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Bend to menu (ONB-SC14)

Scenario 1 – Emergency Water Main Break Response

Scenario Description A water utility needs to rapidly coordinate emergency response across multiple system modules when a major water main breaks, requiring immediate access to asset data, customer notifications, work orders, and billing adjustments.

Objective (Why)

  • Business Goal: Minimize service disruption time and coordinate cross-departmental emergency response efficiently
  • Consumer Goal: Restore water service quickly with transparent communication about outage duration and billing adjustments
  • Operational Goal: Streamline emergency workflows by eliminating navigation delays between critical system modules

If Not Set – Business Impact

  • Revenue Loss: Extended outages due to navigation delays could cost $50,000+ per hour in lost revenue and regulatory penalties
  • Customer Dissatisfaction: Poor coordination leads to inadequate customer communication, resulting in 200+ complaint calls and potential regulatory scrutiny
  • Operational Inefficiency: Staff waste 15-20 minutes per emergency navigating between modules instead of focusing on resolution

Scenario Explanation - in short When a 24-inch water main breaks on Elm Street affecting 1,200 customers, Emergency Response Coordinator Sarah Martinez needs to:

  1. Access Asset Management to locate the break and identify affected infrastructure
  2. Switch to Service Orders to dispatch repair crews and equipment
  3. Navigate to Consumer Services to identify affected customers and priority accounts (hospitals, schools)
  4. Use Communication Hub to send outage notifications to 1,200 customers
  5. Access Billing module to process automatic credits for extended outages Currently, Sarah spends 8-12 minutes navigating between these modules. With Bento Menu, she can access each module with one click, reducing coordination time to under 3 minutes.

Audience (Why it Matters) - in short

  • CSM: Must quickly access customer data to handle emergency calls and provide accurate restoration timelines to affected customers
  • QA: Must test rapid module switching under emergency conditions and validate that all data remains accurate when quickly moving between Asset Management, Service Orders, and Customer Services
  • Engineers/Interns: Must understand how emergency workflows depend on seamless data flow between asset location, work order creation, customer identification, and billing adjustment processes

Does it fit in SMART360 Yes, this scenario perfectly fits the Bento Menu user story.

Step-by-step example:

  1. Emergency Detection: Sarah receives alert about water main break at 2:15 PM
  2. Access Bento Menu: From any screen, clicks main menu button to display 4x3 module grid
  3. Asset Management (click tile):
    • Location: "Asset Management" tile (bottom left)
    • Action: Identify break location using GIS coordinates (Elm Street, Valve #EM-1247)
    • Time: 30 seconds vs 2 minutes with traditional navigation
  4. Return to Bento Menu: Single click on home button
  5. Service Orders (click tile):
    • Location: "Service Orders" tile (middle left)
    • Action: Create emergency work order #WO-2024-5893, assign Crew Alpha with excavator
    • Time: 45 seconds vs 2.5 minutes traditionally
  6. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  7. Consumer Services (click tile):
    • Location: "Consumer Services" tile (top right)
    • Action: Identify 1,247 affected customers, flag 3 priority accounts (General Hospital, Elementary School)
    • Time: 1 minute vs 3 minutes traditionally
  8. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  9. Communication Hub (click tile):
    • Location: "Communication Hub" tile (bottom middle)
    • Action: Send SMS/email to 1,247 customers: "Water outage affecting your area. Estimated restoration: 6 PM. Updates at CityWater.com"
    • Time: 1 minute vs 2.5 minutes traditionally
  10. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  11. Billing (click tile):
    • Location: "Billing" tile (middle right)
    • Action: Queue automatic 10% credit for accounts experiencing 4+ hour outage
    • Time: 30 seconds vs 2 minutes traditionally

Total coordination time: 4 minutes with Bento Menu vs 12+ minutes with traditional navigation Result: Water service restored by 5:45 PM instead of projected 6:30 PM due to improved coordination efficiency

Scenario 2 – Monthly Billing Cycle Quality Assurance

Scenario Description A utility billing manager needs to verify billing accuracy across multiple data sources and systems before releasing monthly bills to 25,000 customers, requiring seamless navigation between meter data, billing calculations, and customer account information.

Objective (Why)

  • Business Goal: Ensure 99.9% billing accuracy to avoid revenue loss and reduce customer disputes
  • Consumer Goal: Receive accurate, timely bills with transparent consumption data and rate calculations
  • Compliance Goal: Meet regulatory requirements for billing accuracy and customer data protection

If Not Set – Business Impact

  • Revenue Risk: Billing errors could result in $200,000+ in disputed charges and potential refunds
  • Regulatory Issues: Failed billing audits may trigger $50,000+ in compliance penalties
  • Customer Service Overload: Inaccurate bills generate 500+ customer service calls, overwhelming staff resources

Scenario Explanation - in short Billing Manager Robert Chen performs monthly billing validation for Metro Water District's 25,000 residential customers. His quality assurance process requires:

  1. Reviewing meter data accuracy and identifying anomalies
  2. Validating billing calculations against current rate structures
  3. Checking customer account statuses for billing holds or adjustments
  4. Running billing reports to identify outliers and exceptions
  5. Generating customer communications for billing cycle notifications With traditional navigation, Robert spends 45 minutes switching between modules. The Bento Menu reduces this to 15 minutes, allowing more thorough quality checks.

Audience (Why it Matters) - in short

  • CSM: Must quickly access billing details when customers call with questions about charges, consumption patterns, or payment due dates
  • QA: Must test billing calculation accuracy across multiple rate structures and validate that meter data correctly flows into billing calculations
  • Engineers/Interns: Must understand the relationship between meter readings, rate applications, account adjustments, and final bill generation processes

Does it fit in SMART360 Yes, this scenario aligns perfectly with the Bento Menu functionality.

Step-by-step example:

  1. Start Monthly QA Process: Robert begins billing cycle validation at 9:00 AM
  2. Access Bento Menu: Opens module grid from dashboard
  3. Meter Data (click tile):
    • Location: "Meter Data" tile (top middle)
    • Action: Review 25,000 meter readings, identify 47 anomalies (readings >200% of historical average)
    • Sample data: Account #12847 shows 15,000 gallons vs typical 3,500 gallons
    • Time: 8 minutes vs 12 minutes traditionally
  4. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  5. Plan & Tariff (click tile):
    • Location: "Plan & Tariff" tile (top left)
    • Action: Verify current residential rate: Tier 1: $2.85/1000 gal (0-5,000 gal), Tier 2: $4.15/1000 gal (5,001-15,000 gal)
    • Time: 2 minutes vs 4 minutes traditionally
  6. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  7. Billing (click tile):
    • Location: "Billing" tile (middle right)
    • Action: Run billing calculations, verify Account #12847 charge: $57.25 (5,000 gal × $2.85 + 10,000 gal × $4.15)
    • Time: 5 minutes vs 8 minutes traditionally
  8. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  9. Consumer Services (click tile):
    • Location: "Consumer Services" tile (top right)
    • Action: Check Account #12847 for billing holds, payment plans, or service notes - found leak repair completed last month
    • Time: 3 minutes vs 6 minutes traditionally
  10. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  11. Reports & Analytics (click tile):
    • Location: "Reports & Analytics" tile (bottom left)
    • Action: Generate billing exception report showing 127 accounts with >50% consumption increase
    • Time: 2 minutes vs 5 minutes traditionally

Total QA time: 20 minutes with Bento Menu vs 35 minutes traditional navigation Result: Identified and corrected 23 billing errors before bill release, preventing estimated $12,500 in disputed charges and customer service calls

Scenario 3 – New Customer Service Connection

Scenario Description A utility needs to process a new residential service connection, requiring coordination between customer account setup, service order creation, asset assignment, and billing configuration across multiple system modules.

Objective (Why)

  • Business Goal: Complete new service connections within 24 hours to capture revenue and meet service commitments
  • Consumer Goal: Receive prompt service activation with clear billing information and account access
  • Operational Goal: Streamline new connection workflows to reduce processing time and eliminate data entry errors

If Not Set – Business Impact

  • Revenue Delay: Each day of delay in service connection represents $125 average lost revenue per customer
  • Customer Dissatisfaction: Delayed connections result in 40% of customers expressing dissatisfaction with utility service
  • Operational Inefficiency: Staff spend 60% of time navigating systems instead of processing applications

Scenario Explanation - in short Customer Service Representative Maria Lopez processes a new water service connection for Jennifer Thompson at 1425 Oak Drive. The process requires:

  1. Creating customer account with contact and billing information
  2. Setting up service address and connection details
  3. Assigning meter and scheduling installation work order
  4. Configuring billing plan and rate structure
  5. Generating welcome packet and account access information Traditional navigation takes 25 minutes per connection. With Bento Menu, Maria completes connections in 12 minutes, doubling her daily processing capacity from 16 to 32 connections.

Audience (Why it Matters) - in short

  • CSM: Must efficiently guide customers through account setup and explain billing options, service timelines, and account management features
  • QA: Must test that customer data correctly flows between account creation, service orders, meter assignment, and billing setup without errors
  • Engineers/Interns: Must understand how customer onboarding creates relationships between account management, asset assignment, work scheduling, and billing configuration

Does it fit in SMART360 Yes, this scenario demonstrates excellent fit with the Bento Menu user story.

Step-by-step example:

  1. Customer Application: Jennifer Thompson requests new water service at 10:30 AM
  2. Access Bento Menu: Maria opens module grid from current screen
  3. Consumer Services (click tile):
    • Location: "Consumer Services" tile (top right)
    • Action: Create account #CS-89247 for Jennifer Thompson
    • Data: Name, phone (555-0147), email (jthompson@email.com), service address: 1425 Oak Drive
    • Time: 3 minutes vs 5 minutes traditionally
  4. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  5. Asset Management (click tile):
    • Location: "Asset Management" tile (bottom middle)
    • Action: Assign available meter #WM-5847 to 1425 Oak Drive service point
    • Configure: 5/8" residential meter, location coordinates, read route R-47
    • Time: 2 minutes vs 4 minutes traditionally
  6. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  7. Service Orders (click tile):
    • Location: "Service Orders" tile (middle left)
    • Action: Create work order #SO-2024-8821 for meter installation
    • Schedule: Technician Team B, tomorrow 9 AM-12 PM appointment window
    • Time: 2 minutes vs 4 minutes traditionally
  8. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  9. Plan & Tariff (click tile):
    • Location: "Plan & Tariff" tile (top left)
    • Action: Assign residential rate plan: Base charge $18.50/month + $2.85 per 1,000 gallons
    • Time: 1 minute vs 3 minutes traditionally
  10. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  11. Billing (click tile):
    • Location: "Billing" tile (middle right)
    • Action: Set up billing cycle (monthly, 15th), payment preferences (auto-pay), deposit ($75)
    • Time: 2 minutes vs 4 minutes traditionally
  12. Return to Bento Menu: Single click
  13. Communication Hub (click tile):
    • Location: "Communication Hub" tile (bottom middle)
    • Action: Send welcome email with account number, installation appointment, and billing information
    • Time: 1 minute vs 3 minutes traditionally

Total connection time: 11 minutes with Bento Menu vs 23 minutes traditional navigation Result: Service connection completed same day, customer receives service next morning, billing configured correctly from start

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