Digital transformation at Innogy

Digital transformation at Innogy

It all started with a Digital Barcamp three years ago at Innogy’s annual executive meeting. The departments presented their projects and the newly founded Digital Transformation department held a workshop together with the businessAreas Ideas and concepts with the greatest value added for the business developed and the prototype for a software-supported solution from the field of hydropower selected.

In the Renewable Energy business segment, the desire to set up a digital transformation team emerged in the various departments in 2017. Previously, there were only individual flagship projects driven by segment IT that focused on trying out new technologies." The divisions were mostly silent observers and the topics were not anchored in the business, "was the assessment of the creators from the Digital Transformation Team: Christiane von Flotow, Jens Brodowski, Moritz Peters, Andre Gerecke.

It is important to know that the Innogy business is characterized by the construction and operation of onshore and offshore wind farms, large-scale solar plants, the operation of hydropower plants and the electricity market. The goal was to "constantly improve and expand the business model with the help of digital transformation," says Christiane von Flotow. This required a rethinking, the creation of new framework conditions and above all "a good amount of 'one-time-make-mentality'". The good news was that the newly founded team, with the strong support of the COO, was given sufficient freedom to test various methods, concepts and technologies.

It should be about three things:

• try out new ideas with agile working methods

• Design and use-oriented organizational structures

• cultivate an open approach to change and learn from mistakes.

According to Flotow, they want to "enable colleagues to work agilely in projects" and achieve "sustainable changes and acceptance" through early user tests, as she also stated in her application for the Digital Leader Award (DLA). In this way, the company has established product owners, who were able to put the business and customer benefits at the heart of product development. The positive thing for the transformation team: "We see the mindset shift both in our top management and in our employees."

Mobile solution Sace

Digital transformation team emerged in the various departments

The first successfully completed project - which was initiated in this management meeting in 2017 - was the mobile solution "Sace" for employees in the field of hydroelectric plant maintenance. It serves to assess the condition of the company’s own power plants and, according to Flotow, enables "performance-oriented investments in maintenance." In doing so, the digital team proved that problems could be quickly validated and solved using agile methods and that user-oriented solutions increased trust and acceptance.

For their digital pilots, the team uses a flexible cloud platform, which is approved within the Group by the Works Council and Security. The criterion was the range of tools and technologies available "by mouse click." "The triad of technology scouting, an experimental platform and the testing and creation of new products, strengthens us in dealing with new technologies and their early use in our business," says Jens Brodowski.

Virtual maintenance tour through a wind turbine

The Digital team offers Discovery Sessions in the business areas, in which, for example, new technologies are shown based on existing use cases, in order to promote cross-departmental exchange among colleagues. In a current workshop, experts led a maintenance trip through a wind turbine using virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR).

Today one is proud to have created a "hierarchical prioritization of the projects through the entire community by means of pitching events", so von Flotow. More than 20 pilot projects deliver noticeable improvements in the business in different maturity levels, be it from automation, collaboration, construction of parks as well as increase of production or development of new distribution channels.