MEET THE STAFF SERIES

 The Electronic Payment Channels Provided by The Company is  timely and a good step in the right direction….

CCD: Tell us a bit about yourself?

JB: I am Engr. Jamila Badaru. Born in Kaduna. An Electrical/Electronics Engineer with a B.Eng. from A.T. B. U Bauchi. I have a Post Graduate Diploma in Production & Operations Management and Masters in Industrial and Labour Relations. I am a 

Jamila Badaru

 

Registered Engineer (COREN), Corporate Member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (MNSE) and a Customer Service Professional. Although an Engineer, I have special interests in Customer Relationship and Management. I am a mother, a wife, a daughter, a colleague and a friend to some beautiful people. I love to read, write and draw and I am a student of Comparative Religion. 

CCD: How does a normal working day look like for you and your colleague in the MD Unit?

JB: A normal working day in MD Unit is 

actually very interesting. Knowing the weight on our shoulders and how vital our job role is in meeting the overall organizational target, we usually hit the ground running. Our monthly activity is typically divided into meter reading, billing, bill delivery, cash drive and where necessary disconnection. What we would be doing on a normal day depends largely on the time of the month. However, customer complaint handling is an everyday thing. A setback on any of these activities affects the overall collection of the unit. What this means is that all of these activities must be done at the precise time or else the collection suffers. So, time is of the essence for us in Premium Unit.

CCD: The Maximum Demand customers are the cash cow of the Company, what are the challenges inherent in handling this class of customers.?

JB: The key thing to note about MD customers is that they are the most informed of all the customer classes. They know exactly what they want and how they want it. In handling this class of customers, you have to know your onions and be a step ahead at all times. Be courteous, be respectful, know your product, understand the customer's needs, devise innovative solutions to meet and exceed customer's needs but while doing all of the aforementioned, remember that we are a business and not a charity organization. We are in this to make enough to settle Market and all other Obligations and still make profit. The Company- customer relationship should be mutually beneficial. 

CCD: How do you ensure that your customers respond to payment on time?

JB: Timely delivery of bills is the first step in ensuring Premium Customer's payment response. Our customers are mostly corporate organizations, industries, banks, Federal and State governments and the Military etc. Their bills usually go through some processes before funds are released for the payment from their various Head Offices at Lagos, Abuja, Kano etc. After the timely distribution of bills, we then deploy our own internal Premium Unit strategies in line with standard best practices to ensure payment is made for energy consumed and we push for debt recovery. We also try to resolve and close customer complaints to avoid the use of unresolved complaints as an excuse to defer payment or not to settle outstanding payments

CCD: How do you deal with defaulting customers?

JB:  Defaulting customers are engaged using every customer relationship management strategy. If this fails, we issue disconnection notice. In the event that the disconnection notice yields no positive result, we follow regulatory guidelines for disconnection and disconnect the customer.  In some cases where we need to recover huge debts from difficult customers, we escalate to the Legal Department. 

CCD: How well has the maximum demand customers accepted the cashless policy prescribed by the Regulator early last year?

JB: The Maximum Demand customers fully embraced the Cashless Policy prescribed by the Regulator last year. In fact, our customers were clamouring for it before it was prescribed. The Policy was timely and a good step in the right direction for both the Company and its Premium customers. In this time of electronic advancement, subjecting our esteemed Premium Customers to Long and endless queues just to make payment is not ideal. 

CCD: Any suggestion or appeal to the staff or management?

JB: To the staff I say, " No be dia company o, na our Company, if the Company goes down, we go down with it”. To the Management, I say "..until there's a fair and equal treatment of all staff, only then will things truly change".

 

Newsletter for the Month of November, 2021

 

 

Kebbi North Area Office Foster Strong Partnership with QXK Engineering Services, Sensitise Team Members.

By Najib Atuwo, Kebbi

The Management of Kebbi North Area Office has held a one day seminar on Synergy and strategic partnership between the QXK Engineering Services and Kaduna Electric in Kebbi North Area Office.

 The one-day seminar, held at the multipurpose hall of Adamu Augie College of Education, Argungu, had in attendance, the officials of both Kaduna Electric and QXK Engineering Services respectively.

In his opening remarks, the Area Manager, Kebbi North Area Office, Mr. Bashir Abdulmalik stated the reasons that necessitated the seminar was to create more synergy and better understanding of the objective of the partnership between the two parties.

In his words, “today we all gathered here to talk and educate ourselves on the operations of our great  company, we need to have synergy that will enable both of us achieve the desired goals and move the company forward”.

According to him, “QXK Engineering has been a very good partner to Kaduna Electric, and today, we called on you to keep on the good work you have been doing and we will always be there to support your operations in the Area Office,” he said.

In his contribution, the QXK boss, Engr. Mustapha Muhammad Kofar Marke, thanked the Area Manager for deeming it fit to organize the knowledge sharing session.

He however stated that Kebbi North as a new Area Office has a huge task ahead in terms of revenue generation and pledged the readiness of his team to work with Kaduna Electric team hand in hand to make sure the revenue is improved.

He solicited for support and cooperation in lifting the Area Office to greater height and to be the best in terms of revenue collection.

While giving his closing remarks, Engr. Umar Sani Argungu, the Regional Coordinator Zamfara and Zaria appreciated the organizers for organizing the seminar to refresh the memories of our staff on the mode of operations of the company and the challenges before the newly created Area Office.

Furthermore Engr. Umar Sani also charged both parties to tightened up their belts for the tasks ahead.

 Corporate Intelligence Team Undergo Training on Load Assessment.

By Jamila Bala

In an effort to educate as well as motivate the team members of Corporate Intelligence Unit, the OD&D Unit organizes load assessment and the uses of its application, billing process and energy theft detection techniques training to all the Corporate Intelligence Team members within Kaduna.

The training was aimed at equipping the staff with the requisite knowledge on load assessment and its applications, understanding the billing process and energy theft detection techniques so as to make them more committed to the company as well as to put discretionary effort into their duties.

Electrical load assessment is the fundamental part of Energy Management, it involves listing of all electricity consuming equipment in a facility, everything from lighting bulb to expensive equipments.

The Head, OD&D, Mrs Adeola Akanni, while declaring open a training programme, charged the participants to accord the training the importance it deserves as more shall be expected from them after the training.

 “The objective of the training is to make the employees to understand the billing process of the company, theft detection techniques how to take the load assessment and the uses of its applications”, she said.

According to her, “when employees are well trained on their field and they know how well to use the load assessment application, they are more likely to be more active in their work and they do more which leads to a higher quality work and productivity’’. 

 Kaduna Electric Commits to Safety of Personnel and Equipment, Trains Technical Staff on Power Relay Protection.

By Jamila Bala

 In the continued determination of the Company to ensure the safety of lives and equipment, a week long training has been organized for the technical staff on the basic power relay protection.

 The protective relay training, code named P1, shall provide the participants with basic guidelines for relay application and settings calculation.

 The P1 course will enhance the technical know-how of the unit personnel with regards to safe guarding the Company’s assets as well as reducing unnecessary and prolong outages and averting accidents.

 

 

Chief Strategy and Business Excellence Bags Anti-Corruption Crusader Award

 By Rukaiya Muhammad

 The NYSC Anti-corruption CDS group has awarded the Anti-Corruption Crusader Award to the Chief Strategy Officer, Dr. Mahmud Suleiman.

 In a brief ceremony held at the Corporate Headquarters on Wednesday, Dr. Mahmud Suleiman described the award as a tonic to re-affirms his commitment to the campaign against corruption.

This also means that the NYSC Anti-corruption CDS group appreciates our determination to stem the negative effects of corruption on the country’s development.

 

Meet The Staff Series

 

 

We Enhance Data Integrity in the Company Through Proper Access Authorization…Abdullahi M Kabir

 

Abdullahi M Kabir ( ICT Dept)

 

CCD: Can we have your brief profile?

AMK: My name is Abdullahi M Kabir, I have MSc in Business Information System with Concentration in networking. I joined Kaduna Electric in 1^st September 2015. I have worked in the Billing Department but I am presently a team member in the Data Centre of ICT department.

CCD: What does your job role entails?

AMK: My job role entails management and administration of Data Centre facility room to ensure all services are accessed by authorized personnel e.g internet access, SharePoint, key change for meter reactivations etc.

CCD: In what way does your job add valve to the Company?

AMK: The internet is today among the significant services needed to have access to information and communication. My job is to make sure that internet service within the company is up and running with required access authorizations based on Kaduna Electric policies.

 As earlier mentioned, the Data Centre Team also manages the SharePoint app that enable automation of certain processes in the Company; we ensure that the App is functional at all time. My team also ensure that key change are generated whenever demanded for customer’s use. This ensures that customers meters are timely activated.

CCD: How do we enhanced the integrity of data in the Company?

AMK: We enhance the integrity of data in the Company through proper access level authorization and getting the operating systems required from reliable service providers.

CCD: ICT is today the driving force in businesses and other corporate organization, what areas of ICT do you think Kaduna Electric should do more?

AMK: Kaduna electric should invest more in ICT because it makes business more effective and ensures prompt respond to customers needs. ICT can assist business processes and activities, including design, automation of key company processes, distribution and sales. And they should invest on employees to help them work efficiently which will allow them concentrate effectively on their job roles.

CCD: What are the challenges you are facing?

AMK: The major challenges that we are having is the provision of training for up-to-date Data Centre best practices and cloud computing.

CCD: Any appeal or suggestion to the Management and staff?

AMK: I appeal to the Management for considerations, especially for staff training and provisions of up-to-date equipment and for the staff let us do our work diligently in achieving the company objectives.

 

 

 

 

MEET THE STAFF SERIES

 

Safety Should Not Be An After Thought, but Our Culture - Abdulaziz S. Ahmad

 

CCD: Can you briefly tell us about yourself?

ASA:

Abdulazeez S Ahamad HSE Sokoto AO

My name is Abdulaziz Sanusi Ahmad, I am a graduate of Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Pure Chemistry. I have General HSE and HSE Competency Development Training (Level 3) Certificate, NNPC Kaduna Routing and Switching Cisco Networking Academy ABU Zaria. Presently I am the Safety Officer, Sokoto Area Office. I am happily married and blessed with one kid.

CCD: When did you join the service of the Company?

ASA: I joined the service of Kaduna Electric in September 2015.

CCD: What are your primary responsibility as a Safety Officer?

ASA: My responsibilities includes among others, preparing work plan of HSE activities for the Area Office and corresponding budget/ cost implication, monitoring and advising on the implementations of the Corporate Policy on Occupational Health, Safety and Environment, liaising with the Technical department to design job procedures base on job safety and hazard analysis (JSA/JHA), carrying out monthly safety inspection of plants/equipment within the Area Office, carrying out HSE enlightenment within the Area Office, ensuring that no work is permitted or allowed until it has met up with safety standard, ensuring regular maintenance of safety and firefighting equipment within the Area Office, reporting accidents within 12 hours to Area Manager and Head office Safety Department and carrying out preliminary technical investigation and maintain record, render monthly accident returns to Head office,  as well as monitor compliance to HSE policy, and NERC Health and Safety Code.

 CCD: What is the difficult part of being a safety officer?

ASA: One of the major challenges is inculcating safety culture in the workforce. There is this erroneous thought that safety provide no direct effect on the company financial gain. The only way we can contribute towards the Company profit is to lower liability.

Secondly, nobody likes the Safety Officer in response to his approach in field/ employee safety initiative compliance issues. 

CCD: Team work is one of the core values do you consider yourself a team player?

ASA: Yes of course, you see Teams succeed when members have commitment to common objective, when there is defined roles and responsibilities, effective decision system brings efficient work, procedures and skills such as communication skills, relationship skills and leadership skills I believe I am a team player with ability to work and influence a positive result in Sokoto Area Office.

CCD: Do you have any suggestion on how we can improve on safety measure?

ASA: Of course yes, one by creating a plan for improving Health and Safety: As an employer, you must identify hazards in your workplace and take steps to eliminate or minimize them, develop a safety plan, tell your employees what you will do to ensure their safety and what you expect from them. Proper training is necessary for all employees, especially if there is a risk for potential injury associated with a job. Meet regularly with your staff and discuss health and safety issues, encourage them to share their ideas and thoughts on how to improve safety in the workplace. Regularly check all equipment and tools to ensure that they are well maintained and safe to use. Investigate accidents and keep records of all first aid treatment, inspections, incident investigations, and training activities.

CCD: What advice would like to give to the Management?

ASA: Leading by example; the Management should ensure that all safety policies are adhered to and encouraging employees to do the same. If Management commits to safety, employee will follow suit. Workers won’t buy-in to safety if they don’t see policies and procedures being followed by their superiors. Safety is more than talking the talk; it’s walking the walk.

We work daily to improve our human effectiveness and strive to achieve happiness in our homes with our families, in our business and work, to achieve that we most arrange this basic key part of business. Safety shouldn’t be an after – thought; it’s just as important to a successful business as customer service, inventory control, and financial planning. A commitment to Health and Safety makes good business sense because it’s the one way to protect your greatest resource – your people.

 

 

KADUNA ELECTRIC FRONTLINE OCTOBER EDITION

Effective End-To-End Metering Is One Of The Ways That We Can Actually Increase Our Revenue -Hussein

CCD: The office of Regional Coordinator is relatively a new position and unknown to most staff, what exactly are the duties and responsibilities of a Regional Coordinator?

Hussein: Thank you very much. It is true that the office is new and a cross section of the staff aren’t conversant with it.

The office of the Regional Operations Coordinator is basically meant to coordinate, guide, supervise the activities of the Area Offices & other units within the region to achieve the Company`s key strategic objectives of revenue generation, loss reduction, capacity enhancement and managerial skills for the Region.

Part of the key duties and responsibilities of the office are as listed below:

·        Oversee the development of all the various functional heads at the Region and monitors their performance in order to enhance their technical, commercial, accounting and managerial skills

·        Ensure that the technical services and distribution installations in the region are well-maintained to service all customers

·        Initiate development projects for capacity enhancement and system augmentation to cover previously un-served areas/customers

·        Ensure coordination between the HQ management and regional office and other business offices for implementation of company policies and management directives

 

CCD: A cross section of staffs are of the opinion that Regional Coordinators are not adding any value to the system because it is more less a one-man office, do you subscribe to this assertion, and how can the office of Regional Coordinators be made more effective?

Hussein: This is truly a result of misunderstanding and I don’t subscribe to it. The office of the ROC is a well thought out plan and all-encompassing in the sense that it involves all entire staff in the region and not a one-man show as some staffs are inclined to believe. The Company is expanding/growing & plans to increase our customer base is in top gear and for us to be the best electricity distribution company in Nigeria within the next ten years (as stated in our mission statement), there is need to decentralize our operations moreover the responsibility of one Manager (HOP) to run the entire Company can become overwhelming as the number of the Area offices increases, thus, the need for the office of the Regional Operations Coordinator. This is so for us to be more efficient and highly effective in maximizing the enormous potential in the business.

CCD: The Doka, Kawo, Barnawa & Kafanchan Area Offices which you superintend are the revenue base of the Company, what are you doing to ensure that there is sustainable growth in the monthly revenue of these Area Offices?

Hussein: Some of the measures deployed in order to sustain growth in spite of the obvious challenges are: 

a.     Sustained and Aggressive Collections drive to ensure 80% collection efficiency on current bills.

b.     Increased customer base through new set up and separation (Minimum of 30 Nos newly captured per SR)

c.      Sustained recovery drive of at least a minimum of 5% from HCB & 15% from HRB customers out of the outstanding.

d.     Leveraging on the continued CCG Promo Program

e.      Effective PPM monitoring to block revenue leakages.

f.       Constant Community engagement to enlighten our customers on happenings in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI)

But above all, staff have been enjoined to show more dedication to duty, have a change of attitude towards the job and also be of high integrity as these are the fulcrum upon which all the above strategies revolve if we intend to have a continuous and sustainable growth.

CCD: What is the performance of your Region Vis-a-Vis the target?

Hussein: The performance of the Region vis-à-vis target is estimated to be 40% from the 4 AOs in the Region in spite of all the challenges. This is not where we want to be as a Region and there is a lot of room for improvement. We strongly believe with the right mindset, focus and determination, we can increase this to achieve at the minimum, 60% before the end of the year.

CCD: The commercial and collection losses in the HCB (High Customer Base) subsector is much high than the accepted threshold, how do we curtail the high commercial and collection losses especially on the HCB category?

Hussein: One of the most effective ways to curtail the high commercial and collection losses is by intensifying end-to-end metering of all the customers. Additionally, we also need to refine and further automate our collection processes so as to reduce to the barest minimum the direct cash handling by our Sales Representatives and field staff.

There is also the urgent need for a re-training of our SRs to be able to understand and appreciate the value chain of the electricity sector so that they can speak from an informed view point and also impress it upon them the spirit of ownership. This will surely go a long way in partly addressing this issue.

Punitive measures must also be applied to both staff and customers found to be aiding or abetting any unethical practice(s) in the field so as to serve as a deterrent to others nursing that ambition.

CCD: The three Area Offices under you are largely metropolitan in nature, how are you contending with the menace of meter bypass and tampering as well as other forms of energy theft?

Hussein: Meter tampering, bypass and other forms of energy theft are major leakages in revenue realization in the distribution chain of the electricity sector. As a Regional Operations Coordinator overseeing the affairs of these Area Offices, we have been working hand in hand with the Enforcement Unit at each of the Area Offices and the HQ especially in locations with high PPM concentration for visits and report of infraction on a daily basis. This has yielded positive result. For instance, during the Doka Pilot, over 100Nos supposed PPM meter boxes were found empty. Those found wanting were charged accordingly and followed up to ensure payments are made.

CCD: The National Mass Metering programme is steadily gaining momentum, how do you think the program will affect the revenue generation in your Region?

Hussein: The import of this exercise cannot be overemphasized. Effective end-to-end metering is one of the ways that we can actually increase our revenue, positively impact the bottom-line and ensure every kilowatt counts. This is evident in the recent metering exercise of MD Abubakar Estate whose total collection prior to the exercise was estimated to be N1.1m but now in the region of N4m.

We are also suggesting similar exercise to be carried out at Millennium City and Urban Shelter areas.

CCD: Who is Hussein Kangiwa and what brings out the best in him?

Hussein: I am a very simple and easy going fellow, disciplined, accommodating and above all an ardent team player. With over 2 decades of Banking experience, a Masters of Banking and Finance from Usman Dan Fodio University and a professional membership of both Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria(CIBN) and Risk Managers Association of Nigeria(RIMAN). I am always ready and willing to learn new things, processes that will add value to the team and by extension the Company in general.