Managing the Customer Experience Before and After the Event
Utilities often focus on the moment power goes out and the moment it is restored. But the customer experience around outages begins long before the first storm warning and continues well after the lights come back on. This panel explores how utilities are managing the full lifecycle of an outage – from pre-event preparation and expectation setting to real-time updates and post-restoration follow-up. Panelists will discuss how new tools and communication workflows allow utilities to deliver more targeted, coordinated messaging across channels while reducing call volume and improving customer trust. The discussion will highlight practical approaches utilities are using to connect operational awareness, ETR communication, and post-event engagement into a more seamless customer experience.
Panelists:
Paul Watkins, Director, Strategic Commercialization & Innovation, Convey
Paul Watkins leads innovation strategy at Convey, where he focuses on AI-driven customer engagement solutions for utilities. With a background in both utility operations and digital transformation, Paul helps investor-owned and municipal utilities enhance outage communications, streamline workflows, and deliver measurable improvements in customer experience.
Douglas Wells, Customer Journey Manager, Puget Sound Energy
Douglas Wells is the Outage Experience Customer Journey Manager at Puget Sound Energy, where he helps connect customer needs with business strategy, technology, and service delivery. He brings more than 40 years of leadership experience spanning engineering, operations, IT, product development, portfolio management, and enterprise transformation. Before joining Puget Sound Energy, Doug held consulting and leadership roles with LeadingAgile, Premera Blue Cross, AT&T, and DIRECTV, where he guided digital portfolios, agile transformations, and customer-focused product delivery. Throughout his career, he has specialized in simplifying complex processes, aligning strategy with execution, and building collaborative, high-performing teams focused on continuous improvement and measurable customer value.
Amanda Townsend, Director, Oncor
As Director of Contact Center Operations at Oncor, Amanda’s role spans all customer engagement channels, from social media to text platforms. With almost 20 years of experience focusing on customers, she challenges her teams to think big when it comes to creating solutions and look for new ways to leverage data and technology. From proactive notifications to providing customers with a differentiated experience, creating digital solutions combined with customer service agent training is Amanda’s focus at Oncor.
Brandy Spainhoward, Director of Utility Marketing, CenterPoint Energy
Brandy Spainhoward is Director of Utility Marketing at CenterPoint Energy, where she leads enterprise marketing efforts supporting more than seven million customers across multiple states. She oversees marketing strategy, analytics, digital channels, creative services, customer communications, and brand management, while helping guide major initiatives including corporate rebranding, customer engagement programs, and crisis communications. With more than 25 years of experience in marketing and communications, Brandy has held leadership roles at CenterPoint, Vectren, and Anchor Industries. She is known for driving digital transformation, strengthening customer engagement, and helping utilities communicate effectively during periods of change and major operational events.
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