Grid4EU: Implementing a collaborative communication hub for high performance

Company profileThe biggest smart grid project co-funded by the European Union, costing US$72 million (€54 million) and 50 percent-financed by the European Commission, Grid4EU will showcase state-of-the-art smart grid technology and techniques by the end of the initiative in January 2016.

Coordinated by ERDF, the challenge brings together a consortium of six DSO covering more than 50 percent of the electricity supply in Europe. ERDF (France), Enel Distribuzione (Italy), Iberdrola Distribucion (Spain), RWE (Germany), Vattenfall Eldistribution (Sweden) and CEZ Distribuce (Czech Republic) will collaborate on large- scale demonstrations of distribution network smart grid solutions for implementation anywhere in Europe.

In addition to the guidance of its six DSO members, Grid4EU draws on the expertise of a total of 27 centers of excellence, including system integrators, research centers, universities, and industrial and technology manufacturers.

Business challengeStakeholders will judge Grid4EU on the delivery of innovative technologies, standards, scalability and cost-benefits. While project outcomes were clear from the outset, the means of steering them through the Europe-wide maze of demonstrators, partners, locations and regulatory frameworks was not.

Grid4EU partners with Accenture to implement a collaborative communication hub for high performance

Coordinated by ERDF and drawing on the expertise of six distribution system operators (DSO) and some 27 industrial and scientific centers of excellence, universities and technology manufacturers, Grid4EU is the largest smart grid project co-funded by the European Union.

From the outset, it was clear that Grid4EU’s success would depend on effective collaborative research and the seamless sharing of large amounts of diverse information across a complex matrix of initiatives and stakeholders. Understanding that a venture of this complexity would need active operations management, ERDF turned to Accenture based on its experience in driving interaction and its Accenture Smart Grid Leadership Network of 50 members in more than 20 countries worldwide.

Delivering measurable improvements in organizational performance through innovative approaches to teamwork put Accenture literally at the heart of European smart grid evolution with a client solution that made collaboration within the project easy, practical and effective. Coordinating, reporting and validating European Commission deliverables, Accenture leveraged its Change Management practice and worked closely with ERDF to also deliver a global communication strategy for sharing Grid4EU’s results. By drawing on its extensive industry network to set up an external board of advisors for the initiative, Accenture reinforced its status as the partner of choice for utilities in transition to a smarter grid.

Divided into 11 work groups, involving five general work packages and six demonstrations, Grid4EU comprises resources from multiple companies, locations and countries. Research collaboration and information sharing among participating distributors was the theory. How to achieve this in a way that made the initiative’s whole greater than the sum of its complex parts was the practical challenge.

A shared journey of this scope would require active, experienced and agile navigation. ERDF selected Accenture based on its practical experience, vision, skills and assets.

How Accenture helpedWorking with the consortium to facilitate the quick, easy and safe exchange of information and ideas, Accenture developed and implemented a Grid4EU team hub to drive high performance. A scalable, largely off-the-shelf, cloud-enabled Microsoft SharePoint infrastructure was the platform of choice to facilitate effective coordination, sharing and communication between the consortium and its partners.

Thirty years’ of utilities industry experience, extensive knowledge of driving effective organizational relationships and unparalleled technical expertise enabled Accenture to deliver an innovative and practical Grid4EU communication hub. Managing a wide range of shared business processes, such as document review or approval, the hub would support critical formal validation processes, such as amending the Grid4EU grant agreement, involving all the initiative partners.

Accenture and ERDF collaborated on the development of a global strategy for the dissemination of results to maximize their impact among the European smart grid community. Leveraging its Change Management practice, Accenture conducted a stakeholder analysis, identified critical audiences and designed and executed an ongoing communication plan to get these key influencers onside—and keep them there.

Accenture drew on its extensive industry network to help setup the Advisory Board for the initiative and supported quarterly and yearly reporting and annual validation of European Commission deliverables. Accenture also partnered with ERDF to ensure Grid4EU was a notable presence at major industry events, such as Metering Europe and International Smart Grid Action Network (ISGAN) workshops.

“The Dissemination Plan Accenture worked with Grid4EU to craft and implement raised European smart grid stakeholder awareness of the initiative and helped ensure all partners disseminated results in a coordinated and disciplined way at both EU and local level,” says Adel Jarifi, Grid4EU deputy project coordinator.

High performance delivered With approximately 150 active users and an average of 15 to 20 people connecting daily and browsing through 100 to 150 pages, the Grid4EU SharePoint hub has facilitated the safe, secure and efficient sharing of more than 500 documents. Critical to the project’s success, this information includes more than 20 deliverables successfully approved and reported to the European Commission within the first year.

“Accenture worked with us to design and implement a Collaboration Strategy that is credited throughout the consortium for bringing our people, ideas and data together in an effective, efficient and user-friendly way,” says Rémy Garaude Verdier, Grid4EU project coordinator. “We selected Accenture because of its broad professional services experience, deep industry expertise and proven ability to deliver measurable organizational improvements. It was the right decision. Accenture continues to help Grid4EU drive high performance and accelerate smart grid evolution in Europe.”

For more information about Accenture’s involvement in Grid4EU, contact patrice.mallet@accenture.com. You may also visit the Grid4EU website at www.grid4eu.eu.

About AccentureAccenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with approximately 261,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$27.9 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2012. Its home page is www.accenture.com.

About the Accenture Utilities Industry groupThe Accenture Utilities industry group has more than 30 years of experience working with electric, gas and water utilities worldwide. Our group works with more than 200 utilities in over 30 countries and has 10,000 people supporting our utilities clients. We work with 80 percent of businesses with utilities in their portfolio on the 2011 Global Fortune 500 list. We provide the deep industry knowledge, people and assets utilities need to develop the strategies and adopt solutions to improve performance in the dynamic energy market.

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