How POWWR Helps 1400 Energy Brokers Win More Deals: Q/A with CEO Matt Tormollen

POWWR
7 min read
29 November, 2023

MattTormollen_InterviewWebsitePlanet

Website Planet talked to Matt Tormollen, Chief Executive Officer at POWWR, a leading energy software provider currently helping over 65 energy suppliers and more than 1,400 brokers across the US and UK.

We learned how their cutting-edge, cloud-based apps help energy providers and brokers grow their business by facilitating the process of selling energy. We also looked at the current state of the energy industry and what trend will reshape it in the future.

Meet Matt Tormollen, CEO of POWWR

Matt has been an executive leader in five businesses with successful investor exits, and has over 20 years of executive leadership in global, venture-backed businesses in energy markets. His bread and butter is building high-performing teams that deliver demonstrable customer value in energy markets through scalable cloud solutions drives POWWR’s strategic focus.

He has a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems Management from the University of Maryland and has done extensive post-graduate coursework at The Johns Hopkins University.

What Problems Are You Solving With Your Products and Services?

POWWR is a respected energy software provider that provides advanced platforms and simple solutions for over 65 energy suppliers and more than 1,400 brokers across the United States and the United Kingdom. POWWR empowers energy suppliers and brokers to grow their businesses and create a transparent, connected journey.

Many energy brokers and suppliers struggle to acquire new customers. POWWR’s solutions help them win more deals and get their businesses growing again. The company’s innovative, cloud-based software products help customers to compare prices across the industry, generate quotes, produce verified contracts with an increased acceptance rate, manage the sales journey and keep on top of market developments.

POWWR not only develops award-winning energy software, but always strives to exceed expectations, through innovation and industry expertise. It believes that the energy market doesn’t have to be difficult, and neither does the process for transacting energy. The company is highly innovative and full of forward-thinkers, who use cutting-edge technology to drive sales for its customers.

POWWR innovative solutions provide the following main benefits for energy suppliers and brokers:

  1. Enhanced Customer Experience: POWWR’s platforms offer customer-centric features that enhance the overall experience. From personalized energy plans to real-time usage monitoring, the software enables suppliers and brokers to provide better services and meet customer needs effectively.
  2. Data-driven Decision Making: POWWR’s software provides comprehensive data analytics and reporting capabilities. This empowers energy suppliers and brokers to make informed decisions based on actionable insights, ultimately increasing profitability and optimizing operations.
  3. Simplified Workflows: By automating various tasks, POWWR’s software simplifies complex workflows in the energy industry. It eliminates manual processes, reduces errors, and improves overall productivity for suppliers and brokers.
  4. Improved Operational Efficiency: POWWR’s software enables them to manage their operations more effectively. It streamlines processes, enhances data accuracy, and provides real-time analytics for optimizing energy usage.

The consequence of not being able to solve these pain points is that energy suppliers and brokers may struggle with inefficiencies, inaccuracies, and manual processes. This could result in increased costs, poor customer experiences, and missed business opportunities.

What’s Your Story and How Did You Come Up With the Idea?

The origin story for POWWR is quite interesting as we are an amalgam of two companies born on either side of the Atlantic both focused on driving customer value. In the US, our origins are from a consultancy that grew into a cloud software and services company focused on helping retail energy suppliers to improve their operations through better demand forecasting, pricing and acquisition of supply. In the UK, our founder had been a retail energy consumer and saw the need to improve the effectiveness and transparency of the broker and supplier channels for businesses procuring energy contracts.

We solve this need by providing solutions that simplify the exchange between the retail consumer, the broker, and the supplier in a way that improves margins for all the parties.

POWWR was formed when our investment partner, Five Elms Capital, acquired both businesses over a period of 18 months with the mission to drive synergies across the deregulated energy markets in both the US and UK. Today, we act as a single integrated business with many of the original innovators from both teams, including the founder of the UK business, still part of the team.

I was recruited by Five Elms Capital in 2022 to join POWWR and lead the next phase of our global integration and solution development efforts. Since my arrival, I’ve been impressed by POWWR employees’ focus on driving value to our customers. I believe this focus on value derives from the experiences many of our employees have from having been retail energy customers, brokers, or energy suppliers prior to joining us. It provides us a depth of empathy ensuring we’re delivering the best possible solutions for our customers.

How Does Your Mission Differ From the Other Companies in Your Niche?

By constantly engaging with our customers, we always strive to exceed expectations, through innovation and industry expertise.

Unlike its competitors, POWWR provides solutions for both suppliers and brokers, which means it can provide an end-to-end, connected solution when it comes to transacting energy. Plus, with over 10-years’ experience in the energy industry in both the US and UK, POWWR has access to unrivaled market insight, which can be shared with its customers to allow them to develop their businesses further.

Creating solutions for a sustainable energy marketplace remains core to everything we do. By utilizing our industry experience and working in partnership with our customers, we combine technology with human ingenuity to build elegant and sustainable solutions for the global energy marketplace.

What Industries or Business Sizes Benefit the Most From Your Solutions?

Our solutions help energy brokers streamline pricing and contracting, connect with competitive suppliers, and calculate commissions and predict revenue. For energy suppliers, POWWR offers solutions to automate custom pricing, boost sales, manage risk, and forecast revenue.

Many retail energy providers struggle to win profitable deals and often lose business to competitors because of higher prices, limited exposure, and thin margins. They need solutions that help them to automatically price deals that are visible to their customers and brokers, produce verified quotes and contracts, and manage their customer journey. For that, we offer Sales360 so that they can supercharge their energy business.

At the same time, many brokers are encumbered by outdated tools and manual processes that can stunt their growth. Broker360 can give them a competitive edge, it can help them close faster, win more profitable deals and grow their business.

Volatility and poor positions continue to cause margins in the industry to shrink and force higher pricing. We can put a stop-loss on margins and get a business profitable again with our risk-management solution. It is a simple, transparent solution that helps risk managers, trading schedulers, revenue officers, financial officers and CEOs make more informed decisions and gain better insights into their day-to-day and long-term business strategies.

And What Makes Them Eventually Choose You Over Your Competitors?

Customers tell us that the following aspects of POWWR’s solutions have been most beneficial:

  1. Streamlined Operations: POWWR’s software simplifies and automates day-to-day operations. Reducing administrative overhead, improving process efficiency, and allowing businesses to focus on strategic activities.
  1. Enhanced Data Accuracy: There is improved accuracy of data management by using POWWR’s platform. The software ensures that energy usage and billing information are captured correctly, minimizing discrepancies and billing errors.
  1. Better Customer Service: POWWR’s solution enables energy suppliers and brokers to deliver personalized experiences to their customers. It allows for tailored energy plans, seamless communication, and transparent billing, resulting in higher customer satisfaction.
  1. Actionable Insights: The software provides detailed reports and analytics, enabling customers to identify trends, optimize energy usage, and make data-driven business decisions.
“POWWR’s platform has notably enhanced and simplified our sales enrollment process from start to finish and saved us money. We are now able to automate custom pricing, enrollments, and contracts, drastically improving the speed of sales.” Gridwealth (Energy Supplier)…

… We do not simply view POWWR as a service provider, but a business partner. So much so, that the company makes you wonder how you ever worked without them.”

Focus Assured (Energy Broker)

What Other Tools and Best Practices Do You Suggest Using in Combination with Your Products?

We have recently announced a partnership with ESG to offer an integrated SaaS solution for energy retailers and brokers looking to grow their businesses. The partner offering, including enhanced management of renewals and the ability to automate quotes, contracts, and enrollments, creates an efficient and connected customer journey, providing unprecedented insight so that retail energy providers, energy retailers, and brokers can make informed, proactive sales decisions to foster customer loyalty.


“Through this combined solution, energy retailers and brokers can now reduce their cost-to-serve by shedding redundant technology infrastructure that doesn’t serve their core business goals. The combined technology automates and streamlines legacy processes that have often held energy retailers and brokers back – accelerating customer acquisition, managing risk and improving margins. Working with partners like POWWR reinforces ESG’s mission to put the power in our customers’ hands to run profitable, efficient energy businesses.”

 

What Opportunities and Challenges Do You See in the Future of Your Industry?

As an industry-leading energy software provider, POWWR recognizes several opportunities and challenges in the future of the energy industry. The first is the global transition towards renewable energy. The increasing demand for renewable energy sources presents an opportunity for POWWR to develop software solutions that support the transition to clean energy technologies. This includes integrating renewable energy systems and optimizing their usage and management.

Then there is the growing emphasis on energy efficiency and sustainability. POWWR is well placed to develop innovative tools and analytics to help energy suppliers and brokers achieve their sustainability goals. This may involve creating software solutions for energy monitoring, demand response, and carbon footprint tracking.

Finally, there is the wider digital transformation of the industry. By implementing advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and IoT, POWWR can provide cutting-edge software solutions that improve efficiency, increase automation, and enhance customer experiences.

The main challenges to the industry are increased regulatory complexity and cybersecurity. The energy industry is highly regulated, with varying regulations and compliance requirements across different regions. It is important to navigate these complexities and ensure software solutions meet the necessary standards and regulations.

As the industry becomes more digitized, the risk of cyber threats increases. It is important that it prioritizes robust cybersecurity measures, and continually update and enhance the software used in order to protect customer data and infrastructure.

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Source: Website Planet

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