney Bowes developing and implementing the CCM and Customer Engagement Solution (CES) strategies for a number of vertical sectors including Utilities and the UK Service Bureau market.Current focus is on Digital Engagement, with Omni-Channel deployment of innovative technologies such as:• Interactive Video• Automated Chat solutions and• ‘Mobile First’ device agnostic communication
  • Gary Muncaster

    Gary Muncaster

    Populus Limited, Managing director

    Gary is Managing Director at Populus, and associate member of the Market Research Society with over 20 years’ research experience and a PhD from Manchester University. He is an expert in customer experience measurement and new product development, having conducted major market research programmes on behalf of a number of blue chip clients. His experience has given him a deep appreciation of the power that research has to help all types of enterprises in building impactful brands, launching successful new products, enhancing their customers’ experiences and generating new business.
The Institution of Engineering and Technology iet.tv

Address: Futures Place, Kings Way, Stevenage, SG1 2UA

Telephone: +44 (0)33 049 9123

Email:  iet.tv@theiet.org

© 2026 The Institution of Engineering and Technology.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology is registered as a Charity in England & Wales (no 211014) and Scotland (no SC038698). Futures Place, Kings Way, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, SG1 2UA, United Kingdom

  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
Privacy statement Cookie Preferences Accessibility About us theiet.org Help

Powered by Cadmore Media

Embed Code

<script type="text/javascript" src="https://play.cadmore.media/js/EMBED.js"></script> <div class="cmpl_iframe_div"> <iframe src="https://play.cadmore.media/Player/c8497695-8743-4ffe-ac66-dd2ff49f3eec" scrolling="no" allowtransparency="true" allowautoplay="true" frameborder="0" allow="encrypted-media;autoplay;fullscreen" class="cmpl_iframe" allowfullscreen="" style="overflow: hidden;border: 0px; margin: 0px; height: 100%; width:100%;"></iframe> </div>

Are you sure you want to reset your password?

If so, you will be redirected to the Authentication Service

Title

Prompt